First Baptist Church of Birmingham: Difference between revisions

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The Civil Rights era greatly affected First Baptist Church.  Throughout this time, the church became a growing commuter congregation as the neighborhood around the church changed.  However, the church remained committed to ministering in their downtown location.  As members had to face the issues of race, the church placed a toll on pastors who served it.  In the [[Birmingham campaign]] of [[1963]], African-American visitors were welcomed by pastor [[Earl Stallings]] to the congregation, much to the ire of some segregationalists in the congregation.  Stallings was one of the ministers to whom [[Martin Luther King, Jr]] addressed his "[[Letter from Birmingham Jail]]."  Community ministries led other African-American families to attend the church in the late 1960s.
The Civil Rights era greatly affected First Baptist Church.  Throughout this time, the church became a growing commuter congregation as the neighborhood around the church changed.  However, the church remained committed to ministering in their downtown location.  As members had to face the issues of race, the church placed a toll on pastors who served it.  In the [[Birmingham campaign]] of [[1963]], African-American visitors were welcomed by pastor [[Earl Stallings]] to the congregation, much to the ire of some segregationalists in the congregation.  Stallings was one of the ministers to whom [[Martin Luther King, Jr]] addressed his "[[Letter from Birmingham Jail]]."  Community ministries led other African-American families to attend the church in the late 1960s.


In [[1970]], [[Winifred Bryant]] and her daughter, [[Twila Fortune|Twila]] applied for membership, but were rejected by a vote of members. [[Herbert Gilmore]], pastor of the church at this time, had been supportive of allowing them to join. Declaring "When I came, I said I would not be the pastor of a racist church and I won't." he led a walkout of around 250 members on [[September 27]], which formed the [[Baptist Church of the Covenant]].
In [[1968]] incoming pastor [[Herbert Gilmore]] initiated new community outreach efforts, including a tutoring program at [[Powell School|Powell Elementary School]]. A number of African-American children began participating in church programs, but none of their families were invited to join as members of the church. Many members opposed the outreach efforts and Gilmore survived efforts to remove him from the pulpit.
 
In [[1970]], [[Winifred Bryant]] and her daughter, [[Twila Fortune|Twila]] applied for membership, but were rejected by a vote of members. A resolution to consider membership without regard to race was defeated and a slate of anti-integrationist deacons was elected. Declaring "When I came, I said I would not be the pastor of a racist church and I won't," Gilmore led a walkout of around 250 members on [[September 27]]. They officially resigned on [[November 1]] and founded the [[Baptist Church of the Covenant]], where Bryant and her daughter were welcomed.


==New location==
==New location==
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* [[1961]]-[[1965]]: [[Earl Stallings]]
* [[1961]]-[[1965]]: [[Earl Stallings]]
* [[1966]]-[[1968]]: [[James Landes]]
* [[1966]]-[[1968]]: [[James Landes]]
* -[[1970]]: [[Herbert Gilmore]]
* [[1968]]-[[1970]]: [[Herbert Gilmore]]
* [[Andrew Tamping]]
* [[Andrew Tamping]]
* [[Samuel R. Jones, Jr]]
* [[Samuel R. Jones, Jr]]
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* {{Cruikshank-1920}}
* {{Cruikshank-1920}}
* Gilmore, J. Herbert (1972) ''They Chose to Live: The Racial Agony of an American Church'' Grand Rapids, Michigan: Eerdmans ISBN 080281445X
* Gilmore, J. Herbert (1972) ''They Chose to Live: The Racial Agony of an American Church'' Grand Rapids, Michigan: Eerdmans ISBN 080281445X
* Flynt, Wayne (1998)  ''Alabama Baptists: Southern Baptists in the Heart of Dixie''.  Tuscaloosa: University of Alabama Press
* {{Flynt-1998}}
* {{Bass-2001}}
* {{Bass-2001}}


Revision as of 11:45, 28 February 2014

First Baptist Church in 1886

First Baptist Church of Birmingham is a Southern Baptist congregation located at 2209 Lakeshore Drive in Homewood.

History

Jonathan Hillyer arrived in Birmingham in the fall of 1871 as a missionary on behalf of the Home Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention. On June 9, 1872 he chaired a meeting in the Bryant Building with the aim of founding a new church in the city. The group met again on June 21 to organize the congregation and elected Hillyer as pastor. A month later the Elyton Land Company donated a lot on the corner of 6th Avenue North and 22nd Street for the erection of a church building.

The church worshipped in 3 different facilities throughout their first 30 years. Construction of the first building began in 1873 under the church's second pastor, E. T. Smythe. During construction the Baptists met at First Methodist Church of Birmingham and First Presbyterian Church of Birmingham.

A second church building was completed in February 1886 on the same site. During its construction the congregation, which had grown to 500, met at O'Brien's Opera House, and also established two missions, West End Baptist Church in the Spring of 1885 and Southside Baptist Church the following December.

In 1903, the church dedicated its third and longest-standing home at its downtown site. An education building was constructed nearby in 1926, providing space for church ministry as well as office space for other companies and the first Baptist Book Store. Throughout this time, many members of this congregation served in denominational life and in the community, including support for the Baptist Hospital.

Civil Rights era

The Civil Rights era greatly affected First Baptist Church. Throughout this time, the church became a growing commuter congregation as the neighborhood around the church changed. However, the church remained committed to ministering in their downtown location. As members had to face the issues of race, the church placed a toll on pastors who served it. In the Birmingham campaign of 1963, African-American visitors were welcomed by pastor Earl Stallings to the congregation, much to the ire of some segregationalists in the congregation. Stallings was one of the ministers to whom Martin Luther King, Jr addressed his "Letter from Birmingham Jail." Community ministries led other African-American families to attend the church in the late 1960s.

In 1968 incoming pastor Herbert Gilmore initiated new community outreach efforts, including a tutoring program at Powell Elementary School. A number of African-American children began participating in church programs, but none of their families were invited to join as members of the church. Many members opposed the outreach efforts and Gilmore survived efforts to remove him from the pulpit.

In 1970, Winifred Bryant and her daughter, Twila applied for membership, but were rejected by a vote of members. A resolution to consider membership without regard to race was defeated and a slate of anti-integrationist deacons was elected. Declaring "When I came, I said I would not be the pastor of a racist church and I won't," Gilmore led a walkout of around 250 members on September 27. They officially resigned on November 1 and founded the Baptist Church of the Covenant, where Bryant and her daughter were welcomed.

New location

In 1984, First Baptist voted to move from downtown to a new facility on Lakeshore Drive, on the location of the President's Mansion at Samford University. They sold their property to AmSouth Bank, and it has since been demolished.

Pastors

References

External Links

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