Prospect Congregational Church
Encyclopedia
Christ The King Presbyterian Church (formerly the building was known as Prospect Congregational Church) is a historic Presbyterian Church in America
(PCA) church at 99 Prospect Street in Cambridge, Massachusetts
near Central Square
.
and was constructed in 1851 for the First Evangelical Congregational Church in Cambridgeport (Prospect Congregational), a Reformed congregation gathered in 1827 by members of Lyman Beecher
's Hanover Street Church in Boston. Beecher and William Augustus Stearns
gave the dedicatory sermons in 1852.. The church building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
in 1982. In 1985 the original congregation merged with another congregation to become North Prospect Union Church in Medford and the building stood vacant. In 1995 Christ the King Presbyterian Church (CTK), a Reformed congregation founded the previous year as a church plant, purchased the dormant church building.
classes and has ministries for the arts, music, women, men, local community groups, and international missions. Christ the King is part of a network of city churches connected through Redeemer Presbyterian Church
of New York, and CTK is home to a Church Planting Center working to plant other churches in the surrounding region of New England
. Recent church plants include congregations in Dorchester and Newton. The Newton congregation meets at St. Mary's Episcopal Church
on Sunday evenings.
Presbyterian Church in America
The Presbyterian Church in America is an evangelical Protestant Christian denomination, the second largest Presbyterian church body in the United States after the Presbyterian Church . The PCA professes a strong commitment to evangelism, missionary work, and Christian education...
(PCA) church at 99 Prospect Street in Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, in the Greater Boston area. It was named in honor of the University of Cambridge in England, an important center of the Puritan theology embraced by the town's founders. Cambridge is home to two of the world's most prominent...
near Central Square
Central Square (Cambridge)
Central Square is an area in Cambridge, Massachusetts centered on the junction of Massachusetts Avenue, Prospect Street and Western Avenue. , formed by the junction of Massachusetts Avenue, Columbia Street, Sidney Street and Main Street, is also considered a part of the Central Square area...
.
History
The historic church building was designed by Alexander Rice EstyAlexander Rice Esty
Alexander Rice Esty was an American architect who is largely known today for designing many Gothic Revival churches in New England, however his work also encompassed university buildings, municipal and Federal buildings, office buildings, and private residences across the Northeastern United...
and was constructed in 1851 for the First Evangelical Congregational Church in Cambridgeport (Prospect Congregational), a Reformed congregation gathered in 1827 by members of Lyman Beecher
Lyman Beecher
Lyman Beecher was a Presbyterian minister, American Temperance Society co-founder and leader, and the father of 13 children, many of whom were noted leaders, including Harriet Beecher Stowe, Henry Ward Beecher, Charles Beecher, Edward Beecher, Isabella Beecher Hooker, Catharine Beecher, and Thomas...
's Hanover Street Church in Boston. Beecher and William Augustus Stearns
William Augustus Stearns
William Augustus Stearns was a 19th-century American Reformed minister and teacher who served as president of Amherst College from 1854 to 1876....
gave the dedicatory sermons in 1852.. The church building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
in 1982. In 1985 the original congregation merged with another congregation to become North Prospect Union Church in Medford and the building stood vacant. In 1995 Christ the King Presbyterian Church (CTK), a Reformed congregation founded the previous year as a church plant, purchased the dormant church building.
Today
The congregation currently worships weekly at 10:30 on Sunday mornings and also offers a Brazilian Portuguese/English service on Sunday evenings at 6:30 pm. The church offers youth and adult education Sunday schoolSunday school
Sunday school is the generic name for many different types of religious education pursued on Sundays by various denominations.-England:The first Sunday school may have been opened in 1751 in St. Mary's Church, Nottingham. Another early start was made by Hannah Ball, a native of High Wycombe in...
classes and has ministries for the arts, music, women, men, local community groups, and international missions. Christ the King is part of a network of city churches connected through Redeemer Presbyterian Church
Redeemer Presbyterian Church
Redeemer Presbyterian Church , founded in 1989, is a church located in New York City. Its senior pastor is Timothy J. Keller.-Overview:...
of New York, and CTK is home to a Church Planting Center working to plant other churches in the surrounding region of New England
New England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
. Recent church plants include congregations in Dorchester and Newton. The Newton congregation meets at St. Mary's Episcopal Church
St. Mary's Episcopal Church (Newton Lower Falls, Massachusetts)
St. Mary's Episcopal Church and Cemetery, located at 258 Concord Street, in the village of Newton Lower Falls, Newton, Massachusetts, were added to the National Register of Historic Places on May 14, 1980. St...
on Sunday evenings.