Vineville Baptist a faith community cornerstone

It has been said, written, boasted and repeated that Macon has more churches per capita than any city in the South. At times, it does seem as if a house of worship is located on almost every street corner.

And there is no more unique corner than the one occupied by Vineville Baptist Church.

Every day, more than 20,000 cars, trucks and buses pass its stately brick and beautiful stained-glass windows at one of the city’s busiest intersection at 2591 Vineville Avenue.

Perhaps nowhere else is there a Baptist church at the confluence of a street named after both a Catholic pope and a Methodist bishop.

Pio Nono Avenue is named after Pope Pius IX, the longest-reigning elected pope in the history of the Catholic church. As it crosses Vineville, it becomes Pierce Avenue, named after George Pierce. Pierce was the first president of Wesleyan College, and the new chapel there is named in his honor. (In 1836, he planted acorns that became what are believed to Macon’s oldest trees — the five live oaks two blocks away at the corner of Calloway Drive.)

The church sits catty-corner to Stanislaus subdivision, the former site of St. Stanislaus College, a Jesuit school built in 1874. It burned to the ground in 1921, three years before Vineville Baptist opened the doors to its present sanctuary.

Indeed, Vineville Baptist, which will begin a weeklong celebration Sunday to mark its 125th anniversary, has its own unique story to tell.

On May 10, 1891, several members of the First Baptist Church of Christ — the mother church of all Baptist congregations in Macon — met at the home of Judge J.L. Hardeman to organize a new church in the suburb of Vineville Village, named for an area west of the city known for its vineyards.

The first church services were held in a private home, then moved to a small wooden building before locating to the corner of Vineville and Lamar Street in 1902. (That building, with its terra cotta columns, later became a Primitive Baptist Church and is now the Islamic Center of Macon.)

Vineville Baptist has been instrumental in the establishment of other congregations in Macon, including Ingleside Baptist, Highland Hills Baptist and West Highland Baptist.

The church purchased 30 acres on the developing Zebulon Road and opened a satellite church, Vineville North Baptist, in July 1998.

“We outgrew our location,’’ said longtime Vineville Baptist member Charles Jay, who leads the church’s senior adult ministry. “We had a parking problem, and we were landlocked.’’

In the early years of Vineville North, pastor Ben Haygood served both congregations, traveling between the two churches on Sunday mornings. The transfer of Vineville Baptist members to Vineville North was partly offset by Vineville Baptist’s eventual merger with the congregation of Cross Keys Baptist, which closed. (In 2009, Vineville North became the non-denominational Northway Church and is no longer affiliated with Vineville.)

Vineville Baptist also can claim a footnote among Southern churches during the Civil Rights movement of the 1950s and ‘60s. Otis Redding, the “King of Soul,’’ sang in the choir as a youth, according to the late singer’s website. In 1963, under the leadership of pastor Walter Moore, Vineville became the first church in the Georgia Baptist Convention to integrate, when Sam Oni became a member. Oni was an African missionary student from Ghana, who broke the color barrier at Mercer University.

Jay said he is proud of Vineville Baptist’s strong commitment to missions — from working with the Fuller Center to rebuild and repair local houses to international mission trips. The church holds a large and well-organized bazaar every fall and a children’s consignment sale in the spring to raise funds for its mission work.

This year, Vineville is celebrating the 50th year of its preschool program. Another ministry, Higher Life, opened in 1990 as an enrichment center for mentally disabled adults.

For 42 years, the church has held one of the most unique golf tournaments in the area. It is called the Tournament of Champions, and is now played at Idle Hour every fall. Until recently, it was known for its unusual prizes.

“Over the years, we gave away 32 different kinds of live animals,’’ Jay said, laughing. “We gave away goats, donkeys, snakes, possums, turkeys, pigs and chickens. One time, I went to a farmer to get four ducks, and he told me he wanted to get rid all of his ducks, so he gave me 21. We gave one to everybody whose ball went in the water. We were playing at Houston Lake, and there’s a lot of water down there. We gave away all the ducks but one.’’

Vineville’s 125th anniversary celebration will begin Sunday at 6 p.m. with a concert by Molly Ijames (pronounced “Imes”), who has written more than 200 anthems, cantatas and other musical arrangements.

At Wednesday night supper, a “tableau” of Vineville vignettes will be part of the program. On Thursday, the church sanctuary will be open for prayer from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., and will be followed by an hour of old-fashioned hymn singing.

On April 30, there will be a dinner at 5 p.m. at the church activities center. Former ministers Ben Haygood, Bill Hardee, Tripp Martin and current pastor Richard Kremer will share recollections of their time at Vineville. John Pierce, who has twice served the church as interim pastor in recent years, also has been invited to attend. Pierce is editor of Baptist Today, a national publication based in Macon.

On May 1, Loyd Landrum and Bobby Smith will be honored for their contributions to the church.

Landrum served as minister of music for 30 years and started the famous “Living Christmas Tree’’ choir at the church. The sanctuary is named in his honor.

Smith, of S&S Cafeteria, will be recognized for his longtime contributions and loyalty to the church’s endowment fund.

Mercer University President Bill Underwood will deliver the message at the morning worship service.

“This is one of those times when we can look back on the rich legacy of this church and look forward to a rich and prosperous future,’’ said Kremer.

Said Jay: “We want to share the incredible memories of people who have not only have contributed to the history of our church but to our community.’’

This story was originally published April 22, 2016 at 10:30 PM with the headline "Vineville Baptist a faith community cornerstone."