The James N. Griffith Endowed Baptist Studies- First Church Waco

First Baptist Church, Waco, Texas, is a moderate congregation of diverse social, economic, educational, and religious backgrounds. This book narrates key themes in the rich history of the church, which has been deeply affected by successive cultural contexts, including slavery, wars, the Depression, the Civil Rights movement, denominational conflicts, and secularization. Organized in 1851, the church has offered weekly worship since that time. In addition to pioneering Sunday School in Texas it has served as the original home of Live Oak Classical School, Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, and George W. Truett Seminary. The church has benefitted enormously from its connections with Baylor University. FBC Waco has nurtured scores of missionaries. For decades the church has hosted Hispanic, Native American, Chinese, and Korean Baptist congregations. Today missions and benevolence intersect as the church serves immigrants, prisoners, and other disadvantaged people.