Our History

St Peters in the City, Tauranga, is a Presbyterian Church – Presbuteros simply means elder, so we’re led by a team of Elders rather than a priest or pastor. As Minister, my key task is as a teacher or teaching elder, teaching the scriptures and coaching people in discipleship.

St Peters was founded in 1878 and so we are 140 years old.  We are the mother church in Tauranga for Presbyterians and have been influential in planting the other Presbyterian churches in town. We have a strong history of Missionary support, Biblical teaching and Charismatic experience.

In 2012 we finished a major upgrade to these buildings.  These buildings are to God’s glory and for the community.

Offering a number of services to our church goers and our community, we run:

  • A drop-in for the homeless on Tuesdays lunch time
  • ICONZ and Igirlz on Tuesdays
  • Alpha on Wednesdays
  • Playgroup and Music teams on Thursday
  • Junior Bible Class (JBC) on Friday
  • Youth Group on Sunday afternoon
  • A Childcare Centre

Childcare

In 1984 St Peters began a playgroup in the hall that eventually became St Peters Childcare Centre, an early childhood centre which is next door in Selwyn St.  We still run a Free Community Playgroup on Thursday mornings between 9.30am – 12pm.

St Peters House

In 1998 the church began a community ministry seeking to reach and support those who struggle in our city.  That ministry is now St Peters House and operates out of 136 Spring St with a vision to serve our city through counselling, courses and a debt counselling service called Christians Against Poverty (CAP).