Lavern "Lee" Edward Roberson (November 24, 1909 – April 29, 2007) was an American
pastor
A pastor (abbreviated as "Pr" or "Ptr" , or "Ps" ) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and ...
and evangelist. He was the founder of
Tennessee Temple University
Tennessee Temple University was a private Christian university in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Temple Baptist Seminary was the university's graduate school of Christian theology, also operating in Chattanooga. The university merged with Piedmont Int ...
and
Temple Baptist Seminary
Temple Baptist Seminary is the graduate school of Christian theology of Piedmont International University. Originally established as "Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary" in Chattanooga, Tennessee in 1948, the name was changed to Temple Bap ...
in
Chattanooga, Tennessee
Chattanooga ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States. Located along the Tennessee River bordering Georgia, it also extends into Marion County on its western end. With a population of 181,099 in 2020 ...
, and Camp Joy, in
Harrison, Tennessee
Harrison is a census-designated place (CDP) in Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 7,902 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Chattanooga metropolitan area. Harrison Bay State Park, the Hamilton County Landfill, Bear T ...
.
Early life
Roberson was born in a two-room log cabin and spent his first two years on a farm near
English, Indiana
English is a town in Crawford County, Indiana, United States. It has served as the county seat of Crawford County since 28 December 1893. The population was 645 at the 2010 census, making it one of Indiana's smallest county seats. The settlement w ...
, a small town in the southern part of the state. Originally named Lavern Edward, he was known throughout his life as "Lee." In 1911, his parents, Charles E. and Dora (Sego) Roberson, took him to a farm near
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...
, where his father farmed, worked on streetcars, and built homes to make a living. In 1923, at the age of fourteen, he was led to the Lord by his Sunday School teacher, Mrs. Daisy Hawes, and joined the Cedar Creek
Baptist
Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only ( believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compe ...
Church near Louisville.
Education
After spending two years at the
Louisville Male High School
Louisville Male Traditional High School is a public co-ed secondary school serving students in grades 9 through 12 in the southside of Louisville, Kentucky, USA. It is part of the Jefferson County Public School District.
History
Ninth and Ches ...
, where he received a diploma in public accounting when he was fourteen years old, Roberson then attended the
Fern Creek High School, where he played
football and graduated after four years.
Roberson entered
Old Bethel College in
Russellville, Kentucky
Russellville is a home rule-class city in Logan County, Kentucky, in the United States. It is the seat of its county. The population was 6,960 at the time of the 2010 census.
History
Local historian Alex C. Finley has claimed the area was fir ...
, in 1926, and completed one year there. There he worked at various jobs from washing dishes to scrubbing floors to pay his way. From Old Bethel College, he went to the
University of Louisville
The University of Louisville (UofL) is a public research university in Louisville, Kentucky. It is part of the Kentucky state university system. When founded in 1798, it was the first city-owned public university in the United States and one o ...
to complete his college work with a major in
history
History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...
. He also continued his education at the
Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, where he studied under Dr.
A.T. Robertson. At the age of nineteen, he was called by a church in
Jeffersontown, Kentucky
Jeffersontown is a home rule-class city in Jefferson County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 26,595 at the 2010 U.S. census.
It is a major suburb of Louisville. When the Louisville Metro government was established in 2003, Jefferso ...
, but he did not accept.
In his early years, Roberson was well known as a singer. Having studied at the
Cincinnati Conservatory of Music
The Cincinnati Conservatory of Music was a conservatory, part of a girls' finishing school, founded in 1867 in Cincinnati, Ohio. It merged with the College of Music of Cincinnati in 1955, forming the Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, wh ...
and with the well-known teacher, John Samples, of
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
, image_map =
, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
, coordinates =
, coordinates_footnotes =
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name ...
, his services as a vocalist were in great demand. He served as a soloist on the staff of radio station
WHAS of Louisville and
WSM in
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and ...
. Roberson was offered a contract b
Gaetano Salvatore de Lucaat th
Nashville Conservatory of Music After a discussion with de Luca, Roberson decided to give up musical performance, and declined on the grounds that such a music career was not in accordance with his divine calling to the ministry.
Ministry
The first church that Roberson served as pastor was in
Germantown, Tennessee
Germantown is a city in Shelby County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 41,333 at the 2020 census.
Germantown is a suburb of Memphis, bordering it to the east-southeast. Germantown was founded in 1841 by mostly German emigrants. Th ...
, while he was in college. In 1932, he was called to be pastor of the Temple Baptist Church in
Greenbrier, Tennessee
Greenbrier is a city in Robertson County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 6,433 at the 2010 census, and at the 2020 census the population was 6,898.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total ar ...
. It was there that he began emphasizing the
Second Coming of Christ. After three years with the Greenbrier church, Roberson entered full-time evangelistic work in 1935.
Roberson served as
evangelist of the
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1. ...
Baptist Association. Within two years he had conducted some fifty revivals in the Birmingham area. On the first Sunday in November 1937, Lee Roberson became pastor of the First Baptist Church in
Fairfield, Alabama. In 1939, he was asked to be the state evangelist for
Alabama
(We dare defend our rights)
, anthem = "Alabama"
, image_map = Alabama in United States.svg
, seat = Montgomery
, LargestCity = Huntsville
, LargestCounty = Baldwin County
, LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham
, area_total_km2 = 135,765 ...
, but he declined.
After five years with the Fairfield church, Roberson was called by the
Highland Park Baptist Church
Highland Park Baptist Church was a prominent Southern Baptist church in the Highland Park neighborhood of Chattanooga, Tennessee. During the four-decade pastorship of Dr. Lee Roberson, it was a center of the Independent Baptist movement and bec ...
in
Chattanooga in November 1942. Four years later, Roberson founded
Tennessee Temple University
Tennessee Temple University was a private Christian university in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Temple Baptist Seminary was the university's graduate school of Christian theology, also operating in Chattanooga. The university merged with Piedmont Int ...
and
Zion College. Two years later in 1948, a theological seminary, Southeastern Baptist Seminary (renamed
Temple Baptist Seminary
Temple Baptist Seminary is the graduate school of Christian theology of Piedmont International University. Originally established as "Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary" in Chattanooga, Tennessee in 1948, the name was changed to Temple Bap ...
in 1954) was added. His ministry would continue to branch out to radio via
WDYN
WDYN (980 AM) is a radio station broadcasting a Christian radio format. Licensed to Rossville, Georgia, the station serves the Chattanooga, Tennessee area. The station is currently owned by Carolina University.
History
The station signed on i ...
, a citywide bus ministry, and the founding of Camp Joy. At one point in the 1980s, Highland Park Baptist Church boasted 57,000 members, making it one of the largest churches in the United States.
Roberson preached his last service as pastor of Highland Park Baptist Church on April 27, 1983, but continued preaching across the nation and publishing many books until his death.
Family
In Birmingham, Roberson met Caroline Allen (1915-2005); they married on October 9, 1937. They had four children: LeeAnne (b. May 2, 1941; d. June 15, 2008), Joy Caroline (b. June 6, 1946; d. August 10, 1946), John, and June. Joy's premature death as an infant led to the establishment of Camp Joy.
Death
Roberson died on April 29, 2007, two years after his wife's death.
He was buried in Greenwood Cemetery in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
Books
*''Diamonds in the Rough''—Sword of the Lord Pub ()
*''Disturbing Questions...Solid Answers''—Sword of the Lord Pub ()
*''Double-Breasted''—Sword of the Lord Pub ()
*''Gold Mine, The''—Sword of the Lord Pub ()
*''Preaching to America''—Sword of the Lord Pub ()
*''Ten Thousand Tears''—Sword of the Lord Pub ()
*''The Faith that Moves Mountains''—Sword of the Lord Pub ()
*''The Man In Cell No. 1''—Sword of the Lord Pub ()
*''Touching Heaven''—Sword of the Lord Pub ()
*''Coming to Chattanooga Soon''—Sword of the Lord Pub ()
*''Big 90, The''—Sword of the Lord Pub ()
References
Bibliography
* Reese, Edward. ''The Life and Ministry of Lee Roberson.'' Glenwood, Ill: Fundamental Publishers, 1975.
* Terry, Lindsay. ''A Daring Faith in a Hazardous World: Build a Courageous Lifestyle with Lee Roberson.'' Greenville, SC: Ambassador Emerald International, 2006.
* Wigton, James H. ''Lee Roberson -- Always About His Father's Business''. Xulon Press, 2010. ()
{{DEFAULTSORT:Roberson, Lee
1909 births
2007 deaths
Bethel College (Kentucky) alumni
University of Louisville alumni
Southern Baptist Theological Seminary alumni
People from Chattanooga, Tennessee
Heads of universities and colleges in the United States
People from Crawford County, Indiana
Tennessee Temple University
Louisville Male High School alumni
Fern Creek High School alumni
Baptists from Tennessee
20th-century American male writers
20th-century Baptist ministers from the United States
20th-century American academics