Our Vision
Our vision is to model a loving, healthy, engaged, diverse, Christ-centered church that is growing spiritually and numerically, reaching out locally and globally.
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Second Baptist Church of Germantown
Our Beliefs
We believe that God is the Creator and spiritual force of our lives. This force has been revealed to us through the birth, life, death, and resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit is our earthly companion and ambassador through our time on the earth.
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We believe the Bible is the inspired Word of God.
Our Mission
Our Mission is to share the good news and love of Jesus Christ with everyone and to invite all of God's diverse family into a prayerful loving relationship with God,
self, and one another.
Our History
Second Baptist Church of Germantown was founded in 1866 by a small group of thirty-two people, led by two lay persons, George Nugent and Charles Cummings. The church grew out of the first Sunday school, which had been formed in 1859 as an outreach of the First Baptist Church of Germantown.
In 1970, a disastrous fire destroyed our sanctuary. This tragic event saddened our hearts, but not our spirits. Through renovations, our current, beautiful, air-conditioned sanctuary was created from part of the original building that had been used for church school assemblies, dinners, and other social events. The original entrance to our former Romanesque sanctuary continues to stand as a memorial tribute in the front of the garden adjacent to the church.
Our Pastor
Rev. Dr. Crystal Jennings was called to the be the ninth pastor, the first female and first African-American, of the Second Baptist Church of Germantown. Read more about her historic installation here.
Rev. Dr. Crystal Jennings was born and raised in Coatesville, Pennsylvania. She was educated at Eastern Baptist College in St. David’s PA where she received a BA degree in Psychology and Secondary Education.
After graduating from college, she spent four years in the United States Army working in Military Intelligence and Administration. Upon completion of her tour of duty, she taught History for 14 years at the Coatesville Intermediate High school.
Rev. Dr. Crystal Jennings loves teaching, reading and sharing the Word of God to people in general, and women in particular and has ministered to women in the tri-state area through her preaching and empowerment workshops.
In May of 2007, she received a Master of Science degree in Educational Administration from Gwynedd Mercy College, and in May 2014 graduated with a Master of Divinity degree from Palmer Theological Seminary. In April 2016, she was ordained at Pinn Memorial Baptist Church by the Philadelphia & American Baptist Churches of America.
Second Baptist Church of Germantown
Opening Hours:
​Sunday: 11:00am-12:30pm
(215) 849-0257
6459 Germantown Ave
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19119