A sidewalk baptism on Harvard Ave (Image: Capitol Hill Presbyterian Church)
It’s not the typical Capitol Hill landlord and tenant situation we’re used to reporting here on CHS.
The Presbyterian church that has stood at the corner of Harvard and Howell for 95 years will soon be in search of a new congregation.
The Capitol Hill Presbyterian Church announced Wednesday morning that it is ending its congregation and will hold final services on Harvard Ave on June 24th and 9:45 AM.
“CHP has experienced many changes over the last couple of years, most notably a steady decline in attendance and giving, and the departure of key people in leadership,” the CHP leadership and “transitional pastor” Rev. Dr. Vonna Thomas wrote in their announcement. “As a result, the Session of CHP entered a time of discernment about the future. After many hours of intentional prayer, scripture reading and discussion, we concluded that God was saying that it was time to close CHP as we know it.”
Thomas tells CHS that the decision came after a many months-long period of “very intentional and intense time of reflection” for the church’s Session, or group of elder leadership.
Now the congregation is planning its final days on Capitol Hill. It formed and moved to Capitol Hill in 2008 as a relatively young congregation known as Church at the Center merged with Westminster Presbyterian Church, a congregation with a 110-year history on Capitol Hill.
The structure itself and tax-exempt property is owned by the regional Presbyterian church. The process has begun to find new groups who might form the next congregation to put the church to good use on Sundays.
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It’s great to see a group organized around pre-modern superstitious nonsense disband due to lack interest.
It gives one a feeling that humanity does, in fact, have a future.
i know, right? success! as soon as those cults/religions start losing money, they look elsewhere.
Yeah! Maybe a modern superstitious group like CARW can fill that hole.
Good, turn it into housing. You know, something actually useful. And that will generate tax revenue.
Looks like it needs a seismic retrofit. It is on the city’s unreinforced masonry list, considered high risk for being an assembly building with capacity greater than 100. That can’t be cheap, I wonder if the church organization will have deep enough pockets to get it done.
Wishing well to the congregation. Thank you for your spiritual practice.