First Baptist Church of Dallas is about to celebrate the opening of its new 500,000 square foot campus. The new facility cost $130 million, which is “believed to be the largest church building campaign in modern history.” The celebrations will include:
- March 24 – lighting of the cross tower and fountain,
- March 31 (Easter) – grand opening, and
- April – a special guest or musician each Sunday as a way of celebrating God’s faithfulness.
The new campus is a “re-creation, not a renovation, of the original campus.” It features
- a 3,000 seat state of the art worship center with nearly 1 mile of pews,
- a 5-story Horner Family Center features a gymnasium; a theater for junior high and high school students; and indoor playgrounds for younger children
- a new parking garage that connects to the campus via a sky bridge, and
- a high-impact cross tower and fountain, with a separate baptism pool,surrounded by three-quarters of an acre of community space for the whole city.
So What?
First Baptist Church of Dallas (FBCD) was established in 1868. The church is best known for two of its ministers: George W. Truett (1897-1944) and W. A. Criswell (1944-1994 and pastor emeritus from 1995-2002). Over the last several decades, it has been at the center of the conservative shift within the Southern Baptist Convention.
In the years since Criswell stepped aside, the congregation has struggled to find the man to lead it forward for the next several generations. Joel Gregory, O.S. Hawkins, and Mac Brunson each led FBCD for a short time. Robert Jeffress began his ministry in 2007, and has led the current $130 million capital campaign. Jeffress’ radically conservative statements about Islam, Roman Catholicism, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints as well as his views on other topics, have drawn significant attention from the media.
In a time when downtown denominational churches are in decline, FBCD is 11,000 members strong. Rather than adopt the more common approach of moving to multi-site, they have opted to revision in their existing location for the next generation.
- Apart from the current $130 million project, what do you think First Baptist Church of Dallas is best known for and why?
- Based on your current knowledge, do you think the new campus is a wise long-term investment or not? Explain.