Brown Memorial Presbyterian
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Brown Memorial Presbyterian Church of Baltimore, also known as Brown Memorial Park Avenue Presbyterian Church, is a large, Gothic Revival-style Presbyterian church located at Park and Lafayette Avenues in the city's Bolton Hill section. The church is noted for its ornate stained glass windows by the renowned artist Louis Comfort Tiffany, soaring vaulted ceiling, and prominent persons associated with its history. Maltbie Babcock, who was the church's pastor 1886–1900, wrote the familiar hymn, "This is My Father's World". Storied virtuoso concert performer Virgil Fox was organist at Brown Memorial early in his career (1936–1946).
Called "one of the most significant buildings in this city, a treasure of art and architecture" by Baltimore Magazine, the church underwent a $1.8 million restoration in 2001–2002.
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[edit] History
The Brown Memorial Presbyterian Church building was dedicated on December 4, 1870, in memory of George Brown, son of investment firm founder Alexander Brown and one of the founders of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad in 1827. (D, James. The Great Road. Stanford University Press, 1993)
Construction was funded by a gift of $150,000 from his widow, Isabella McLanahan Brown, an amount which would be equivalent to several million dollars today. George Brown was described by a Baltimore historian as a successful businessman and civic leader who "regarded religion as preeminent above all other things and loved his church with all the ardor of his noble nature." (Howard, George M. Monumental City – Its Past History and Present resources.)
The sanctuary was enlarged in 1905 with the addition of a transcept and several Tiffany windows. Further development occurred in 1931 with the addition of the current chancel designed by notable architect Ralph Adams Cram, along with the present 4-manual E.M. Skinner pipe organ. (Swope, Jane T. A History of Brown Memorial Presbyterian Church 1870–1995.)
Rev. John Timothy Smith succeeded Maltbie Babcock as minister in 1900, pastoring Brown Memorial Presbyterian Church until 1915, when he was followed by Rev. John McDowell (1915–1921) and subsequently Rev. G. A. Hulbert (1921–1928). There followed the popular ministry of Rev. T. Guthrie Speers (1928–1957), who began an outreach program to Baltimore's Jewish community, occasionally exchanging pulpits with local rabbis. He also abolished racial segregation at the church and supported the installation of the church's pipe organ by Ernest M. Skinner in 1931.
After Speers' retirement in 1957, Dr. John Middaugh was minister 1958–1968. Middaugh was a regular panelist for ten years on the weekly television program To Promote Goodwill, an interfaith discussion of social and religious issues produced by WBAL-TV and broadcast worldwide on the Voice of America. (O'Connor, Thomas H. Baltimore Broadcasting from A to Z. Baltimore, MD, 1985). He was also in the forefront of the civil rights movement in the early 1960s.
Rev. Ian Wilson was then called to the pulpit in 1968.
Membership peaked at 1,336 in 1952 but subsequently declined in the late 1950s as much of the city's population migrated to the suburbs. In response, a portion of the congregation decided in 1956 to build a church in the suburban Woodbrook area north of Baltimore. Others members wished to remain at the Bolton Hill location, prompting a decision to operate one church at two locations, with a shared ministerial staff. This arrangement continued until 1980, when the congregations of the two churches voted for separation. The original Bolton Hill church was subsequently referred to as "Brown Memorial Park Avenue", to distinguish it from "Brown Memorial Woodbrook". (Swope, Jane T. A History of Brown Memorial Presbyterian Church 1870–1995).
Rev. Charles Erhardt was pastor from 1975 to 1980, when Brown Memorial Woodbrook severed its ties with Brown Memorial Park Avenue. Rev. David Malone then replaced Erhardt as pastor of Brown Memorial Park Avenue 1980–1990. He was succeeded by Rev. Roger J. Gench (1990–2002), who is now pastor of New York Avenue Presbyterian Church in Washington, DC.
[edit] The stained glass windows
Among the considerable number of stained glass windows, those crafted by Louis Comfort Tiffany in 1905 are especially prized for their vibrancy and exceptional depth:
- The Annunciation to the Shepherds – the birth of the infant Christ announced by the angels. Tiffany employed a confetti glass technique for the flames of the shepherds' bonfire as the star of Bethlehem gleams with etched glass.
- The Baptism of Christ – portrays Jesus with John the Baptist at the River Jordan. Mottled glass is used for the area around the water, with a layer of wavy glass over Christ's left foot to create the illusion of looking through water.
- Christ Blessing the Children – the Lord holds a child in his lap, whose face is that of the boy for whom this window was donated as a memorial by his grieving parents.
- I am the Way – Jesus walks through heavy clouds and stormy seas. Opalescent glass is used to create a glow of light around the figure of Jesus.
- Christ in Gethsemane – portraying Christ praying in the Garden of Gethsemane, surrounded by trees made of stippled glass.
- The young David – the future Israelite king is pictured
- If I Be Lifted Up – Christ is portrayed in the clouds, with light radiating from behind His head as the penetrating eyes seem to follow the viewer around the nave. An extra layer of mottled glass behind the clouds was used by Tiffany.
- Lead Kindly Light – placed to catch the rays of the afternoon sun, the cross is made of etched glass.
- The Holy City – St. John's vision on the isle of Patmos of the "New Jerusalem", as described in the Book of Revelation. Brilliant red, orange, and yellow glass is etched for the sunrise, with textured glass used to create the effect of moving water. Said to be one of the two largest windows (along with The Annunciation to the Shepherds) ever made by the Tiffany Studios, this 58-panel stained glass window honors Rev. Maltbie Babcock. (Feldman, Joan S. Sacred Glass: The Tiffany Windows of Brown Memorial Park Avenue Presbyterian Church. Baltimore: Brown Memorial Presbyterian Church, 2005).
- Gabriel – the archangel Gabriel in the clouds, with feathers individually fashioned from opalescent glass by Tiffany.
- John, the Visionary – Wearing a red cloak and having an intense expression, St. John is portrayed by Tiffany in the style of the 17th c Flemish painter Peter Paul Reubens. The window is made of drapery, opalescent, and mottled glass.
- The New Creation – located at the rear of the church, it is based on the description in Revelation, chapter 22, with stained glass depictions of trees, mountains, and streams of Living Water. At the top is a star morphing into a cross, with rays made of nuggets.(Pollitt, L. Irving. A History of Brown Memorial Presbyterian Church 1870–1945).
 The Annunciation to the Shepherds, by Tiffany |
 The Baptism of Christ, by Tiffany |
 The New Creation, by Tiffany |
 Interior details |
[edit] Currently
The church sanctuary remains essentially the same today as in 1931. The Skinner pipe organ underwent a restoration completed in 2005, with all original 45 ranks of the instrument fully preserved. A 99-memory level Capture System was added to the organ.
Rev. Andrew Foster Connors is the current pastor and John Walker, formerly director of music and organist at Riverside Church in New York City, is the minister of music.
The current coordinator of family ministries is Rachel Cunningham.
[edit] References
