About UPC

In worship, we:

Value excellent preaching and music which engage people spiritually, intellectually and emotionally. Project the message of the gospel as a healing and empowering force in the world. Celebrate our roots in the Reformed tradition, remaining open to the reforming process so that the core truths remain relevant in our time and place, and Seek to integrate Biblical scholarship, sound contemporary reference, traditional and contemporary music, and liturgical expression into a Reformed order of worship.

As a congregation, we:

Believe that Christ calls us to be part of a community of faith, Welcome diversity, attempting to be inclusive and compassionate, Seek to nurture and support one another through life’s trials and triumphs, and Seek to deepen our faith through service. Following Christ into the world, we intend to: Minister to the brokenness in the world, Be an expression of Christ’s love in the world by seeking diverse opportunities to serve others, and Build bridges between various faith groups in our community.

Brief History

University Presbyterian Church is part of the Presbyterian Church USA, a denomination with 1.7 million members throughout the United States. UPC was organized in the fall of 1950 and the sanctuary building at the corner of Shook and Bushnell Avenues was dedicated in January 1955. There has been a long and important relationship between the UPC congregation and Trinity University next door. Before having its own building, the congregation worshiped on the Trinity campus, and over the years many faculty, staff and students from Trinity have become a part of this faith community. The first services were held on campus during construction, using a cross made from two pieces of scrap lumber. When the UPC sanctuary was completed the cross was carried, in procession, from the campus to the new building and installed in the chancel, where it has remained ever since. Members see its jagged ends and plain wood as symbols of a broken world in need of healing. Later, UPC began the custom of giving a replica of this cross to departing members. The University Presbyterian Children’s Center is one of the longest and strongest ministries of the Church. The Children’s Center has continuously served families with children seven months through five years of age since it opened in 1971. 

Our Sanctuary

It’s easy to see University Presbyterian Church’s roots in the sanctuary, since the focal point is a cross hanging at the front of the mid-century chancel. The cross is made of two pieces of scrap lumber from the construction at nearby Trinity University, where services were first held.

In 1952, O’Neil Ford, who designed the relocated Trinity University campus, also prepared an initial draft for the new church, named for its proximity to the campus. However, in 1954 San Antonio architect Milton A. Ryan completed the design for UPC – one of his two award-winning churches. Ryan was well known for his mid-century, modern residential architecture and in 1955 won an Honor Award for Non-residential Work from the Texas Society of Architects.

The sanctuary has a peaked roof common to mid-century modern churches. But instead of a typical A-frame structure where the roof bears directly on the ground, the building turns as it comes down from the peak – resting on slender steel columns and extending outward on either side. The result is a compelling spatial juxtaposition.

UPC’s main organ rests on an upper loft behind the congregation seating. The sanctuary can seat approximately 400 people and can be reconfigured based on the needs of the service.