Wake Forest Baptist Church

Wake Forest Baptist Church is two churches in North Carolina, United States. One church is in the town of Wake Forest, North Carolina. It has been operating for almost 200 years.^[1] The other church was on the campus of Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. It was active from 1956 to 2022, but has now closed.^[2][3]

Church in Wake Forest

Wake Forest Baptist Church began in 1835 on the Wake Forest Institute campus in Wake Forest, North Carolina. This institute mixed agriculture training with religious education. Samuel Wait, president of WFI, served as the first pastor of the church. That church continues in Wake Forest even after Wake Forest University has relocated.^[4]

The church has a pavilion, athletic field, youth center and education building, which are used for community outreach.

In 2015, the church printed ‘Our Story of Faith’ to celebrate their 180th anniversary.^[5]

In 2022, Senior Pastor Bill Slater retired. In 2023, the church is advertising for a new Pastor.^[6]

Church in Winston-Salem

The church was established in 1956, when Wake Forest College relocated from Wake Forest, North Carolina, to Winston-Salem.^[7][8]

The university set up a new church, with the old name. After 1956, there were two churches (100 miles apart) with the name ‘Wake Forest Baptist Church’; one at the original WFI site at Wake Forest town,^[9] and one at the new Wake Forest College in Winston-Salem.

The university congregation held their services in auditorium, named Wait Chapel.

When the new church was founded, most of the student body, faculty and administration was Baptist. Over the years, the percentage of Baptists on campus decreased significantly.

Working with the North Carolina Baptist Hospital, the church founded the local Meals on Wheels ministry^[10] and helped to establish the Association for the Betterment of Children. Its members were responsible for the establishment of the organization C.H.A.N.G.E., which includes 40 congregations and neighborhood associations. The church was a major supporter of Habitat for Humanity of Forsyth County and helped to build homes in the city.^[11]

Although Wake Forest University ended ties with the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina in 1986, the church continued its relationship with the university.^[12]

In 1994, the church was presented the Whitney M. Young Award for "bridging the gaps in race relations" by the Winston-Salem Urban League. A year later, the United Way of Forsyth County, NC presented a special award to Wake Forest Baptist Church and its partner, First Baptist Church, Highland Avenue, for building "a better community through a variety of joint undertakings."^[7]

In 2006, the church won the PFLAG of Winston-Salem Faith Community Kaleidoscope Award. In 2007, the Individual Kaleidoscope Award was presented to the pastor, Susan Parker.^[13]

From 2011 to 2013, Parker and Angela Yarber, who are both lesbians, served as co-pastors.^[12]

Lia Scholl, pastor from 2014 to 2021, participated in Poor People's Campaign protests in Raleigh, North Carolina and Washington, D.C. and was arrested.^[12]

In 2019, the church ordained a transgender woman for ministry.^[14]

Closure

In 2021, the university told the church that by 2023, it would have to pay $2,500 a month for use of Davis Chapel. On August 7, 2022, with average attendance down to about 30 people, members voted to dissolve the congregation.^[12] On November 5, 2022, the church held a celebration of life service, following which it officially dissolved. During this service, the church announced legacy gifts to the Wake Forest University School of Divinity and the Winston-Salem Foundation.^[15][8][16]

Affiliation of the church at Winston-Salem

Due to its position on LGBTQIA equality in the church,^[17] and the church's decision in 2000 to perform a union for a lesbian couple,^[12] the church was removed from membership in the Pilot Mountain Baptist Association^{[citation needed]} and the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina. The church voluntarily left the Southern Baptist Convention.^[12] The church belonged to the Alliance of Baptists, Association of Welcoming and Affirming Baptists, Baptist Peace Fellowship of North America and the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship.

Leadership of the church at Winston-Salem

Warren T. Carr, a former civil rights proponent, served as pastor of the church from 1964 to 1985.^[18] Carr was frequently an adversary of Southern Baptist Convention officials.^[19][20]

Richard Groves became the church's pastor after serving as a pastor in Texas and Massachusetts. He retired October 31, 2008 after working at the church for 23 years.

In January 2011, Angela Yarber joined the pastoral ministry team at WFBC. Yarber also serves Wake Forest University as a campus minister.^[21][22]

Since 2004, Susan Parker has served as the pastor of the church's pastoral ministries.^[21] In the late 1990s, it was her union ceremony that sparked controversy. The controversy served as the subject of the documentary A Union in Wait. Groves and Parker have both signed the petition of the North Carolina Coalition for Marriage Equality.

See also

• Alliance of Baptists
• Association of Welcoming and Affirming Baptists
• Baptist Peace Fellowship of North America
• LGBT-affirming Christian denominations
• LGBT-affirming religious groups
• Wake Forest, North Carolina

References

External links

• Wake Forest Baptist Church in Wake Forest town, official website
• Wake Forest University School of Divinity

35°58′47″N 78°30′37″W / 35.97960°N 78.51026°W / 35.97960; -78.51026

This page was last edited on 2 November 2023, at 13:23