First Baptist Church (Hammond, Indiana)

First Baptist Church, Hammond
Map
LocationHammond, Indiana
CountryUnited States
DenominationIndependent Baptist
Previous denominationAmerican Baptist
Websitefbchammond.com
History
FoundedNovember 24, 1887 (1887-11-24)
Founder(s)Allen Hill
Clergy
Senior pastor(s)John Wilkerson

The First Baptist Church of Hammond is an Independent Fundamental Baptist megachurch in Hammond, Indiana, a suburb of Chicago. It is the largest church in the state of Indiana, and in 2007 was the 20th largest in the United States.[1] Though founded in 1887 by Allen Hill, it was under Jack Hyles' leadership from 1959–2001 when it became one of the megachurches in the United States and during the 1970s, had the highest Sunday school attendance of any church in the world.[2] In 1990, the church had a weekly attendance of 20,000.[3] It also operates Hyles-Anderson College, a non-accredited institution established for the training of pastors and missionaries, and two K-12 schools, called 'City Baptist Schools' (for children of the bus route of the church) and 'Hammond Baptist Schools' (for children of the members of the church). John Wilkerson is the senior pastor at First Baptist Church.[4]

Leaders in the church have faced accusations, lawsuits, and convictions for sexual crimes over decades. These in include the Preying from the Pulpit expose in 1993 and the 2013 conviction in federal court of former pastor Jack Schaap of the sexual abuse of a 16-year-old girl.

  1. ^ "100 Largest U.S. Churches" (PDF). Outreach Magazine. 2007. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 17, 2009. Retrieved March 13, 2009.
  2. ^ Time magazine, "Superchurch", 1 December 1975, retrieved 7 August 2008
  3. ^ Dart, John (October 12, 1990). "25 of 100 Largest Congregations Are in California". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on October 20, 2012. Retrieved April 17, 2009.
  4. ^ "Staff | First Baptist Church of Hammond, Indiana". Archived from the original on 2014-04-29. Retrieved 2014-04-29.