An Alabama church that once was among the largest in the Southern Baptist Convention is selling its 19-acre property and downsizing.
The property of Dauphin Way Baptist Church in Mobile is now listed for sale for $28.5 million.
Current pastor Lee Merck confirmed to numerous media outlets the sale is part of a strategic plan to rethink the congregation that once was the largest Baptist church in the state of Alabama.
Notable former pastors include Jerry Vines, who went on to become co-pastor at First Baptist Church of Jacksonville, Fla., and president of the SBC; Darrell Robison, a well-known evangelist who later became a vice president of the former SBC Home Mission Board; and more recently Clint Pressley, immediate past SBC president who now leads Hickory Grove Baptist Church in Charlotte, N.C.
When Dauphin Way relocated to its current site in 1988, church membership was listed as 8,000. Today, membership is reported as about 600. According to real estate sale records, the sanctuary may hold up to 3,000 people but is currently configured to seat 1,900.
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The church dates to 1904 and experienced its first boom in the 1940s and then again in the 1980s. For decades, the church appeared on lists of congregations with the largest Sunday school enrollments and largest Sunday school attendance.
Dauphin Way is not alone in this trend of decline and readjustment, which researchers say affects older churches more than newer churches. According to Lifeway Research: “Churches founded in the 20th century are the most likely to be declining, with 45% of those started between 1950 and 1999 and 39% of those that began between 1900 and 1949.”
Church growth researcher and podcaster Sam Rainer explains the context:
“In the not-so-distant past, growing churches often relocated away from their neighborhoods and built large campuses at major intersections. The thought was that the drive would be worth the distance.
This strategy seemed to work when these large churches were master planning their sprawling campuses in the 1970s through the early 2000s. They were championed and celebrated. Many large churches grew at tremendous rates, and many of them did, and continue to do, an incredible amount of good for the kingdom of God.
“But starting around the turn of the 21st century, the growth of many of the largest churches shifted to multisite campuses and multiple venues. The massive, single-site church was no longer the focus of their planning . . . Churches with worship space for 200 to 600 are now ideal. Filling the giant rooms of megachurches is getting harder and harder.”
This article originally appeared at Baptist News Global and has been reprinted with permission.
Mark Wingfield, who is based in Dallas, Texas, serves as executive director and publisher of Baptist News Global.
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5 Responses
The church never recovered from having Steve Lawson as their pastor.
Thank you for posting…very helpful.
Comment on the architecture of that church:
Exterior –Looks like a Big Box or Corporate HQ pretending to be a church with all the steeple and portico gingerbread and brick veneer (a structure that sized would most likely be steel-framed instead of structural masonry) like a McMansion. Lipstick on a giant pig.
Interior — Very Minimalist, in the Millennial Grey and Kardashian White of Instagram Influencer Aesthetic. Perspective and angles all pointing to the performance stage and its pulpit front-and-center. A minimalist Theater with no sense of History or the Numinous.
Years ago I went on an open tour for a Mormon temple that was opening. The inside of this church reminded me of the insides of the temple. Very white and sterile.
Interesting observation Ken and if not doing so already, you should consider moonlighting as a property reviewest for domestic and commercial purchasers.
Haven’t travelled as much as some, but when doing so take an interest in the history and background of buildings and large or small church structures and often amazed at the people who designed and built them, some of which were the laity themselves. As you have observed, the material quaility and aesthetics these days have a lot to be desired and like most things longevity for other generations isn’t a priority.
Some trivia: After viewing the internal features of the Crystal Catherdral, a woman apparently commented that it should look good once they finally remove all the scaffolding. 😁
Also, noticed in a large town/small city that the building architect and material of a particular denomination was often similar to that of masonic temples in that town. Don’t believe it was a coincidence and assumed “membership” affiliations and input. 🤔