First Baptist Church of Charleston South Carolina

First Baptist Church is a

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 in Charleston, South Carolina. It is affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention. The congregation was founded in 1682 under the leadership of

William Screven William Screven (c. 1629 – 1713) was a 17th-century Reformed Baptist church planter and preacher from England who founded the first Baptist church in the South. William Augustine Screven was born in the town of Somerton in Somerset, Engla ...

. It is one of the oldest Baptist congregations in the American South. The church congregation was originally organized in

Kittery, Maine Kittery is a town in York County, Maine, United States. Home to the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard on Seavey's Island, Kittery includes Badger's Island, the seaside district of Kittery Point, and part of the Isles of Shoals. The southernmost town i ...

(then part of Massachusetts) under the guidance of the

First Baptist Church of Boston The First Baptist Church (or "Brattle Square Church") is an historic American Baptist Churches USA congregation, established in 1665. It is one of the oldest Baptist churches in the United States. It first met secretly in members homes, and ...

. In 1696 twenty-six congregants followed Pastor Screven and moved to Charleston after being pressured by the New England Congregationalist authorities. The relocated congregation became the First Baptist Church of Charleston. Pastor Screven recommended that any future pastor be "orthodox in faith, and of blameless life, and does own the confession of faith put forth by our brethren in London in 1689" declaring the church to be firmly

Calvinist Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Ca ...

(

Reformed Baptist Reformed Baptists (sometimes known as Particular Baptists or Calvinistic Baptists) are Baptists that hold to a Calvinist soteriology (salvation). The first Calvinist Baptist church was formed in the 1630s. The 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith ...

). First Baptist Church is currently affiliated with the Southern Baptist denomination. The current

Greek Revival The Greek Revival was an architectural movement which began in the middle of the 18th century but which particularly flourished in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in northern Europe and the United States and Canada, but a ...

sanctuary was designed by Robert Mills and built in 1820. On June 26, 2019, the church announced the building will be closed after the July 7, 2019 services as a result of area reconstruction; the education building demolition began in June 2019, and after full demolition begins in July 2019, it was deemed unsafe to be around the church. The church will move to nearby James Island in their school auditorium until further notice, likely when officials assure the building will be safe to occupy. The church has since been used for limited use by other churches and for their Christmas services, but the church continues to meet on James Island.Church newsletter announcing the building's closure.
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Sources

References

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External links

Official Church WebsiteFirst Baptist Church - Charleston, South Carolina
includes photos and history 1682 establishments in South Carolina Churches in Charleston, South Carolina Baptist churches in South Carolina Southern Baptist Convention churches