Our Community
Worship With Us!
Services at Pilgrim Church
are held
every Sunday at 10:00 AM
Worship is central to our life as a congregation. Our services are based on a schedule of readings from the Bible, known as the Common Lectionary. Most services include a sermon, hymns, prayers, and a time devoted to children.
Music is integral to our worship. A vocal choir, hand bell choir, and soloists participate in services.
Communion is served the first Sunday of each month.
Dress ranges from casual to “comfortable dressy.” A coffee hour is held immediately following worship and provides time for people to “meet and greet” each other. Adult education or congregational events are held after services many Sundays.
Children are encouraged to worship as they are able. Childcare is provided for children ages 4 and under.
FM receivers are available for the hearing-impaired and large-print bulletins are available from the ushers. Our facilities are handicapped accessible.
View our services online on our Facebook page or on our YouTube channel!
Get involved
2019 Christmas Cantata:
Mass in F major, K. 192, by W.A. Mozart
Music & Arts Ministry
Music is an essential part of our worship life. In our music programs and art exhibits, we celebrate the goodness and wonder of God’s creation. Through music and the arts we are inspired to reach beyond ourselves, and we become a community of the spirit.
2018 MLK March
Social Justice Ministry
We want our children, youth and adults to experience compassion and the opportunity to work for the good of others. As we engage in the wider community, we seek to make the world a better, more just place for everyone.
Children, Youth, & Families
Christian Education Ministry
We are an intergenerational community where children, youth and adults worship, learn, work, have fun and serve together.
Questions are welcome, doubts are acceptable, and information is drawn from many sources. What does it mean to be Christian in the 21st century?
Our Programs Include:
Child care for the youngest
Confirmation preparation for youth
Our Whole Lives sexuality education for youth
Adult discussion and study groups
Occasional speakers on topics of special or timely interest
Bible study and church history
Contemporary religious thought
Spiritual disciplines and practice
Comparative religion and spirituality
Updates on local, national and global issues related to social justice concerns
Discussions with artists and authors
Current offerings are listed in the worship bulletin, available each Sunday, and in the monthly newsletter.
Child Care
The Children’s Space offers a gathering space for children and is staffed on Sunday mornings from 9:30 am until worship is concluded.
There is space for infants and toddlers as well as media resources and art supplies for pre-schoolers and younger elementary age children. Children’s Space is located on the first floor near the sanctuary and adjacent to the area used for coffee hour.
Sunday School
The first day of Sunday School will be Sunday, September 10, 2023. Sunday School is held each Sunday during the school year for children age 4 through 5th grade. Children participate in the opening of worship until the Children’s Message, when they are excused to attend Sunday School in the Sun Room. There will be a bible story, discussion, games, art and/or crafts that connects to the message of the day.
Youth
Youth in grades 6th-12th meet on Wednesdays from 7:00-8:30 pm at church, starting September 6, 2023. This group is focused on acting out our faith through service and learning as much as we can about how we can help our community meet the needs of every person.
Founded 1871
Learn more about Pilgrim’s 150-year history and its place in Duluth.
We also have a large archive of documents, membership registers, bulletins, and concert programs.
Stewardship Ministry
Pilgrim’s ministry is sustained in large measure by member contributions,
given to the general expenses of the church, or designated for particular projects or offerings.
Donations
Pilgrim gladly accepts donations from members and friends. If you see something on this website you’d like to help support, click on the offering plate icon. You’ll find a pull down menu that will ensure that your gift goes where you’d like it to go. We accept donations made via credit card or you can mail a contribution to us at 2310 E 4th St, Duluth, MN 55812
Memorial gifts
Families sometimes designate Pilgrim Congregational Church as a potential recipient of gifts given in memory of a loved one. The minister and family work together to identify an area of the congregation’s ministry where gifts might be appropriately used. Donors receive a receipt from the church and the family is notified that a gift has been received. Memorial gifts have been used to purchase equipment and furnishings, to provide for special musical events, and to further building projects.
Gabriel Project
Pilgrim partners with Peace Church and CHUM to provide direct assistance to individuals in need.
United Church of Christ offerings
Pilgrim Congregational Church consistently is awarded recognition as a “5 for 5” congregation in the United Church of Christ. In January we dedicate an offering to the Minnesota Conference Justice and Witness offering, 25% of which is used locally for social justice work and 75% of which is part of a Minnesota fund from which any UCC congregation may receive a grant for social justice projects. In March we receive an offering for One Great Hour of Sharing, an ecumenical effort to raise funds for development work and humanitarian aid. June’s denominational offering is for Strengthening the Church, a United Church of Christ fund for congregational development and growth. October’s offering is for Neighbors in Need which supports UCC ministry among Native Americans and distributes grants for social justice advocacy and implementation. An offering in December makes possible assistance to retired clergy whose pensions are inadequate or who have emergency financial needs.
Operating expenses
All of what we do at Pilgrim, including maintenance of the building and supporting staff, is made possible through several income sources. The largest are member contributions, solicited annually in the fall and donated over the course of the following year. Some income is generated by legacy funds inherited from the past. Many of our projects and events require additional fund-raising. Pilgrims and their friends are generous and make it possible for the congregation to support a variety of community projects.
Personal Stewardship
In addition to providing oversight of church fund raising, the Stewardship Ministry encourages individuals and families to plan wisely for their financial needs and eventual allocation of assets. Periodically the ministry offers workshops to encourage members and friends to do thoughtful financial and estate planning.