Westminster Presbyterian Church is a

Presbyterian Church Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...

located in downtown

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

. Its current location is the third location in downtown in over 140 years. The building is listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

History

Westminster began as a gathering of eight people of

Scottish Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...

, Irish and

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...

heritage in 1857. In 1860, the congregation built its first church, on Fourth Street between Nicollet and Hennepin Avenues in downtown Minneapolis. Because of the rapid growth of the congregation, the church soon outgrew its first location. In 1883, construction of a new, larger church began at Seventh Street and Nicollet Avenue. Twelve years after the opening of the second church site, the building was heavily damaged by a fire. This prompted yet another move when the church rebuilt to its current location at Twelfth Street and Nicollet Mall, opening its doors for services in 1897. This, the present church was designed as a collaboration between two prominent Minneapolis architects, Warren Howard Hayes and Charles Sumner Sedgwick. In 1998, to coincide with the building's centennial, the congregation undertook an extensive renovation of the sanctuary. This 3.5 million dollar project restored many of the sanctuary's original design elements, updated the structure and improved lighting and sound. The newly renovated sanctuary opened for services on Sunday, December 20, 1998.

Historical landmark

In recognition of its historic and social significance, Westminster was listed on the

in 1998. With . In May 1999 Westminster received the 1999 Heritage Preservation Award from the Minneapolis Heritage Preservation Commission and the Minnesota Chapter of the

American Institute of Architects The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is a professional organization for architects in the United States. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach to su ...

Mission statement

In response to the grace of God through

Jesus Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...

, the mission of Westminster Presbyterian Church is: *to proclaim and celebrate the Good News of Jesus Christ; *to gather as an open community to worship God with dignity and joy, warmth and beauty; *to nourish personal faith through study, prayer and fellowship; *to work for love, peace and justice; *to be a welcoming and caring Christian community, witnessing to God's love day by day *to work locally and beyond with our denomination and the larger Christian Church; *and, to be a telling presence in the city

References

External links

Westminster Presbyterian Church Homepage
{{Authority control National Register of Historic Places in Minneapolis Churches in Minneapolis Churches on the National Register of Historic Places in Minnesota Presbyterian churches in Minnesota Romanesque Revival church buildings in Minnesota Churches completed in 1897