First Baptist Church in the City of New York
Encyclopedia
The First Baptist Church in the City of New York is a Christian
congregation based in a sanctuary built in 1891 at the intersection of Broadway
and West 79th Street
in the Upper West Side
of Manhattan, New York at the 79th Street subway station ( trains). The First Baptist Church in the City of New York is a conservative
, independent, evangelistic, mission-oriented church in fellowship with the General Association of Regular Baptist Churches
, based in Schaumburg, Illinois
. Regular services are held on Sunday at 11:00 a.m. Sunday School begins at 9:30 a.m.
. Earlier attempts at forming a Baptist Church in Flushing, Queens took place by William Wickenden
and others in the 1650s.
Scattered Baptists organized in 1745 under the businessman Jeremiah Dodge and the pastor Benjamin Miller of Scotch Plains, New Jersey
.
A church edifice built in 1760 was again located on Gold Street. John Gano
(1727-1804), a New Jersey
native, became the first full-time pastor of the congregation of twenty-seven, which by 1762 had grown to three hundred members and took the name "First Baptist Church in the City of New York".
The church supported the American Revolution
even though New York City was occupied by British
forces from the summer of 1776 for the duration of the war. Elder Gano joined the army and was a chaplain
to General
George Washington
. With the signing of the Treaty of Paris
in 1783, a celebration took place in Newburg, New York. Washington called upon Gano to offer the prayer of thanksgiving
. The Anglican (Episcopalian
) Washington also requested that Gano baptize him. After Washington's study of the scriptures, he concluded that baptism by immersion should follow the conversion of a believer.
On his return to New York City after the revolution, Gano found thirty-seven members who restored the church building and grew thereafter to two hundred. When the Congress offered former revolutionary soldiers land on the frontier
, Gano departed from New York to Kentucky
. There he started several Baptist churches. He was also a founder of the Baptist-affiliated Brown University
in Providence, Rhode Island
.
When the congregation outgrew the facility, it moved further uptown with population to the intersection of 39th Street and Fourth Avenue. Under the leadership of Dr. Thomas Anderson, a Gothic brownstone sanctuary was constructed, as well as a separate Bible school building.
Isaac Massey Haldeman was the pastor who thus far has served the longest tenure at First Baptist Church -- from 1884 to 1933. Six years after his arrival, The First Baptist Church relocated to the present facility, which occupies a site that, because of a bend in the direction of Broadway, is prominent from a distance down the avenue; and it is also adjacent to the 79th Street subway station ( trains).
The First Baptist Church building was designed by George M. Keister, who also planned the Apollo Theater
. A balcony was added in 1903. This created a seating capacity of one thousand. Two unequal towers over the corner entrance to the main auditorium are examples of biblical symbolism. The taller tower represents Jesus Christ as the Head of the Church. The lower tower, which appears incomplete, was designed to represent the Church, which will remain unfulfilled until the return of Christ. Two shorter towers represent the Old Testament
and the New Testament
.
A large rose window facing Broadway pictures Christ as the center of the New Testament church. He is in the large inner circle. The star depicts Him as the Bright and Morning Star. The crown shows Him as King of Kings. The frame of sun portrays Him as the Sun of Righteousness. The five upper circles depict the writers of the New Testament Epistles, while the bottom four circles represent Matthew
, Mark
, Luke
, and John
, the Gospel
authors.
is by the grace of God alone through Jesus. The First Baptist Church in the City of New York teaches the "faith once delivered to the saints":
(1) Sovereignty
of the Trinity
(God
as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit
)
(2) Inspiration and inerrancy of Scripture
(3) The Virgin Birth of Christ
(4) The sinlessness of Jesus
(5) Christ's vicarious atonement at Calvary
(6) Bodily resurrection
and ascension of Christ
(7) The pre-tribulation rapture
of the church
(8) The pre-millennial return and reign of Christ.
In the church's Gano Chapel are painting
s of Gano's baptizing Washington and of Gano's praying in thanksgiving for the British surrender. They are copies of originals located at William Jewell College
in Liberty, Missouri
. The college collection includes Gano's sword, which was a gift from General Washington, who had received it from the French General Marquis de Lafayette.
. Two were also college presidents. Two founded colleges. Collectively, the pastors have written more than three hundred books, mostly on the Christian religion. Many have been denominational leaders.
I. M. Haldeman, 1884-1933
William H. Rogers, 1934-40
Arthur Williams, 1941-47
William L. Pettingill, 1948-50
Arthur Whiting, 1950-55
Peter Hoogendam, 1956-65
Carl E. Elgena, 1965-68
William Fliedner, Jr., 1972-75
Richard D. Burke, 1976-98
Robert C. Gage
, 2000-07
Matthew Hoskinson, 2010-present
First Baptist was led by a number of interim ministers during years without a pastor.
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
congregation based in a sanctuary built in 1891 at the intersection of Broadway
Broadway (New York City)
Broadway is a prominent avenue in New York City, United States, which runs through the full length of the borough of Manhattan and continues northward through the Bronx borough before terminating in Westchester County, New York. It is the oldest north–south main thoroughfare in the city, dating to...
and West 79th Street
79th Street (Manhattan)
79th Street is a major two-way street in the Upper East Side and Upper West Side of the New York City borough of Manhattan. East 79th Street stretches from East End Avenue to Fifth Avenue on the Upper East Side, where it enters Central Park through Miners' Gate...
in the Upper West Side
Upper West Side
The Upper West Side is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan, New York City, that lies between Central Park and the Hudson River and between West 59th Street and West 125th Street...
of Manhattan, New York at the 79th Street subway station ( trains). The First Baptist Church in the City of New York is a conservative
Conservative Christianity
Conservative Christianity is a term applied to a number of groups or movements seen as giving priority to traditional Christian beliefs and practices...
, independent, evangelistic, mission-oriented church in fellowship with the General Association of Regular Baptist Churches
General Association of Regular Baptist Churches
The General Association of Regular Baptist Churches is one of several Baptist groups in North America retaining the name "Regular Baptist"....
, based in Schaumburg, Illinois
Schaumburg, Illinois
Schaumburg is a city located in Cook County in northeastern Illinois. A common misspelling of the city name is Schaumberg, a spelling which persists on some modern maps. Schaumburg is located just under northwest of downtown Chicago and approximately northwest of O'Hare International Airport. As...
. Regular services are held on Sunday at 11:00 a.m. Sunday School begins at 9:30 a.m.
Revolutionary years
The first attempt to establish a Baptist presence in New York City dates to 1711, when William Wightman began his ministry. A church was built on Gold Street but disbanded eight years later because of financial recessionRecession
In economics, a recession is a business cycle contraction, a general slowdown in economic activity. During recessions, many macroeconomic indicators vary in a similar way...
. Earlier attempts at forming a Baptist Church in Flushing, Queens took place by William Wickenden
William Wickenden
William Wickenden was an early Anglo-American Baptist minister, co-founder Providence, Rhode Island, and signer of the Providence Compact. Wickenden Street in Providence marks where he originally settled in the seventeenth century and is named in his honor.-Immigration to New England:Wickenden...
and others in the 1650s.
Scattered Baptists organized in 1745 under the businessman Jeremiah Dodge and the pastor Benjamin Miller of Scotch Plains, New Jersey
Scotch Plains, New Jersey
Scotch Plains is a township in Union County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 Census, the township population increased to a record high of 23,510.-History:...
.
A church edifice built in 1760 was again located on Gold Street. John Gano
John Gano
John Gano was a Baptist minister and Revolutionary War chaplain who allegedly baptized his friend, General George Washington.-Biography:...
(1727-1804), a New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
native, became the first full-time pastor of the congregation of twenty-seven, which by 1762 had grown to three hundred members and took the name "First Baptist Church in the City of New York".
The church supported the American Revolution
American Revolution
The American Revolution was the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen colonies in North America joined together to break free from the British Empire, combining to become the United States of America...
even though New York City was occupied by British
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
forces from the summer of 1776 for the duration of the war. Elder Gano joined the army and was a chaplain
Chaplain
Traditionally, a chaplain is a minister in a specialized setting such as a priest, pastor, rabbi, or imam or lay representative of a religion attached to a secular institution such as a hospital, prison, military unit, police department, university, or private chapel...
to General
General
A general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given....
George Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
. With the signing of the Treaty of Paris
Treaty of Paris (1783)
The Treaty of Paris, signed on September 3, 1783, ended the American Revolutionary War between Great Britain on the one hand and the United States of America and its allies on the other. The other combatant nations, France, Spain and the Dutch Republic had separate agreements; for details of...
in 1783, a celebration took place in Newburg, New York. Washington called upon Gano to offer the prayer of thanksgiving
Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving Day is a holiday celebrated primarily in the United States and Canada. Thanksgiving is celebrated each year on the second Monday of October in Canada and on the fourth Thursday of November in the United States. In Canada, Thanksgiving falls on the same day as Columbus Day in the...
. The Anglican (Episcopalian
Episcopal Church (United States)
The Episcopal Church is a mainline Anglican Christian church found mainly in the United States , but also in Honduras, Taiwan, Colombia, Ecuador, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, the British Virgin Islands and parts of Europe...
) Washington also requested that Gano baptize him. After Washington's study of the scriptures, he concluded that baptism by immersion should follow the conversion of a believer.
On his return to New York City after the revolution, Gano found thirty-seven members who restored the church building and grew thereafter to two hundred. When the Congress offered former revolutionary soldiers land on the frontier
Frontier
A frontier is a political and geographical term referring to areas near or beyond a boundary. 'Frontier' was absorbed into English from French in the 15th century, with the meaning "borderland"--the region of a country that fronts on another country .The use of "frontier" to mean "a region at the...
, Gano departed from New York to Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
. There he started several Baptist churches. He was also a founder of the Baptist-affiliated Brown University
Brown University
Brown University is a private, Ivy League university located in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. Founded in 1764 prior to American independence from the British Empire as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations early in the reign of King George III ,...
in Providence, Rhode Island
Providence, Rhode Island
Providence is the capital and most populous city of Rhode Island and was one of the first cities established in the United States. Located in Providence County, it is the third largest city in the New England region...
.
Early 19th century
In 1802, The First Baptist Church built a new stone structure at its site on Gold Street. Under the leadership of Dr. Spencer Cone, the congregation relocated in 1842 to the intersection of Elizabeth and Broome streets in a Gothic structure, still in use by another church today. This was also the headquarters of the Baptist Home and Foreign Mission Board.When the congregation outgrew the facility, it moved further uptown with population to the intersection of 39th Street and Fourth Avenue. Under the leadership of Dr. Thomas Anderson, a Gothic brownstone sanctuary was constructed, as well as a separate Bible school building.
Symbolism of the Sanctuary at Broadway and 79th Street
The First Baptist Church building was designed by George M. Keister, who also planned the Apollo Theater
Apollo Theater
The Apollo Theater in New York City is one of the most famous, and older, music halls in the United States, and the most famous club associated almost exclusively with Black performers...
. A balcony was added in 1903. This created a seating capacity of one thousand. Two unequal towers over the corner entrance to the main auditorium are examples of biblical symbolism. The taller tower represents Jesus Christ as the Head of the Church. The lower tower, which appears incomplete, was designed to represent the Church, which will remain unfulfilled until the return of Christ. Two shorter towers represent the Old Testament
Old Testament
The Old Testament, of which Christians hold different views, is a Christian term for the religious writings of ancient Israel held sacred and inspired by Christians which overlaps with the 24-book canon of the Masoretic Text of Judaism...
and the New Testament
New Testament
The New Testament is the second major division of the Christian biblical canon, the first such division being the much longer Old Testament....
.
A large rose window facing Broadway pictures Christ as the center of the New Testament church. He is in the large inner circle. The star depicts Him as the Bright and Morning Star. The crown shows Him as King of Kings. The frame of sun portrays Him as the Sun of Righteousness. The five upper circles depict the writers of the New Testament Epistles, while the bottom four circles represent Matthew
Gospel of Matthew
The Gospel According to Matthew is one of the four canonical gospels, one of the three synoptic gospels, and the first book of the New Testament. It tells of the life, ministry, death, and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth...
, Mark
Gospel of Mark
The Gospel According to Mark , commonly shortened to the Gospel of Mark or simply Mark, is the second book of the New Testament. This canonical account of the life of Jesus of Nazareth is one of the three synoptic gospels. It was thought to be an epitome, which accounts for its place as the second...
, Luke
Gospel of Luke
The Gospel According to Luke , commonly shortened to the Gospel of Luke or simply Luke, is the third and longest of the four canonical Gospels. This synoptic gospel is an account of the life and ministry of Jesus of Nazareth. It details his story from the events of his birth to his Ascension.The...
, and John
Gospel of John
The Gospel According to John , commonly referred to as the Gospel of John or simply John, and often referred to in New Testament scholarship as the Fourth Gospel, is an account of the public ministry of Jesus...
, the Gospel
Gospel
A gospel is an account, often written, that describes the life of Jesus of Nazareth. In a more general sense the term "gospel" may refer to the good news message of the New Testament. It is primarily used in reference to the four canonical gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John...
authors.
First Baptist Church in the City of New York faith and practice
The five front steps of the sanctuary conform to the teaching that salvationSalvation
Within religion salvation is the phenomenon of being saved from the undesirable condition of bondage or suffering experienced by the psyche or soul that has arisen as a result of unskillful or immoral actions generically referred to as sins. Salvation may also be called "deliverance" or...
is by the grace of God alone through Jesus. The First Baptist Church in the City of New York teaches the "faith once delivered to the saints":
(1) Sovereignty
Sovereignty
Sovereignty is the quality of having supreme, independent authority over a geographic area, such as a territory. It can be found in a power to rule and make law that rests on a political fact for which no purely legal explanation can be provided...
of the Trinity
Trinity
The Christian doctrine of the Trinity defines God as three divine persons : the Father, the Son , and the Holy Spirit. The three persons are distinct yet coexist in unity, and are co-equal, co-eternal and consubstantial . Put another way, the three persons of the Trinity are of one being...
(God
God
God is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit
Holy Spirit
Holy Spirit is a term introduced in English translations of the Hebrew Bible, but understood differently in the main Abrahamic religions.While the general concept of a "Spirit" that permeates the cosmos has been used in various religions Holy Spirit is a term introduced in English translations of...
)
(2) Inspiration and inerrancy of Scripture
(3) The Virgin Birth of Christ
(4) The sinlessness of Jesus
(5) Christ's vicarious atonement at Calvary
Calvary
Calvary or Golgotha was the site, outside of ancient Jerusalem’s early first century walls, at which the crucifixion of Jesus is said to have occurred. Calvary and Golgotha are the English names for the site used in Western Christianity...
(6) Bodily resurrection
Resurrection
Resurrection refers to the literal coming back to life of the biologically dead. It is used both with respect to particular individuals or the belief in a General Resurrection of the dead at the end of the world. The General Resurrection is featured prominently in Jewish, Christian, and Muslim...
and ascension of Christ
(7) The pre-tribulation rapture
Rapture
The rapture is a reference to the "being caught up" referred to in 1 Thessalonians 4:17, when the "dead in Christ" and "we who are alive and remain" will be caught up in the clouds to meet "the Lord"....
of the church
(8) The pre-millennial return and reign of Christ.
In the church's Gano Chapel are painting
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
s of Gano's baptizing Washington and of Gano's praying in thanksgiving for the British surrender. They are copies of originals located at William Jewell College
William Jewell College
William Jewell College is a private, four-year liberal arts college of 1,100 undergraduate students located in Liberty, Missouri, U.S. It was founded in 1849 by members of the Missouri Baptist Convention and other civic leaders, including Robert S. James, a Baptist minister and father of the...
in Liberty, Missouri
Liberty, Missouri
Liberty is a city in Clay County, Missouri and is a suburb of Kansas City, Missouri. At the 2007 population estimate, the city population was 29,993...
. The college collection includes Gano's sword, which was a gift from General Washington, who had received it from the French General Marquis de Lafayette.
List of First Baptist Church in the City of New York pastors since 1884
First Baptist Church has had eighteen pastors, two of whom were chaplains of the United States CongressUnited States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
. Two were also college presidents. Two founded colleges. Collectively, the pastors have written more than three hundred books, mostly on the Christian religion. Many have been denominational leaders.
I. M. Haldeman, 1884-1933
William H. Rogers, 1934-40
Arthur Williams, 1941-47
William L. Pettingill, 1948-50
Arthur Whiting, 1950-55
Peter Hoogendam, 1956-65
Carl E. Elgena, 1965-68
William Fliedner, Jr., 1972-75
Richard D. Burke, 1976-98
Robert C. Gage
Robert C. Gage
Robert Clifford "Bob" Gage is a Baptist minister and Christian author, who in 2000 became the pastor of the historic First Baptist Church in the City of New York at Broadway and West 79th Street. He resigned from the position effective September 9, 2007.Gage was born in Beverly, Massachusetts to...
, 2000-07
Matthew Hoskinson, 2010-present
First Baptist was led by a number of interim ministers during years without a pastor.