Two Sunday Mornings at South Highland
Worship gathers twice each Sunday at South Highland Presbyterian Church. The 8:30 a.m. service takes place in the Chapel, an intimate room framed by stained-glass windows designed and made by the D'Ascenzo Studios of Philadelphia. The 11 a.m. service takes place in the historic Sanctuary. Both services follow what the congregation calls a "traditional yet relaxed" order: prayer, Scripture reading, hymn singing, a sermon, and the celebration of Baptism and the Lord's Supper.
Sunday School meets at 9:30 a.m., between the two services. Childcare is available in the nursery for children 2 and under from 8:30 a.m. until noon. Children 3 years old through 5th grade have Sunday School at 9:30, and during the 11 a.m. service children age 3 through kindergarten sit with their parents in the sanctuary and then leave after the children's message.
An 1888 Congregation in the Five Points South Neighborhood
Founded in 1888, South Highland Presbyterian Church is one of the oldest congregations in Birmingham, Alabama. It stands at the corner of Highland Avenue and Richard Arrington Jr. Boulevard in the Southside/Five Points South neighborhood, and members drive in from across the city and its suburbs. The congregation is a member of the Presbytery of Sheppards and Lapsley of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and describes itself as "dynamic, welcoming, and historic," with a Christ-centered rhythm of worship, study, belonging, and service. It is governed by a Session of Elders and by Deacons.
Three booklets record the church's history. A Heritage of Witness was written for the 100th anniversary in 1988. A second edition covered 1989 to 2001 and documented the dedication of the Legacy building in 1997 and the opening of the South Highland Center adult day care. A third edition, published in 2014, carried the story through the 2000s and the church's 125th year. The three are bound together and kept in the church library.
Sunday School for Every Stage of Life
At 9:30 a.m. Sundays, adult classes gather across the building. Marketplace People, a multi-generational class that mixes inductive Bible study with online participation, works through Genesis by Zoom and in Room G-9. Inquirers Class keeps a discussion format with 12 to 20 members and currently uses Walter Brueggemann's Truth and Hope: Essays for a Perilous Age. Upper Room, a multi-generational group, walks through N.T. Wright's two-volume Romans for Everyone in Room G-15 and on Zoom. Compass Class, designed for adults in their 50s and early 60s, pairs discussion with Sandra Richter's The Epic of Eden. Making a Home for Faith, in the Builders Classroom, walks through Jonah with Tim Keller's Rediscovering Jonah as a companion text. New Covenant meets in the library conference room. Connected in Christ, led by Assistant Minister for Discipleship Emily Knight, gathers primarily young adults for topical and book-by-book study. A separate youth Sunday School meets for 7th through 12th graders. Visitors are welcome in any of them.
Organs, Choirs, and a Gospel-Bluegrass Band
The Sanctuary is home to a 35-rank M.P. Moeller Pipe Organ (Opus 9871), installed in 1964 and later restored with the addition of a Trompette en chamade in memory and honor of Bob and Carolyn Hunter. Director of Music Ministries Kenny Lewis plays the instrument most Sundays. Across the building, the Chapel houses a 1926 E.M. Skinner Pipe Organ that once anchored Ensley Highlands Presbyterian Church and was restored and relocated to South Highland in 2014.
The Chancel Choir rehearses Sundays at 12:30 p.m. and leads the congregation in hymn singing and choral anthems from Bach and Handel through John Rutter and Dan Forrest. The Handbell Choir rings five octaves of Schulmerich handbells from August through May. A Children's Choir sings during the children's Sunday School hour and leads worship several times a year. The No Longer Strangers Band, a gospel-bluegrass and folk group resident at the church, leads Sunday worship on a biannual basis and at events across the Birmingham area. Musicians who play guitar, drums, violin, or trumpet are invited to step in alongside the ensembles.
Children and Students at South Highland
Children's Ministry at South Highland is organized around Lifeway's The Gospel Project, a chronological Bible curriculum that walks children from Genesis to Revelation over a three-year cycle. Director of Children's Ministry Ann Roth oversees the program, which meets in the Small Auditorium for ages 3 through 5th grade.
Student Ministry runs from 6th grade through college. Confirmation is offered for 6th graders who wish to confirm their baptismal vows. The 7th through 12th grade youth group combines fellowship, food, and Bible study, with retreats, summer trips, and service projects layered in. During the school year, the youth group meets for dinner and small-group study on Sunday nights from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Wednesdays add Youth Highland Wednesdays from 5:30 to 7:00 p.m. in the Youth Suite. Pastoral Resident David Yancey oversees the student ministry.
Presbyterian Women and Women's Studies
Presbyterian Women organizes a network of Circles that meet on different days and in different locations. Esther Circle gathers over dinner on second-Monday evenings in members' homes. Morning Circle 1 meets at 10:30 a.m. on second Mondays at Kirkwood-by-the-River in Hoover. Morning Circle 2 meets at the church and on Zoom at 10:30 a.m. on second Mondays. The 35226-ers Circle gathers on third-Tuesday evenings in Bluff Park in Hoover. The current Circle study is Rhashell D. Hunter's Finding Resilience, Joy, and Our Identity in Jesus Christ.
Beyond the Circles, the church hosts a Women's Prayer Group on Thursdays at 1:00 p.m., led by Rev. Abby Gatliff. Periodic Bible studies walk through a single book of the Bible, with archived audio posted for those who cannot attend; a recent four-week walk through the book of Ruth is available to listen to at the church's audio archive.
Saturday Showers, Feed My Sheep, and SHOP
South Highland's local missions bring the congregation into Birmingham's Southside. Saturday Showers opens the church's circle drive to unhoused neighbors each Saturday morning for a hot shower and friendly conversation. Feed My Sheep distributes bags of groceries twice a month to families in need. The South Highland Outreach Project (SHOP), a faith-based program for people living with mental illness, brings participants together on Thursdays for fellowship, peer support, guest speakers, and lunch.
South Highland works alongside a long list of local partners. Alcoholics Anonymous meets at the church on Saturday mornings, and an Al-Anon Family Group gathers on Wednesday afternoons. STAIR tutors pair with one student at a time at Hayes K-8 School in the church's neighborhood. Kairos Prison Ministry sends a volunteer team into Donaldson Correctional Facility twice a year. Habitat for Humanity has drawn SHPC volunteers and funding for more than 25 years. Other partners include Family Promise Birmingham, Firehouse Ministries, Greater Birmingham Ministries, the Good Samaritan Fund, the Lovelady Center, Presbyterian Home for Children, the South Highland Center adult day care, and the SHPC Child Development Center.
A Global Reach from the Heart of Alabama
Internationally, South Highland supports mission work across several continents. Active partnerships include Development in Gardening (DIG), Frontier Fellowship, the Finding Hope Foundation, the Lovemore Home in Zimbabwe, the Presbyterian Education Board of Pakistan, the Honduras Eye Health Project, the Outreach Foundation, and mission support in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Madagascar, Mozambique, South Sudan, the Middle East, and Pakistan. Each February, the church dedicates teaching and giving to Global Witness Season.
Sermons, a Podcast, and a Mobile App
The Word from South Highland podcast distributes the weekly sermons through Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, and iHeartRadio. A second podcast, Common Life, pairs Senior Pastor Cort Gatliff in conversation with pastors, authors, theologians, and lay people on questions of faith and culture. Whole services are archived on South Highland's YouTube channel stretching back several years, with sermon start times bookmarked in the archive. The sermon archive also organizes messages by book of the Bible, speaker, and series. The SHPC mobile app pulls sermon audio, event registration, and the church calendar onto a single device.
Leadership and a Note for First-Time Visitors
Senior Pastor Cort Gatliff is supported by Associate Pastor Abby Gatliff, Assistant Minister for Discipleship Emily Knight, Pastoral Resident David Yancey, Director of Music Ministries Kenny Lewis, and Director of Children's Ministry Ann Roth. Two parking lots serve the building: one along 13th Avenue South to the side of the church, and another behind the building at the corner of 13th Avenue South and Richard Arrington Jr. Boulevard, which reserves handicap spaces. Free street parking is also available on Highland Avenue in the evenings and on weekends. Attendees wear everything from suits and dresses to tee shirts and shorts. The church office is open Monday through Thursday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and on Fridays from 8:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.