The Christ Presbyterian Church in

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the List of muni ...

, United States, is a

Presbyterian Church in America The Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) is the second-largest Presbyterian church body, behind the Presbyterian Church (USA), and the largest conservative Calvinist denomination in the United States. The PCA is Reformed in theology and presb ...

multi-site church with three campuses (Old Hickory Blvd, Music Row, and Cool Springs) with approximately 2,000 total weekly attenders as of 2022.

History

Cortez Cooper founded Christ Presbyterian Church in Nashville in January 1981. Cooper was previously pastor of the First Presbyterian Church of Nashville, a

Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) The Presbyterian Church (USA), abbreviated PC(USA), is a mainline Protestant denomination in the United States. It is the largest Presbyterian denomination in the US, and known for its liberal stance on doctrine and its ordaining of women and ...

affiliated congregation, from 1971 to 1981. Cooper organized Christ Presbyterian as an affiliate of the

, the more theologically conservative of the Presbyterian churches. The current church building was designed to hold 1,500 people, with expansion potential to 2,100 if needed. On its founding date, about 1,000 people gathered to found the church. In spring 1981, the congregation joined the PCA. The church purchased property, the first worship service was held in the new building took place in May 1984. By 1997, the church's five Sunday services drew more than 3,000. In 2004, Christ Presbyterian Church called Raymond C. Ortlund, Jr. as Senior Pastor. Ortlund is a Biblical scholar, theologian, prolific writer and teacher. He served as Senior Pastor until February 2007. In July 2007, Wilson Benton came out of retirement to become the interim Senior Pastor. Benton served as senior pastor of Kirk of the Hills PCA in St. Louis for over twenty years, and at his retirement, the interim Senior Pastor there was Christ Presbyterian's first Pastor, Cortez Cooper. It sponsors the

Christ Presbyterian Academy Christ Presbyterian Academy (CPA) is a private, coeducational, college-preparatory school for grades preschool through 12 in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. The school provides education through a Christian worldview. CPA is affiliated with C ...

since its founding in 1985. The congregation planted many PCA churches in the Nashville community. Since January 2012, the pastor of Christ Presbyterian has been Scott Sauls. Sauls was previously a pastor at

Redeemer Presbyterian Church (New York City) Redeemer Presbyterian Church ( PCA), is a church located in New York City, founded in 1989 by Timothy J. Keller, who retired as pastor in July 2017. The family of Redeemer churches includes Redeemer Downtown (Sr. Pastor John Lin), Redeemer West Si ...

with

Tim Keller (pastor) Timothy J. Keller (born September 23, 1950) is an American pastor, theologian, and Christian apologist. He is the chairman and co-founder of Redeemer City to City, which trains pastors for service around the world. He is also the founding pastor ...

. Sauls was chosen to offer the prayer at the inauguration of Governor

Bill Haslam William Edward Haslam (; born August 23, 1958) is an American billionaire businessman and politician who served as the 49th governor of Tennessee from 2011 to 2019. A member of the Republican Party, Haslam previously served as the 67th mayor of ...

. Sauls was placed on indefinite leave in May 2023 following an investigation into his conduct as a leader.

Theology

The congregation is a member of the Nashville Presbytery of the PCA. It adheres to the

Nicene Creed The original Nicene Creed (; grc-gre, Σύμβολον τῆς Νικαίας; la, Symbolum Nicaenum) was first adopted at the First Council of Nicaea in 325. In 381, it was amended at the First Council of Constantinople. The amended form is a ...

, the

Apostles Creed The Apostles' Creed (Latin: ''Symbolum Apostolorum'' or ''Symbolum Apostolicum''), sometimes titled the Apostolic Creed or the Symbol of the Apostles, is a Christian creed or "symbol of faith". The creed most likely originated in 5th-century ...

and

Westminster Confession The Westminster Confession of Faith is a Reformed confession of faith. Drawn up by the 1646 Westminster Assembly as part of the Westminster Standards to be a confession of the Church of England, it became and remains the " subordinate standard ...

Notable people

- former

Governor of Tennessee The governor of Tennessee is the head of government of the U.S. state of Tennessee. The governor is the only official in Tennessee state government who is directly elected by the voters of the entire state. The current governor is Bill Lee, a ...

. *

Marsha Blackburn Mary Marsha Blackburn (née Wedgeworth; born June 6, 1952) is an American politician and businesswoman serving as the senior United States Senate, United States senator from Tennessee, a seat she has held since 2019. She is a member of the Repu ...

- United States senator.

References

External links

Christ Presbyterian Church official website

Pastor Scott Sauls' official website
Presbyterian Church in America churches in Tennessee Presbyterian megachurches in the United States Megachurches in Tennessee Churches in Nashville, Tennessee Christian organizations established in 1981 1981 establishments in Tennessee {{Tennessee-church-stub