How to become a Christian in Phoenix: the Acts 2 way.

Faith in Phoenix is older than the freeways

The parish of St. Mary's dates to 1881. Its church on 3rd Street was dedicated in 1915, and in 1985 it became the 32nd basilica in the United States. According to its history, it is still the only basilica in Arizona.

That parish also had a hand in something much bigger. John van Hengel was volunteering at the St. Vincent de Paul soup kitchen when a mother of ten showed him the food grocery stores threw out behind their buildings. He asked Father Ronald Colloty at St. Mary's for a warehouse, and the parish gave him $3,000 and an old bakery building. St. Mary's Food Bank opened in 1967, the first food bank anywhere, and the idea spread across the country and overseas.

Black settlers who had left the post-Reconstruction South began an African Methodist Episcopal mission downtown in 1887. It became Tanner Chapel in 1899 and finished its building at 8th Street and Jefferson in 1929. It is the oldest Black congregation in Arizona. On 3 June 1964 Martin Luther King Jr. gave a short talk there to NAACP supporters, the same day he spoke at Arizona State University, as ASU Library records.

These are working congregations with their own convictions, and this guide does not speak for them. Visit if you like. Then do what the Bereans did and check what you hear against Scripture (Acts 17:11).

Updated 28 September 2026. Phoenix hours shift with the seasons, so call ahead. Spot a mistake? Email a correction.

People in Phoenix tend to give distance in minutes. In July they give it in shade. A study that asks someone in Laveen to drive to Deer Valley every week will probably be down to two people by October, so keep the circle small and near. A living room in Maryvale with the air-conditioning running is closer to the house-to-house church of Acts 2:46 than most buildings are.

Where to send someone who needs help

Nobody should have to wait for a Bible study to get dinner. Andre House was started by two Holy Cross priests from Notre Dame and welcomed its first guest on 29 November 1984. It serves an evening meal six nights a week, around 600 plates a night, and takes volunteers through its sign-up page.

For a bed, go to Key Campus at 204 S. 12th Avenue, where 12th Avenue meets Madison Street. Its Brian Garcia Welcome Center is open 24 hours a day and makes shelter referrals. The same campus holds the largest emergency shelter in Arizona, 600 beds run by Central Arizona Shelter Services.

If drinking is the trouble, the Salt River Intergroup of Alcoholics Anonymous keeps a 24-hour helpline at (602) 264-1341 and a meeting finder on the same site.

Heat is its own emergency here. From May 1 through September 30, Maricopa County's Heat Relief Network maps cooling centers and hydration stations at hrn.azmag.gov, and 211 Arizona answers calls in English and Spanish from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.. Someone who is confused or faint in the heat needs 911 first.

Rooms and rules

Phoenix Public Library meeting rooms are free. The room policy limits a group to two bookings a month, and food is not allowed, though bottled water is. That works for an occasional open reading. A weekly group that eats together belongs in a home. The Phoenix Bible study page compares branches in South Phoenix, Laveen and Ahwatukee.

Phoenix attracts people starting over, and plenty arrive with a church story they would rather not repeat. You can ask about money, leadership, baptism, suffering, and whether Jesus has anything to do with the institution that hurt you. We will answer from Scripture and will not ask you to fund us.

Believer’s baptism is full immersion in water after belief and repentance (Acts 2:38). Phoenix has many private pools, and the city operates seasonal public pools with posted rules. Always ask permission before planning a baptism at a public facility. Canyon Lake allows swimming at designated recreation areas but requires a drive, passes, and attention to heat, crowds, and current Forest Service notices.