Everybody is Welcome at Mount Moriah.
For over 130 years, Mount Moriah has served as a Progressive Witness of Jesus Christ in Pembroke and North Bryan County. At Mount Moriah, you find yourself in a warm and welcoming environment that will allow you to experience real folks abiding in community, loving each other, and serving God. As a small congregation in a beautiful rural setting, we have convenient parking located near the front entrance for our first-time guests. Our Mount Moriah Ushers will be glad to help you find a seat for the worship service.
Beyond hospitality, Mount Moriah is committed to being Christian stewards of love. As such, we practice love, build the beloved community, and pursue social justice. We believe the overwhelming message of the Bible, in story after story, is that of God's radical love and welcome. Every time we think we know who's in and who's out, God does something to challenge those assumptions, unbind our hearts and minds from old ways of understanding, and draw the circle ever wider.
Our doors are wide open to people from all backgrounds, regardless of where they are on their spiritual journey. Together, we are striving to become a place where there's relevant teaching, heart-felt worship, honest friendships, constant prayer, and compassionate care. So whether you are a spiritual seeker who is just starting to ask questions about God or a committed Christian who wants to sink the roots of your faith even deeper, you can find a home here at Mount Moriah!
Enjoy Connection
THROUGH WORSHIP | Sunday services start at Noon, following Sunday School, on the First, Second, and Fourth Sundays. Learn more.
THROUGH STUDY | Sunday School for all ages begins at 11:30 a.m. Additionally, there is a Morning Devotion every Wednesday at 6:30 am. Just dial 717.908.1726 and use Passcode 1065315# to participate. Learn more.
THROUGH SERVICE | One of the most important values of Mount Moriah is our mission to the Pembroke community. Mount Moriah's members are involved in a variety of church-based ministries and community partnerships. Feel free to contact our Church Clerk with further questions.
Impact Through Ministry
Flourishing: Choose Joy This Advent
In this Advent season, we turn our hearts toward Mary of Nazareth, the young woman who chose joy in the face of impossibility. She was poor, marginalized, and misunderstood, yet she said yes to God’s call. Her “yes” was not born of comfort but of courage. Mary reminds us that joy is not a mood; it is a movement.
We see that same spirit in our own story. During the long night of slavery, when the whip cracked, and freedom was only a rumor, our ancestors still sang. In hush arbors and fields, they whispered “Steal Away to Jesus.” They dared to rejoice when there was no reason to rejoice. That was not foolishness — it was faith. Like Mary, they believed that even in the darkness, God was birthing something new. To choose joy, then, is to stand in that same lineage of holy defiance. It is believed that even now, amid economic hardship, political confusion, and social unrest, God is still making a way out of no way.
Here are seven ways to practice joy this Advent — seven disciplines that keep us human and hopeful in the waiting:
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Rest Without Guilt - Rest is not laziness; it is liberation. Take sacred pauses. Turn off the noise. Sit still and breathe. When you rest, you declare that your work does not measure your worth. Rest says, “My body belongs to God, not to empire.”
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Remember the Good - Joy begins with gratitude. Each day, name one thing that still brings you life — a sunrise, a song, a child’s laughter, a meal shared. Gratitude does not erase pain, but it teaches the heart to see beyond it.
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Rejoice in Community - Mary ran to Elizabeth, and together they shouted for joy. Find your Elizabeth. Gather with those who remind you of who you are. Call that old friend, share a meal, sing together. Joy is too heavy to carry alone.
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Resist Scarcity Thinking - Empire teaches there is never enough — not enough money, time, or love. But faith whispers, “There is always enough in God.” Give what you can. Share what you have. Generosity is a joy strategy that breaks the grip of fear.
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Reimagine the Future - Afrofuturist theologian Melva Sampson reminds us that joy is an act of imagination. Picture a world where our children thrive, where our elders rest without worry, and where Black families flourish without apology. Advent invites us to dream forward — to practice tomorrow’s joy today.
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Reclaim Celebration - Joy is a protest. Celebrate your survival. Mark your milestones. Dance even when the world is trembling. As Dr. Gina Stewart often says, “Joy is not the absence of pain but the refusal to let pain have the last word.”
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Renew Your Commitment to Justice - Eddie Glaude reminds us that democracy dies when joy disappears. Let your joy move you to do justice. Feed the hungry, teach the children, organize your neighbors, vote with conviction, love without condition. Joy that serves is joy that saves.
Our ancestors knew it. Mary knew it. Joy is both testimony and tool. To choose joy this Advent is to join a holy rebellion — to stand with Mary, Harriet, Fannie Lou, and every weary soul who dared to believe that something sacred could still be born in them and through them. “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.” — Luke 1:46–47
Throughout December, we are Choosing JOY as an Advent Practice.
As we do life together, here are some important events for you at Mount Moriah.
MEMBERSHIP CLASS
Introducing a Membership Class at Magnolia will be held on the Fourth Sunday of each month at 11:30 a.m., beginning in January. This two-part class is for every member, whether new or lifelong, who wants a deeper understanding of our church, our faith, and their role in this ministry. Grow with us as we learn, serve, and walk together.
ANNUAL CHURCH CONFERENCE
Our Annual Church Conference will be held on Wednesday, December 10, 2025, at 6 p.m. at the church. All members are encouraged to attend as we set the 2025 calendar, approve the budget, confirm officers, and celebrate what God has done. Let us close out 2025 strong and step into the new year with clarity and unity.
CHRISTMAS CANDLELIGHT SERVICE
Our Christmas Service will be held on Sunday, December 21, 2025, at 6 p.m. This special celebration will feature our youth and college ministry, the sounds of the season, and holiday refreshments for all to enjoy. Click to join the Church Gift Exchange.
WATCH NIGHT SERVICE
Watch Night will be held on December 31, 2025, at 10:30 p.m. as our SIster Church, Magnolia Baptist Church of Statesboro, hosts this annual gathering with our area churches. Join us for worship, reflection, and thanksgiving as we close the year together in faith and fellowship.
December's Calendar
Minister's Appreciation
In November, we gave thanks for the spiritual leaders who preach, teach, comfort, and guide our church family. Ministers walk with us through joy and sorrow; they nurture our faith, stand with us in struggle, and point us toward the hope found in Jesus Christ. Honoring them is both biblical and necessary, for their labor strengthens the entire body of Christ.
On Sunday, November 23, 2025, Mount Moriah hosted a Minister’s Appreciation Luncheon following the worship service to express our gratitude for those who serve in ministry.
This year, we joyfully celebrated 26 years as pastor and people with our beloved shepherd, Rev. Dr. Francys Johnson. We give thanks for his prophetic leadership, faithful preaching, compassionate service, and unwavering commitment to our flourishing.
Building Fund
“Building on Faith, Preparing for the Future”
At the height of the pandemic, when times were uncertain and many walked away, those who remained at Mount Moriah made a bold commitment: to modernize our campus so that this 135-year-old church could continue to serve this present age with strength and excellence.
That commitment has already produced powerful results. With more than $125,000 invested, we have:
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Installed a new energy-efficient heating and air system
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Gutted and rebuilt the Fellowship Hall, Administrative spaces, and Classrooms from the studs up
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Brought electrical, plumbing, and gas systems to modern code
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Renovated every bathroom with new fixtures and ceramic tile
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Upgraded the kitchen with new cabinets, flooring, and appliances
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Relocated and refreshed the Church Office
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Renovated the Pastor's Study to host guests and serve our families.
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Revitalized classrooms for Youth Ministry and Christian education
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New computers, phones, and security systems
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New Church signage outside and directional signage inside.
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Upgraded high-speed internet with expanded wifi capabilities
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Created a Conference Room honoring Pastor Eugene Amos Hagins
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Laid new hardwood flooring and carpet throughout the Fellowship Hall, Administrative spaces, and classrooms.
Yet the vision is not complete. The next phase requires replacing the entire exterior roofing system, ensuring our renewed spaces are protected for generations to come. The final phase will fully modernize our Sanctuary from top to bottom, creating a sacred space that is welcoming, accessible, and designed for the worship needs of families today.
This is more than renovation—it is renewal. More than construction—it is a covenant. Every gift to the Building Fund is a seed of faith, planted in the soil of our 135-year witness.
We need your support and help. Every contribution—large or small—brings us closer to finishing the work. Please follow the link and chip in today. Together, we can ensure Mount Moriah remains “The Church with the Helping Hands” for another century and beyond.
About Community
Established in 1890, the Mount Moriah Baptist Church has stood as a physical representation of the hope and determination of the African-American spirit. Through the years as a school, community center, and civil rights organizing meeting hall, Mount Moriah has always served people through its Watch, Witness, and Worship.
At Mount Moriah, all our resources are utilized to provide a Christ-centered setting where people in this community can be redeemed to a personal relationship with Christ, reconciled to God and his people, restored to wholeness, to well-being, and revived for a full life involved in service to others.
At Mount Moriah, you can be redeemed, reconciled, restored, and revived. Let's go!
Show Your Pride
Show your Mount Moriah pride wherever you go! Visit The Mount Moriah Shop to browse exclusive shirts, sweatshirts, mugs, and other items that celebrate our church’s spirit of faith, service, and community.
We are proud to partner with Black- and minority-owned businesses to source, produce, and distribute our products — keeping our ministry rooted in economic justice and community empowerment. Every purchase supports the ministries and mission of Mount Moriah Baptist Church.
Our
The Reverend Dr. Francys Johnson well serves Mount Moriah Missionary Baptist Church. The pulpit of Mount Moriah has long provided community-wide leadership.
Over the last 25 years, Dr. Johnson has also exemplified the values of Christian service with humility before the congregation of Pembroke. He is also the Senior Pastor of the Magnolia Baptist Church of Statesboro. First Lady Meca Williams-Johnson’s particular success in youth programming and academic mentoring is an asset to the ministries of Mount Moriah. Further, they are ambassadors of our faith community to the region and nation.