First Baptist Church observes milestone, 125 years

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First Baptist Church observes milestone, 125 years

Tue, 07/30/2019 - 15:13
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SEVEN DEDICATED WOMEN WERE CHARTER MEMBERS OF THE FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH OF CANADIAN

When visitors take a tour of “Canadian Past,” the Baptists figure prominently in the town’s listing of historical buildings. The Canadian Baptist Academy was on the site of the present-day middle school; the Baptist Academy dormitory is now the Abraham Homeplace; and The Citadelle Mansion was once the First Baptist Church.

Some locals may not know the physical and spiritual origins of the First Baptist Church, but they will be able to celebrate with members, old and new, at the 125th Anniversary of its beginnings, scheduled for Sept. 7-8, entitled “Counting Every Blessing, Past, Present, and Future.”

On Saturday, Sept. 7, the observance will begin with a 6 pm meal, and sharing and music. On Sunday, Sept. 8, worship services will begin at 10 am, followed by a fellowship meal. Jerry Don Davis, a former FBC member, and now pastor of Collinsville First Baptist Church, will be the special speaker.

In the summer of 1894, Rev. Hatcher, pastor of the FBC in Amarillo, came to Canadian to do missionary work during a tent revival sponsored by all religious faiths. The town had a population of about 600 “souls,” with a saloon “on every corner.” Rev. Hatcher went from house-to-house and to every business, looking for Baptists. He found seven Baptist women who were willing to organize a Baptist church. At the close of the revival, Rev. Hatcher received 32 new members into the new church organized on July 15, 1894.

For years, there was no building for the Baptists to meet in. They gathered once a month in the only church in town, the Presbyterian Church, and occasionally in the Opera House, across from the courthouse. Baptisms were conducted near the Tubb ranch house, where there was “plentiful water.” Later, an outdoor baptistry was built in the J.A. Chambers backyard, near his windmill.

Under the pastorate of J.W. Whatley, 1897-1908, the Baptist Academy was established in January 1904, where the Canadian Middle School is located today. The academy was affiliated with Baylor University and the Baptist Educational System. After its formation, FBC members worshipped there and had a full-time ministry.

In the March 3, 1904, in The Canadian Record, a quote stated, “Locating the Baptist Academy at Canadian has driven out the saloons. A big revival was held with over 100 conversions.”

Later that year, the Baptist board made the decision to build a girls’ dormitory for the college. The present site at 712 Cheyenne is the home of Salem and Ruth Ann Abraham.

During the pastorate of Rev. J.T. Burnett, 1911-13, the membership grew large enough that a church was constructed. On Oct. 5, 1911, the red brick structure located on the corner of 6th and Nelson was dedicated. That building is now The Citadelle Mansion, former home of Dr. Malouf and Therese Abraham.

The Ladies Aid Society of the church purchased the pews and carpet for the new church with $1,000 they earned by dressmaking, quilting, serving chicken pie suppers, food sales, operating booths at bazaars—as well as “any honest work” they could find to do. The Record reported in 1912 that, “The Baptist church has added 90 members during the past year.”

The next phase was again prompted by increasing membership and lack of space. The church purchased land on 7th and Main, the present site of the FBC. Groundbreaking for the new building was in 1953. In 1954, the fellowship hall, basement, and educational wing were completed and dedicated. In 1959, a groundbreaking ceremony heralded the construction of the bell tower, offices, and sanctuary.

Over the years, the church’s mission expanded. In the oil boom of the 1970s and 80s, Canadian grew and the Hispanic community increased. The Woman’s Missionary Union of the church began English instruction for the Spanishonly speakers. Soon this work grew into a mission center, and eventually a full-time ministry, which was housed in a building at 4th and Purcell purchased by FBC. Rev. Jesse Pedroza became the full-time pastor of Primera Mission Baptista of Canadian. The mission closed in 1987, after the oil bust of the late 1980s when many mission members left the community due to lack of employment.

Another outreach occurred in 1980 when Rev. Denzil Leonard and Associate Pastor Bruce Chesser initiated a TV ministry. All services were televised live from FBC and joined with a Christian broadcasting network so that it was on the air 24 hours each day. The last live broadcast was May 11, 2014.

In 2014, under the current pastorate of Rev. Matthew McCurley, a new audio and visual system was installed in the sanctuary. With the technical knowledge of Associate Pastor Matt Phenix, sermons were digitally transferred to be aired on Sunday morning over KVII, Channel 7. About 6,500 viewers tune in to watch each week. Sermons also are posted each week on the First Baptist Facebook page.

A citywide evangelistic crusade, called “There is Hope,” was staged in September 2017 at Wildcat Stadium. Rev. McCurley and Jamie Copley served as co-chairs for the event, one that had been envisioned by the church for five years. The results were 133 salvations, 171 re-dedications, a volunteer base of more than 150 people and 10 churches, and an overall attendance of 4,350 over a four-day initiative.

Since 2012, FBC has given almost $400,000 to the North American Missions and the International Missions. Two mission teams over two consecutive years were sent to Long Island, New York for evangelistic focus, giving $60,000 for the work there. One mission team was sent to Washington, D.C. for evangelistic focus. A mission team was sent to Galveston for cleanup work and outreach focus after Hurricane Harvey, giving $10,000 for that effort.

Another worthy statistic is that since April 2012, there have been 56 baptisms at FBC. Currently, there are 232 members with 108 considered active.

As the FBC celebrates 125 years, the community-atlarge will be reminded of its place in Canadian’s history. It involved church building in every sense of the phrase.

On March 21, 1954, the First Baptist Church held a formal opening of the new education building. In an article about the event, The Record reported that 400 people attended, including Mrs. J.T. Jackson, the only surviving charter member.

The front page of the program for the opening worship services cited Psalm 122:1, “I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the Lord.”

EDITOR’S NOTE: This article was compiled from information and documentation provided by First Baptist Church member Vonda Robbins.