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Ebenezer Baptist Church facts for kids

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This page is about the church in Atlanta, Georgia. For other uses, see Ebenezer Baptist Church (disambiguation).
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Ebenezer Baptist Church
Biden at Ebenezer Baptist Church (52635229253).jpg
Service in 2023 in the Horizon Sanctuary (built 1999) with President Biden speaking
33°45′19″N 84°22′27″W / 33.75528°N 84.37417°W / 33.75528; -84.37417
Location Atlanta, Georgia
Country United States
Denomination Baptist
Weekly attendance 6,000
History
Founded 1886

Ebenezer Baptist Church is a Baptist megachurch located in Atlanta, Georgia, United States, affiliated with the Progressive National Baptist Convention and American Baptist Churches USA. It was the church where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was co-pastor from 1960 until his assassination in 1968, the location of the funerals of both Dr. King and, in its later expanded sanctuary, congressman John Lewis, and the church for which United States Senator Raphael Warnock has been pastor since 2005. Its historic church building and expanded sanctuary building are located in the historic area designated as the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historical Park.

History

The church was founded in 1886 by Pastor John A. Parker and eight people, on Airline Street. The church's name derives from the Books of Samuel, where the Prophet Samuel names a place "Ebenezer", meaning "stone of help", to commemorate God helping the Israelites defeat the Philistines.

Adam Daniel Williams (maternal grandfather of Martin Luther King Jr.) became pastor in 1894, and the church had only 13 members. It grew to 400 members by 1903 and in 1913, the church had 750 people. In 1922, the building was dedicated. In 1927, Martin Luther King Sr. became an assistant pastor, then senior pastor in 1931. In 1960, Martin Luther King Jr. became co-pastor of the church with his father until his assassination in 1968.

In 1975, Joseph L. Roberts Jr. became senior pastor.

In 1999, a new 1,700-seat church building called the Horizon Sanctuary was inaugurated within the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historical Park.

Since 2005, U.S. Senator Raphael Warnock has been the senior pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church; he is the fifth person to serve as Ebenezer's senior pastor since its founding. On January 30, 2020, Warnock announced his campaign for Kelly Loeffler's Senate seat during the 2020 special election. In a special runoff election on January 5, 2021, Reverend Warnock defeated Loeffler receiving 51% of the popular vote. With this victory, Warnock made history by becoming the first Black senator from the state of Georgia. On December 6, 2022, Warnock made further history by becoming the first Black senator from Georgia elected to a full six-year term.

The funeral of Martin Luther King Jr. was held at the church on April 9, 1968. The funeral of Rayshard Brooks was held on June 23, 2020, at the church. The funeral of John Lewis was held on July 30, 2020, at the church.

In 2021, it had 6,000 members.

Pastors

The pastors of Ebenezer Baptist Church since its foundation have been as follows:

Gallery

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Iglesia Bautista Ebenezer para niños

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