Cumberland Presbyterian Center

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Cumberland Presbyterian Center: The denominational headquarters of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church located at 1978 Union Avenue in Memphis, Tennessee, since 1951. Funded through a denomination wide campaign in the late-1940s, the Center building is an impressive and architecturally interesting neo-gothic structure. The Cumberland Presbyterian Denomination's seminary, Memphis Theological Seminary, is located less than a mile away. The construction of the Center, and the consolidation of board and agency offices in Memphis, marked the end of a long period of recovery for the Cumberland Presbyterian denomination after the ravages of the partial union with the Presbyterian Church (USA) in 1906.

At the meetings of their General Assemblies in 2005 and 2006, Cumberland Presbyterians voted to either build, purchase, or lease a new denominational headquarters.[1] The decision was not without opposition. Factions within the denomination were divided over the deposition of the historic midtown Memphis structure that had served since 1951. Some Cumberland Presbyterians felt that the denomination would be better served by remodeling the existing structure. Arguments against renovation included the fear that asbestos employed in the original construction was a potential health risk to the occupants and that the structure was no longer in a desirable location. It should be noted that the majority of the denominational boards and agencies housed at the property were strongly in favor of renovation.[2]

The General Assembly of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church appointed a task force to raise funds for construction and to select a site for a new denominational headquarters. At the same time, the assembly affirmed their support for a centralized denominational staff.[3] Although the process was more difficult than had been anticipated, on February 22, 2008, a site for the new Cumberland Presbyterian Center campus was purchased near the intersection of Interstate 40 and Germantown Road in Memphis.

[edit] Boards and Agencies housed at the Cumberland Presbyterian Center

  • Board of Christian Education
  • Board of Missions
  • Board of Stewardship
  • Commission on the Ministry
  • General Assembly Council
  • Historical Foundation of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church and the Cumberland Presbyterian Church in America (denominational library and archives)
  • Office of the General Assembly

[edit] Footnotes

  1. ^ Minutes of the General Assembly of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church, 2005-2006
  2. ^ Minutes of the General Assembly of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church, 2006
  3. ^ Minutes of the General Assembly of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church, 2005-2007

[edit] Sources

  • History of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church in Kentucky to 1988, by Matthew H. Gore, Joint Heritage Committee of Covenant and Cumberland Presbyteries. Memphis, Tennessee, 2000.