Wood received a call from a parishioner at 4:25 a.m. and hurried over to find the church he leads ablaze.

Authorities who responded to the scene, including the Mount Pleasant Fire Department and the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, have not publicly stated a cause for the fire. There were no reported injuries.

Much to the relief of Wood and his congregation, however, Mount Pleasant authorities contained the fire before it could spread to the adjoining historic chapel.

The ministry center, a large contemporary-style worship space, was built right behind it in 1996.

The chapel, a revered structure in the booming town that dates back to 1857, appeared mostly unharmed, although firefighters did have to pump water over it, said Greg Shore, a church spokesman.

With its iconic dark salmon-color paneling, the chapel is situated on Whilden Street and is draped in live oak trees. It was designed by famed architect E.B. White, who also designed the French Huguenot Church in downtown Charleston.

Hundreds of worshipers congregated outside St. Andrews on Sunday morning, many of them arriving for early morning services to find their church in flames and firefighters working to extinguish the blaze. Many covered their mouths with disbelief after seeing the ministry center roof engulfed in fire, then cave in.

Rebecca Ranucci and her family were driving to one of the services when she got word of the fire on social media.

Ranucci, 42, of Mount Pleasant, described reading the news and immediately sobbing.

"Not St. Andrew's," she cried. "Not my St. Andrew's."

Out of instinct, she recalled, Ranucci looked up at her husband -- a firefighter -- saying, "Fix this!"

"We were so close (to the church) at that point, we came to see if there was anything we could do," Ranucci said.

Services were canceled, and parishioners were encouraged to attend the church's other campuses in downtown Charleston and North Charleston.

"There are a lot of tears. A lot of tears," Wood said. "You tell yourself that it's a building, but a lot of people came to faith here. Marriages, baptisms, funerals."

St. Andrew's has been especially popular with the town's many young families. About 2,000 members attend its Mount Pleasant campus, which also runs a preschool.

The preschool will remain closed while church leaders and firefighters assess the damage, the spokesman said, warning that it is substantial.

"It's never good when you get a call from the rector at 4:30 a.m.," Shore said.

St. Andrew's, one of the area's largest houses of worship, had recently launched a building campaign called Imagine 2040 to address its growth. The church was one of the first in the area to introduce a contemporary worship style and has seen its membership boom since.

Back then, it was associated with The Episcopal Church. However, St. Andrew's Church split from the national body after ongoing disputes over scriptural interpretations and administrative controls. After, Wood was consecrated in 2012 as the first Bishop of the Diocese of the Carolinas within the Anglican Church in North America, although he also still leads St. Andrew's.

Today, the church's services range from a more contemplative traditional style to others filled with lively families worshiping with guitars and drums.

Wood remained anxious Sunday morning to get inside the building. A waterfall flowed down the steps outside what had been his office.

As parishioners looked upon what used to be their place of worship Sunday, many wondered aloud about the fate of the large oak cross that towers above the interior of the ministry center.

By late morning, a photo taken by someone who had been inside the building had begun to circulate among members of the church.

There, amid charred remnants of the building and caved-in roof, stood the cross.

Statement from Bishop Steve Wood

To my dear St. Andrew's family,

It's never good when the phone rings at 4.24 in the morning. But I never expected to hear the voice on the other end say, "our church is on fire."

Now home I wanted to write a short note to give you an update on the day.

Several hundred folks came by the church to pray, to talk, and to cry with their brothers and sisters in Christ. Many others texted, called, and emailed. Throughout the day the presence and comfort of the Lord was palpable.

There is still much we do not know. We do not know how or what started the fire. Both SLED and the ATF were on the grounds today inspecting the site. Inspections of this sort are routine after a large fire. When they left they told us that it'd probably be late in the week before they could offer an assessment. We do not know when we will gain occupancy of the undamaged portions of the campus.

We do know the following:

Thanks to the exceptional work of the Mt. Pleasant Fire Department they were able to preserve the Historic Church unscathed. That old church building has survived a war and earthquakes and hurricanes. She is the wellspring out of which all that we have become over the past (almost) two centuries has emerged. And it is to her that we return as we regroup and by the grace of God, rebuild.

The Ministry Center has sustained substantial damage. The Mt. Pleasant Fire Department returned it to our care this evening. Hill Construction has secured the building and we have off-duty Mt. Pleasant Police officers providing security.

I have heard from numerous pastors throughout the Lowcountry and beyond. And I have heard numerous reports that many, many, worship services began with the various congregations interceeding for us. We are reminded, aren't we, in times like this that no matter the name on the sign or the denomination affiliation we are one in Christ. I hope that you find as much comfort and encouragement as I did in these simple expressions of concern and offers of prayer that poured in from so many.

The recurring question of the day has been, "what can I do?" I love that about our church family; everyone willing to jump in and do what they can. Because a fire of this magnitude is beyond a pick-up clean-up crew we are working with our insurance agency about specific next steps.

I need your prayers for wisdom. Over the next few days we have to sort out some very practical matters. We need space for our weekly staff meetings. We need office space. We need to have electricity restored to the undamaged part of our campus. We need to sort weekend worship schedules. Most importantly, we need to rally to one another and to the Lord who will surely lead us in the weeks ahead.

Let me close with a picture that one of our members took with his drone at the end of the day. Amidst the ruin of our beloved sanctuary you will see standing the emblem of our faith, the cross of Jesus Christ. That wooden cross was at the epicenter of the fire -- and it still stands! I believe with every fiber of my being that what the enemy meant for ill the Lord will redeem for His Kingdom purposes in ways that will surprise and delight us.

We -- you and I -- are the church and the Lord dwells within us and among us, He will surely lead us higher up and further in.

With much love in Christ,
Steve & Jacqui