Faith in Midtown

Ministry has changed over the decades to be relevant to the changing community

By H.M. Cauley
For the Journal-Constitution
Published on: 02/15/07

Since 1900, North Avenue Presbyterian Church has loomed over the corner of the road it's named for and Peachtree Street. The gray granite building, with its stained-glass windows and a bell tower, has been a landmark for visitors, commuters and area residents, even as other structures around it have gone up and, as in the case of the old Wachovia building across the street, come down in a cloud of dust.

But there have been times when its anchor status wasn't quite so secure.

"We have thought over the decades about whether we'd leave Midtown or not," said senior pastor Scott Weimer. "But in the end, we felt that this corner was key to our identity."

North Avenue's determination to hang on to its Midtown location was once severely challenged by a neighborhood deteriorating around it. It wasn't a dilemma peculiar to the Presbyterians. A few blocks north, the congregation at St. Mark United Methodist Church at 781 Peachtree St. also was fretting about neighborhood conditions.

"We've been on this site for 104 years, but during the '70s and '80s, the church and the neighborhood declined drastically," said senior pastor James Moor. "There are people in the church today who remember when we were in a dingy and sometimes dangerous community."

It's a different story today. Sunday mornings in Midtown bring overflowing church parking lots, cars parked in the curb lanes and people walking to church. The area's residential renaissance has breathed new life into the historic churches.

"I can sit in my office and see four condo buildings without turning my head," said Noelle York-Simmons, associate rector of All Saints Episcopal, which has been on the corner of North Avenue and West Peachtree Street for 100 years. "If I turn my head, I see Atlantic Station. It's a new phenomenon. Along with all these new street-level businesses, Midtown is becoming a place for people to live and work."

And worship.

"One of the reasons I was attracted to this church was because intown churches are thriving and growing younger," said Michael Foss, senior pastor of Lutheran Church of the Redeemer, who took the job at 731 Peachtree St. almost three months ago. 'We've had a number of folks from Midtown join our congregation, mostly young professionals and young families. It's a fun mix."

Foss' flock today numbers about 3,000. There are 1,800 members at St. Mark, where 15 newcomers joined just last month. North Avenue's membership has more than doubled in the past decade to about 1,000 —- including 300 babies born in the past three years. At All Saints, there are about 3,000 on the rolls, including many who stroll to the church from the nearby Ponce, Windsor, Metropolis and Biltmore buildings. Amanda and Cedric Marie, four-year residents of the Windsor, are often among them.

"To be perfectly honest, we came out of our building and turned right and found this church," said Amanda Marie. "We have always gone to church close to where we live. But in this church, there are a lot of people who drive miles to get here. We're lucky; we don't."

Most of the Midtown churches claim some membership from the suburbs, but their focus is largely on serving the rapidly changing neighborhood around them.

"One thing that's demographically true: Many of the people moving here tend to be more of an unchurched and uninterested in church demographic," said York-Simmons. "These are young couples and singles for whom Sunday morning means hanging out and reading The New York Times. Church is new to them, or they were burned by a church and have vowed not to go back. That makes reaching out to them difficult."

The congregations that thrive do so with innovative ways to get their message out. These often involve a variety of community outreach programs, educational programs, a selection of worship times and styles, children's activities, and an open-door policy toward an assortment of lifestyles and ethnic groups.

"Our ministry has changed over the decades to be relevant to the changing community," said Weimer. "We have three different worship styles. We partner with the surrounding business community by hosting events such as the Atlanta Symphony at Christmas. In September, we started a midday service on Wednesdays."

The church's congregation is as varied as its programs, Weimer said. "We have people from very different socioeconomic backgrounds, from gazillionaires to street people. And we are multiethnic, with members from all around the world."

The growth has been so strong at North Avenue that the church is studying a building plan to maximize the use of its confined space on the corner. "That's part of being in Midtown —- you have very limited space," said Weimer. "But we hope to add additional classrooms, infant space, rooms for youth and young adults, and a fellowship hall that can accommodate a growing congregation."

Sitting on a plot of prime Midtown real estate brings another new, unexpected challenge, said Weimer, whose windows overlook construction of a new residential high-rise on the former Wachovia site.

"I get about one call a month from a real estate group that wants to buy the building," he said. "The Reynolds [condos] went up next door, and the block behind us has already been assembled for redevelopment. But we're not leaving the city. We're living into those places and seeking to lift the quality of life for all people."