HISTORY
Shiloh Lutheran Church is one of the oldest churches in Forsyth County. German Lutherans were the first settlers of the area; refugees from Germany who first went to London where they were given land here. They began arriving here to take up farming soon after 1735. They built a log meeting place which that they called Shiloh, after the Old Testament place where the Children of Israel located their Tabernacle when they arrived in the Promise Land.
Since those early Lutherans came here without Pastoral leadership, a congregation was not organized until the arrival of the Rev. Count Nicholas Zinzendorf, founder of the modern Moravian Church. He had been a Lutheran Pastor before taking over the Moravian Church and was very responsive to the needs of the Lutherans in this country. He organized Shiloh for the Lutherans in 1777. The site of the original church structure and the Old Deutsch Cemetery are located approximately a quarter mile east (behind) our current sanctuary. Click HERE for more information on the Old Deutsch Cemetery, or click HERE to FIND A GRAVE.
Lutherans are the oldest of the Protestant Churches in the world. They take their name from the name given them by the Catholics during the 30 years war because of their close adherence to the Gospel Teachings of Martin Luther, the first of the 16th century Reformers. Lutherans are part of what is called the Conservative Reformation and define themselves as “A Gospel Movement within the Church Universal”, seeking to proclaim all who worship the Triune God as sisters and brothers of faith.
Shiloh is a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and of the North Carolina Lutheran Synods and her doors are open to all who sense a need to worship.
MISSION
As people created and redeemed by God’s grace, our purpose is:
“To celebrate His mighty acts and give ourselves without reservation, to His redemptive work”.
CORE VALUES
As Lutherans our beliefs are centered on God’s grace. As Ephesians 2:8 tells us, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God— not the result of works, so that no one may boast.” The distinction is that we can do nothing to earn God’s salvation. Forgiveness is God’s gift to humanity. Because we are loved by God, we feel called to love our neighbors. We strive to act like Christ, not because we will be rewarded if we do, but because God’s grace compels us to do so. We know that the more we act like Christ, the happier and healthier we will become.
At Shiloh, we practice open communion with anyone who has taken communion anywhere else (including children).
We baptize infants and adults. In the event of infants, the parents and sponsors promise to raise the child among God’s faithful people and place the scriptures in their hands when the time comes.
We also practice the rite of Confirmation for youth as they transition to becoming adults. As Luther himself was a student and professor, Lutherans believe highly in education and conversation.