Our Mission

Emmanuel Ministry exists to serve marginalized populations in Center City, particularly individuals experiencing homelessness and food insecurity. Emmanuel Ministry was started by First Baptist Church of Philadelphia. Members started serving a free monthly meal and Emmanuel – “God with us” – was born. When Liberti Church Center City, now Resurrection Philadelphia, began worshipping in the same space as First Baptist, we joined in this ministry. We believe that because God has come to dwell with us in Jesus, so we, as church communities, are called to be present in and care for holistic needs in our city. Just as Jesus honored those he interacted with, we seek to treat everyone at Emmanuel with the highest level of dignity and respect regardless of their current situation.

What Do We Do

We currently provide hot meals on Friday evening and Saturday morning, as well as contact with a social worker from Bethesda Project to help guests with housing needs.

At Emmanuel we build connection with our guests through two methods:

Food: At Emmanuel we look to serve every individual a hot, healthy, and delicious meal. This is the primary service we offer and it is the foundation on which we build our connection. The meal provides an entry way into people’s lives as we provide a safe space for them to come regardless of their circumstances.  

Relationships: By serving people well, we begin a trusting relationship that allows us to walk with people through life. This relationship model of engagement allows us to begin to see what people’s needs are beyond just the food we are offering.

We have partnerships that enable us to offer more services through Penn Dental, Temple Podiatry, Samaritan's Feet (socks and shoes), the City of Philadelphia (flu shots), and Bethesda Project, (safe temporary and permanent housing for our guests).

We have simplified our meals and we run a very small kitchen staff - three for Friday supper and four for Saturday lunch. They stay upstairs and prepare meals that are carted to our two-person takeout team in the lobby. The takeout team sets up a table by the door on Sansom Street and our guests walk by and take a meal and a bottle of water. We have a security officer on hand downstairs. All volunteers must wear masks.

Volunteer Hours
Saturday, 9:30-1 pm

We have three shifts on Saturdays; volunteers are welcome to serve for any or all of them.

(1) Set up / food prep - starts at 9:30 am
(Leave when you have to),
(2) Serving takeout - starts at 11:00 am,
(3) Kitchen clean up - starts at 12:00 noon.

*Emmanuel is following all safety guidelines recommended by the CDC to keep volunteers and meal recipients safe.

We are located at Resurrection Church (1636 Sansom Street), look for the red doors where someone will buzz you in.

Free parking is available at 17th St. and Ludlow, under Liberty Place. (We will give you a parking validation.)

Penn Dental & Podiatry   

A group of dental and podiatry students comes to Emmanuel twice each month to promote good hygiene as well as give out free supplies and reference individuals to treatment.

Toiletry Donations

Emmanuel now accepts toiletry donations all year long.  Our team then identifies individuals who have the most need and distributes them during our Saturday meal.

Pastoral Care

A pastor or deacon is always at Emmanuel to offer spiritual guidance and care.  This can be for anyone - guests or volunteers.