Shiloh Missionary Baptist Church sits at 1150 Westview Drive SW on Atlanta's west side, where the same congregation that began meeting in 1886 has now worshipped for more than four decades. The brick building, raised in 1980 on land purchased two years earlier, is home to a blended, Spirit-filled congregation led since 2015 by Rev. Phillip R. A. Spann. Members travel from across metropolitan Atlanta to attend Sunday School at 8:30 a.m., gather for worship at 10 a.m., and return on Wednesday evenings for Bible study. The church is also a hub of community outreach, anchored by an uncommon jobs ministry that has become one of its best-known programs.
From Greens Ferry to Westview Drive
Shiloh was founded in 1886 by Rev. J. H. Hall and soon placed under the leadership of Rev. Tom Reed. In 1897, Rev. W. H. Lowe and several trustees purchased property at 713 Greens Ferry Avenue, paying off the $11.60 mortgage held by the Merchants and Mechanics Banking and Loan Company over eight years. That lot became the site of Shiloh's first church building. Between 1886 and 1925 the congregation was shaped by a long line of pastors, including Rev. B. R. Porter, Rev. William Williams, Rev. L. H. Mills, Rev. McIver, Rev. Collins, and Rev. Charles Hubert. One of them, Rev. Benjamin E. Mays, went on to become a nationally recognized educator, activist, and orator.
In 1926, Rev. William P. King, Sr. succeeded Mays and pastored Shiloh for thirty-two years, the second-longest tenure in the church's history. Under his leadership, Shiloh sold the Greens Ferry Avenue property in 1934 and on March 5, 1935 dedicated a new house of worship at 812 Beckwith Street. Rev. Clarence J. Gresham followed in 1958, installing pews and adding the church's first piano and organ, and creating the C. J. Gresham Courtesy Guild, the Faithful Few Club, and the Deaconess Board.
Rev. James H. Sims, Jr. began his pastorate in 1975 and would serve for forty years, becoming Shiloh's longest-tenured pastor and, upon his retirement in 2015, Pastor Emeritus. Early in his tenure the congregation formally changed its name to Shiloh Missionary Baptist Church, Inc. In 1978 the church purchased the Westview Drive site. Groundbreaking came in April 1979 and construction began the following month. After a final service at 812 Beckwith Street on December 16, 1979, the congregation worshipped at M. Agnes Jones Elementary School until the new sanctuary opened on September 7, 1980. Since 2000 Shiloh has completed additional building projects, purchased more property, and grown its membership.
A Pulpit for Today: Rev. Phillip R. A. Spann
Rev. Phillip R. A. Spann was called as Shiloh's sixth senior pastor on February 8, 2015 and installed on April 1 of that year. Born in the Bronx and raised in Orangeburg, South Carolina, he is a 1997 graduate of Orangeburg-Wilkerson High School and a 2001 graduate of South Carolina State University, where he earned a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice. After relocating to Atlanta in 2003, he served as a mentor and counselor with Atlanta Public Schools and earned a Master of Arts in Ministry from Luther Rice Seminary in 2007.
Spann first walked through Shiloh's doors in 2010 and was licensed that year, ordained on May 1, 2011 under Pastor Sims, and named Associate Minister of Youth and Young Adults. He also served as worship leader, Bible study teacher, and a leader in the Prison Outreach Ministry. Called to the senior pastorate in 2015, he has been named Moderator of the Atlanta Missionary Baptist Association and serves as Chairman of S.A.L.T. Ministries of Atlanta, Inc.
Under Spann, Shiloh has welcomed more than 350 new members, replaced the church roof, launched the Saved and Social Media Ministry, and stood up a Security Ministry (2015), the LHL Health and Wellness Ministry (2017), and the E3 Jobs Ministry (2017). He also established the Intercessory Prayer Ministry with a vision of Shiloh as a house of prayer for all nations, restructured the budget to allocate 10 percent to missions through the Fundamental Approach, and launched OPERATION EXODUS, the church's first Lifestyle Stewardship Capital Campaign, aimed at retiring the building debt.
Three Pillars: Evangelizing, Empowering, Exalting
Shiloh organizes its ministry life around three pillars drawn from the church's mission: Evangelizing the Doomed, Empowering the Disciple, and Exalting the Divine. Each pillar is led by a coordinator who reports to the Senior Pastor.
The Evangelizing Pillar gathers Shiloh's outreach into the surrounding community. It includes the Missions and Outreach Ministry, Garments of Grace (a clothing and food pantry), Prison Ministry, Tutorial Service, Transportation Ministry, and the We Care Ministry.
The Empowering Pillar covers Christian education and formation. It houses Bereavement, Brotherhood, Christian Education, Cleaning, History Committee, Living Healthy, Media and Audio-Visual, Mothers', Nurses' Guild, Pastor's Aide, Saved and Social Media, Security, Singles, Sisterhood, and Sunday School ministries, along with the E3 Jobs Ministry and Youth Ministry.
The Exalting Pillar focuses on worship and prayer. It includes the Courtesy Guild, Intercessory Prayer Ministry, Mime and Liturgical Dance Ministry, Music Ministry, and Ushers' Ministry.
E3: Equipped and Empowered for Employment
Launched in 2017, the E3 Jobs Ministry is one of the most visible expressions of Shiloh's mission beyond its walls. E3 stands for Equipped and Empowered for Employment, and the ministry walks church members and neighbors from the surrounding community through work readiness, job search, and long-term career growth. Programming includes an ongoing speaker series, development workshops, and continuously updated job postings. Inquiries can be sent to e3@smbcatl.org.
A Week at Shiloh
Sunday morning begins at 8:30 a.m. with Sunday School, an hour of small-group study running until 9:30 a.m. Corporate worship begins at 10:00 a.m. and typically runs an hour and forty-five minutes. The service is authentic, sincere, and Holy Spirit led, with music that ranges from traditional hymns to contemporary worship songs. Each Sunday's message is also livestreamed at 10 a.m. and archived on the church's YouTube channel.
On Wednesdays the church gathers for Wednesdays in the Word at 7:00 p.m., a Bible study open to anyone who wants to call in by phone: dial 1-302-202-1119 and enter access code 386502.
Visitors who want to know what to wear can take their cue from the members. On Sunday mornings men commonly wear suits, slacks with polo or dress shirts, and women wear suits, dresses, skirts with tops, or slacks. Wednesday night attire is casual.
What We Believe
Shiloh's statement of faith affirms that the Old and New Testaments are verbally inspired by God and inerrant in the original writings, and that they are the supreme and final authority for faith and life. The church teaches one true God existing in three Persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and confesses Jesus Christ as the Son of God, born of the virgin Mary, crucified on Calvary as a vicarious substitute, buried, raised bodily, and ascended to the Father. The Holy Spirit is named the chief agent in regeneration, the chief convictor of sin, and the chief comforter of the believer.
Salvation, in Shiloh's understanding, is by faith in Christ and involves redemption, regeneration, sanctification, and glorification. The church teaches a literal, visible, personal, pre-millennial, pre-tribulational return of Christ for His Church, the eternal blessedness of heaven for the redeemed, and the everlasting conscious torment of hell for the unredeemed. Shiloh observes two ordinances, baptism by immersion and the Lord's Supper, and affirms the priesthood of all believers, the eternal security of the saved, and the independence of the local New Testament church under Christ as its head and the Holy Spirit as its guide.
Reaching Beyond the Walls: The S.O.U.R.C.E.
S.O.U.R.C.E. stands for Shiloh's Outreach, Unveiling the Routine of Christ's Example. Through the SOURCE initiative, the church coordinates ongoing community work that ranges from the Garments of Grace food and clothing pantry to prison visitation, transportation for those who need a ride to services, the Tutorial Service for students, and visits through the We Care Ministry. Prayer requests can be submitted online, and the Intercessory Prayer Ministry lifts them up weekly.
Getting Connected
Anyone interested in serving can fill out the Get Involved form online, selecting ministries under each of the three pillars. Newcomers can find a visitor's guide in the Info for Visitors section, and online giving is available through the church's Realm portal. Shiloh Missionary Baptist Church is located at 1150 Westview Drive SW, Atlanta, Georgia 30310, and can be reached at 404-755-7161 or info@smbcatl.org.