He assumed his duties at the 183-member church at the end of January. His installation was held at the church Feb. 17.
Raised in Penn Hills, Brown completed his undergraduate studies in classics and ancient Mediterranean studies at Penn State University.
He and his wife, Bethany, met as students at Penn State through their involvement with yearly mission trips to Harmons, Jamaica. They have a 13-month-old son, Malcolm.
Brown received his master's in divinity from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in Massachusetts, where his wife is finishing her master's work in family therapy and mental health counseling.
Brown said he was drawn to the warm and genuine people at Bethel church from the time he first spoke with them.
"What drew me to them perhaps more than anything else, however, is their commitment to scripture, the desire to see Jesus Christ proclaimed as Lord and the shared excitement that comes from seeing lives changed through the message of the Gospel and the work of the Holy Spirit."
Bethel Church was organized May 20, 1833, as a Cumberland Presbyterian Church, which was an outgrowth of the religious revival introduced into Western Pennsylvania in 1829. In 1907, the Cumberland Presbyterian Church and the Presbyterian Church USA were reunited.
Bethel is a Presbyterian Church (USA) congregation and part of Washington Presbytery. Sunday worship is at 10:30 a.m. The church operates a Praise and Play Preschool for 3- to- 4-year-olds three days a week and offers several adult Bible studies.
For more information, contact the church at bethelup@ pulsenet.com or 724- 225-3612.