Since 1877, the Antioch Baptist Church North has stood in Atlanta as a beacon of hope and a place of refuge. For six generations, the congregational family has nurtured thousands of persons who have been counted among the least, the last, and the lost. As a church family, we celebrate our 148th Anniversary with a renewed commitment to build upon the remarkable record of charitable Christian service that has made Antioch one of God’s best churches. The journey from 1877 to 2022 has not been easy, but it certainly has been rewarding! Those rewards and God’s promise of eternal life give our ever-growing congregation inspiration and meaning to continue the journey “to see what the end will be.” The Congregation remembers those eight former slaves who, in their search for a safe and secure place to praise God, loosely formed a prayer band that eventually evolved into our beloved Antioch Baptist Church North, an Atlanta landmark known nationally as a flagship church in the struggle for human dignity and the plight of the less fortunate and the unsaved. The Antioch Congregation’s earliest meetings and worship services were held outside under the stars and in shanty one-room structures that our founding brethren called home. To fully appreciate the historical significance of the Congregation’s founding, one must remember all the unsettling circumstances that were happening in Atlanta during the 1880s when the Antioch Congregation was founded. President Abraham Lincoln had recently freed the slaves when he signed the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863. In 1864, General William Sherman destroyed and burned every important building in Atlanta during his vivid march across Georgia during America’s infamous Civil War. With their new freedom gained at the end of the Civil War, thousands of former slaves with only the rags on their backs began to relocate to Atlanta from the great cotton plantations of rural south and central Georgia. Included in those numbers were the founders of our congregation. They, too, were traveling north in search of the new promised land. One hundred and forty-four years ago, Atlanta was not the important city that it is today. The city was beginning to rebuild from the ravages of the Civil War. It was certainly not a city too busy to hate. Atlanta merchants and builders took advantage of the cheap labor and services of black people; knowing that they had worked as slaves with no compensation, they would hire four to five blacks for the wages of one white person. As a result, of this practice, Atlanta’s poor white citizens were resentful and began terrorizing these former slaves for taking jobs away from them. Adding to the confusion, the newly organized Atlanta newspapers began to distort and sensationalize feelings between Atlanta’s blacks and whites. As a result, black people became too frightened to travel distances. By 1877, black people in Atlanta had become isolated in individual living wards and areas called “colored quarters.” In the quarters that became known as Fifth Ward, there was not a church close to where our founding members lived for worship and rejoicing. A trip across town, through white quarters, to the nearest colored church was like putting one’s life into the hands of the devil. Out of this fear and the need to serve God, Oscar Young, Miles Crawford, Jordan Beavers, Lem Wright, and four other former slaves organized a prayer group, calling themselves the Bethursday Prayer Band because the “meetin’ be on Thursdays.” As the meetings grew in regularity, so did the number of persons attending. The meetings moved from house to house until the group was able to use space in a butcher shop where one of the members worked. Eight years later in 1895, the members of the Bethursday Prayer Band borrowed $200 from the Southern Home Building and Loan Association and purchased its first property, a dilapidated basement structure at number seven Wallace Street. It was a stretch, but the group agreed to pay back the loan at $1.20 per month. While many of today’s congregational members may get a smile from this fact, it was an unbelievable amount of money to be entrusted to uneducated, former slaves without any collateral. The initial loan to purchase the Wallace Street property was paid off in record time in 1899. The congregation then, more than a century ago, faced the same challenge that the Antioch Congregation faces in 2021. They wondered how they would address and serve the needs of their growing membership in spaces that had become over-crowded and too small even though they had just purchased the property five years earlier. Their dilemma in 1899 was a cause of great concern as they questioned their preparedness for serving God’s people at the start of the 20th Century. Today, the Antioch pastor, deacons, trustees, and membership face some of the same challenges and ask some of the same questions that the Bethursday Prayer Group asked. “How will we address the needs of an ever-growing membership and a community challenged by economic restraints during a struggling economy?” In 1899, at the dawning of the 20th Century, the Bethursday Prayer Band renewed that initial loan and remodeled its basement structure to adequately serve its members. In addition, they changed their name and identity from the Bethursday Prayer Band to Antioch Baptist Church and moved into the 20th Century with jubilant enthusiasm and great excitement. The founders should be commended on their choice of the name Antioch. It was a fine choice for it was at Antioch that the term “Christian” was first given to converts to the new faith, and it was Paul’s point of departure on his missionary journey. By the early 1920s, the Antioch membership had grown tremendously and now included a few property owners, skilled laborers, and a few other persons who had been exposed to education; some could even read and write. This was a time of rapid growth and expansion for our young congregation. The names of the very early ministers who nurtured and served as pastors of the young Antioch congregation were never chronicled in written historical documents; however, oral histories and conversations with Antioch Pioneers identify the names of Rev. Jerry Davis, a Rev. Harris, a Rev. Briscoe, Rev. B. T. Harvey and Rev. Alfred C. Williams as early ministers who served at Antioch. These preachers are warmly remembered for courageously proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ to our young congregational family. 1922-1927 In 1922, the Reverend Timothy Saine was called to Antioch and guided the young congregation through the l920s. His leadership stressed the dignity of work and honest labor. He is especially remembered today for his leadership in the construction of Antioch’s first “new” building. In 1924, the congregation borrowed three thousand dollars to build its “new” church using its recently acquired properties at Wallace and Gray Streets as collateral. Antioch’s first church building was no architectural wonder, but it was a fine example of civic architecture of the day wherein everyone in the congregation and community helped to build it. It was a stark clapboard structure housing the sanctuary atop a tall stone foundation that served as the first fellowship hall. Having been trained at Hampton and Tuskegee Institutes, Reverend Saine encouraged the members to prepare themselves and their children for opportunities in teaching, railroad employment, carpentry and other skilled jobs. His teachings fostered at Antioch an atmosphere of encouragement and hope and accounted for a remarkable level of family solidarity and the upward mobility of the young church. 1927-1943 In 1927, Revered Timothy George was called to lead Antioch. He provided guidance and leadership during the Great Depression when large masses of the congregational family found themselves unemployed following the famous stock market crash as Atlanta banks, businesses, and manufacturing companies closed. It is seldom talked about, but the young congregation could not meet its financial obligations and maintain the day-to-day financial operations of the church during this very difficult time. As a result, the church’s property was foreclosed upon and sold on the steps of the Fulton County Courthouse. That was a sad time in the Congregation’s history, but because of the membership’s determined stewardship and faithfulness and the effective leadership of Rev. George, the property was quickly recovered. By 1940 when the City of Atlanta proposed building federal public housing in the community, Antioch had regained its anchor and its voice as leader of the community. The congregation was elated about the idea of decent public housing for the area, not knowing at the time, however, that Herndon Homes would displace the church building. By an act of easement, the Housing Authority of the City of Atlanta paid the congregation $8,300 for its Gray Street property. Not wanting to relocate from the area where the Congregation had been conceived, nurtured, and allowed to grow, Rev. George, the deacons, and the trustees agreed to purchase available property beginning at the southwest corner of Kennedy and Lambert Streets for sixteen hundred dollars. Antioch moved its wooden sanctuary from its Gray Street stone foundation to a newly-built foundation on Lambert Street. With the remaining funds, the Church made a few minor cosmetic changes to the building, but the warm-spirited feeling of the congregation remained as it was. 1943-1963 Rev. T. H. George’s son, the charismatic and energetic, Rev. D.T. George served as pastor of Antioch during the l940’s, 50’s, and early 60’s. During his pastorate, the church facilities were drastically renovated. Instead of relocating the Congregation during the Northside Drive expansion as the State Department of Transportation had suggested, Antioch remained at its location, turned its façade from Lambert Street, now called Northside Drive, to Kennedy Street, which has since been renamed Cameron M. Alexander Boulevard. Rev. D. T. George restructured the organization of the congregation because he did not want just a church full of Sunday worshippers. He organized a number of auxiliaries to ensure the maximum participation from all segments of the congregation. Many of those organizations are still in existence today and are important to the vitality of the Antioch Congregation. Included are the Deaconess, the Matronettes, the Fisherman Club, the Service Guild, the Nurses Aid, the Male Chorus, and the Progressive Garden Club. Choirs numbered 2 and 3 and the D.T. George Gospel Chorus have grown and merged into the Antioch Adult Choir. Rev. George was impaired by a stroke and retired in l963. 1963-1969 The Rev. W. Marcus Williams became pastor of Antioch in 1963. He was young, energetic, and only 36 years old when he became pastor of the church. Rev. Williams was an excellent, yet controlled speaker, but is most often remembered at Antioch for his magnificent tenor voice. Having found the Church in sound fiscal health, and having a keen interest in sociology, Rev. Williams geared the congregation’s attention toward social programs that would benefit the membership. He organized a church credit union and a daycare center. In 1969, he resigned the Antioch pulpit and accepted a new challenge. 1969-2018 The Rev. Cameron Madison Alexander accepted the Call to Antioch in 1969. After 49 years of incredible service, his tenure as pastor was the longest in Antioch’s history. Under Pastor Alexander’s dynamic and visionary leadership, the congregation grew from fewer than 500 persons to a membership that currently exceeds thousands. The Rev. Alexander was the driving force in the congregation’s acquisition of more than 87 separate parcels of land to facilitate the daily operations of Antioch and to enhance future growth needs. Antioch’s annual operating budget grew from slightly more than thirty thousand dollars when he arrived as pastor to an access of $5M based not on raffles, bake sales and gimmicks, but strictly upon the congregation’s generous tithes, offerings, and gifts. To maintain the many programs associated with Pastor Alexander’s ministry and his vision for Antioch’s future spiritual and economic development and growth, the Church staff grew from the one part-time employee who worked when Pastor Alexander arrived to 45 full- and part-time staff members. These employees manage church administrative services, plant operations, the transportation fleet, the Antioch Urban Ministries, the music program, the worship services, and the other various outreach activities and services that Pastor Alexander organized to service the needs of the membership and community. Pastor Alexander is credited with providing visionary leadership for the planning and the execution of the most ambitious building and land acquisition program in the Antioch Congregation’s history. During the late 1970s, he led the Congregation to purchase 28 acres of beautiful, wooded land in Southwest Atlanta in the Adamsville Community. It was to become the site of the Congregation’s new worship complex. However, the Holy Spirit directed Pastor Alexander to change all of the relocation plans for moving the congregation to Southwest Atlanta when more pressing needs for serving God’s people remained in our current inner-city location where the congregation has served since 1877. During the late 1980s under Pastor Alexander’s leadership, the congregation began a strategic acquisition of additional properties, purchasing single parcels of land surrounding the church facilities. To the surprise of many, and especially to the Atlanta business community, Antioch built its new multi-million-dollar worship center, which was dedicated in 1990, and its new administrative wing the following year at its current location. The land that the church purchased in Southwest Atlanta was eventually sold and became the site of a subdivision. Most congregations experience membership decline during large building and acquisition programs, but under Pastor Alexander’s guidance, the Antioch membership quadrupled causing him to expand the Church’s outreach ministries ten-fold to meet the needs of new members and those continually coming to Antioch for help and for direction. Inspired by the six ministries in the Book of Matthew that outline the Church’s responsibility to the less fortunate, Pastor Alexander established Antioch Urban Ministries Incorporated (AUMI) in the early 1990s. In 1991, as Chairman of the Board of AUMI, Pastor Alexander provided leadership in acquiring the 12-story Walton Hotel in downtown Atlanta. Valued at the time of purchase for more than $15M, the hotel was transformed into apartments for the working homeless and persons with noninfectious tuberculosis. The apartments were renamed the Madison House as a fitting tribute to the pastor whose middle name was Madison. The Church sold the building in 2012 to expand its ever-growing outreach ministries. In 1992, the Ananias House was opened as a temporary home for recovering addicts. In 1994, Ruth’s Place was opened as a temporary home for women recovering from addiction and Matthew’s Place opened a home for those who are HIV positive or living with AIDS. Additionally, Pastor Alexander provided the leadership for the establishment of Project Redirection as an alternative to incarceration for first-time offenders, and Project Youth Redirection, a ministry for youth struggling and living in at-risk environments. In 1997, Pastor Alexander led the Congregation in the purchase of the Selig business plaza located adjacent to our worship center for purpose of establishing the administrative offices of AUMI. Additionally, the former Danzig Motel in Northwest Atlanta on Chapel Road was also purchased, renovated, and at one time served as the home for Matthew’s Place and to expand our service to HIV-positive persons. In 1999, the Congregation embraced Pastor Alexander’s vision to purchase a multi-purpose building at 590 North Avenue. Known to the Congregation as “the 590,” the building became a central point of fellowship for congregational events, youth, and community activities. In 2001, Pastor Alexander, as Chairman of the Bethursday Development Corporation, provided leadership in the purchase of more than eleven, “prized” acres of land located between Joseph E. Boone Boulevard and Jett Street. The purchase was considered a prize inasmuch as several developers wanted the property and its proximity to the Georgia World Congress Center. Later, four and a half acres of railroad right of way were purchased from the CSX Railroad. These acquisitions would become the canvas for redeveloping the English Avenue community. In 2004, Antioch joined in celebrating the opening of the wonderful Gateway Apartment Community, a neighborhood development partnership opportunity spearheaded by the Bethursday Development Corporation. The apartment community provided 261 units of quality, affordable housing fronting Northside Drive. The complex was welcomed as the precursor for the continued and aggressive development of the English Avenue Community. Continuing to focus of the development and revitalization of the English Avenue Community, the Bethursday Development Corporation completed the first phase of twenty-eight townhomes on Elm Street, just two blocks west of the Church in 2008. In 2010, the City of Atlanta changed the name of Kennedy Street, NW to Cameron M. Alexander Boulevard as a tangible way for the City to honor Pastor Alexander for his long and dynamic legacy of community service and civic leadership to the vitality of the City of Atlanta. At the 2014 Annual Church Conference, the Reverend Kenneth L. Alexander was formally voted in as Co-Pastor. With pastoral experience, service as executive director of AUMI and trusted advisor to Pastor C.M. Alexander on matters relating to AUMI, Bethursday Development and real estate acquisitions, Rev. K. L. Alexander accepted the clarion call, uniquely qualified to serve this present age alongside Pastor Alexander. While many congregations as old as Antioch often split and its members and leadership reorganize or struggle with leadership directions, under Pastor Alexander’s vision, Antioch has successfully established eight missions: New Hope Mission, the Viking Mission, Lakemont Mission, Antioch Lakewood Mission, Antioch Madison House Mission, Antioch North Baptist Mission, Antioch Lithia Springs Mission, and the Antioch Community Mission at John’s Creek. Of the eight missions, five have become strong, thriving congregational churches: Lakemont Missionary Baptist Church, New Hope Missionary Baptist Church, Faith Missionary Baptist Church, Loving Spirit Missionary Baptist Church, and New Horizon Baptist Church. During his long tenure as the illustrious president of the General Missionary Baptist Convention of Georgia, Inc., Dr. Alexander provided the leadership for the establishment of the Land of Promise Mission. All of these new church congregations serve as living testimonies that Antioch’s commitment to Christian Service is as strong, as dedicated, and as much needed today as it was in 1877 when eight former slaves came together for the first time in what would eventually evolve into our beloved Antioch Missionary Baptist Church North. 2019 - Present Rev. K. L. Alexander is the son of the late Reverend Dr. C. M. Alexander and Dr. Barbara J. Alexander. A third-generation Baptist preacher, Pastor Alexander exhibits strength, courage, and transparency in his call to preach the gospel and addressing some of life’s most pressing challenges and needs of the church. His powerful voice and strong ability to lead with a servant’s heart was cultivated and nurtured at Antioch during his 50+ year membership. On Sunday, March 31, 2019, the Reverend Kenneth L. Alexander, a resolute and God-fearing man of God was Consecrated as Pastor of the historic Antioch Baptist Church North. Reverend Alexander has remained steadfast in delivering messages of hope, encouragement, and redemption to all of God’s people. Carrying out God’s directives given in the Great Commission (Matthew 28:19-20), Pastor Alexander is more committed than ever to the pastorate and honoring the legacy of serving the least, the less and the lost. In 2019, his visionary leadership led to the completion of several major church and Antioch campus renovation projects. In 2022, he oversaw a critical sanctuary upgrade, including the installation of a state- of-the-art audio-visual system, new flooring, lights, and pew padding. Additionally, after storm damage, the roof was replaced. A Sanctuary Rededication Service and Ribbon Cutting Ceremony was the lead-in to the 148th Church Anniversary Celebration. Led by the Holy Spirit, Pastor Alexander demonstrated an unprecedented measure of leadership in response to the Covid-19 pandemic, keeping the congregation and community safe by moving to virtual worship service on the 3rd Sunday in March 2020, prior to government-issued shelter-in-place orders. Under his leadership, Antioch Baptist Church North Network (ABCNN) was launched, led by a production team dedicated to keeping our church family and friends connected virtually via Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and our church website. He established the Covid-19 Taskforce, a team of medical professionals and church leaders who were charged with providing recommendations, counsel and strategy for managing essential church operations and providing data-based guidance for the return to in-person worship. A phased-in re-entry with all safety protocols in place was begun on Resurrection Sunday, April 17, 2022. Worship services and Wednesday Night Bible Study continue to be streamed on social media platforms and many church worship, Christian education, outreach and fellowship opportunities continue virtually throughout the week: • Daily Morning Devotion • Noonday Service • Sunday School • Sunday Worship Service • Thursday Night Bible Classes and Bible Study • Various Ministry Activities. Reverend Alexander is the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Antioch Urban Ministries, Inc. (AUMI). AUMI serves as an advocate agency providing essential support to families in need, comprehensive substance abuse recovery services, housing for persons living with HIV and youth mentoring. The AUMI Food Bank provides for over 400 families each week through collaboration with the Atlanta Community Food Bank. AUMI nearly tripled its distribution of food during the height of the pandemic with over 30,000 clients receiving over one million pounds of food. Our food service program also expanded to include prepared hot meal distribution 3 days a week and food delivery to seniors. The Apparel Shoppe (formerly the Clothing Bank) distributes donated apparel, toiletries, shoes and other necessities to men, women and children weekly. Antioch continues to serve as a beacon of hope within the metro-Atlanta community and beyond. Through partnerships, AUMI served as a designated Covid-19 testing site and continues to provide Covid vaccinations. The inaugural Antioch Urban Ministries’ Recovery Walk in 2022 raised awareness about substance abuse and funds to combat it. AUMI also partnered with Morehouse School of Medicine on several initiatives in 2022, including a health fair, where basic vital health checks, such as blood pressure and cholesterol levels, healthy cooking demonstrations, educational and support materials were available free of charge. Pastor Alexander co-led the first 40-Day Turn-Up in partnership with the founder of the program, Dr. Joseph Williams. The biblically-based program focused on healthy eating and exercise as well as weekly information and support sessions. The successful pivot to online sessions at the outset of the Covid-19 pandemic spawned an online program that now reaches thousands. Concerned about the whole person, Pastor Alexander has been proactive providing mental health awareness events. He issued a call for mental health professionals in the congregation to establish a Mental Health Ministry. The ministry raises awareness about mental health issues and provides seminars and information on resources. Pastor Alexander serves on several boards and committees specifically representing Antioch Baptist Church North and AUMI and focused on protecting the interests of our church, our members and those perceived as the least of these throughout the community: • Westside Future Fund Board of Directors • Church Mutual African American Advisory Board • City of Atlanta Use of Force Advisory Council • Bethursday Development Board Chair • Treasurer of the Morehouse School of Religion Board of Trustees • General Missionary Baptist Convention, Inc. Celebrating our 148th Anniversary as members of the body of Christ headquartered at Antioch North, like our founding Bethursday Prayer Band, we gather to collectively praise God. As stated in Hebrews 4:16, we will continue to go to God’s throne. The church marquee, which was dedicated during Pioneers’ Observance Sunday in 2019, stands as a welcoming beacon of light. As we continue to rely on God’s grace and mercy, we will show grace and mercy to others, lighting the world as a symbol of hope, a place of refuge, and a living testament to the greatness and goodness of God.