Tabernacle Presbyterian Church

Beginnings

A commitment to Jesus Christ and the Gospel. Christian service to the community. Hospitality and fellowship.

These were the ideals held by a handful of members from First Presbyterian Church in Indianapolis, when they organized the Third Presbyterian Church in 1851. The new congregation met in a downtown hall on Washington Street between Illinois and Meridian.

Under the leadership of Reverend David Stevenson, the church’s first pastor, the church soon erected a new building at the northeast corner of Ohio and Illinois. Not only did the church grow in membership, but the congregation also had a desire to minister to the neighborhoods surrounding the church, through Sabbath Schools and new church plants.

A Change in Name

Upon the departure of Reverend Henry Morey, in 1883, a Rev. A.T. Pierson  was called to be pastor at Third Presbyterian. He agreed to come upon one condition-that the congregation change its name from Third Presbyterian Church, to The Tabernacle Church. The church changed its name, but Pierson changed his mind and instead of coming to Indianapolis, went to pastor a church in Philadelphia. Disappointed, but comforted that both the name change and the episode with Rev. Pierson was God’s plan for the church, the members of Tabernacle continued their service to God and to the city.

In 1889, a new building was erected on the northeast corner of 11th and Meridian . The ensuing years were marked by a fervor for evangelism and outreach, including more church plants throughout the city, the formation of a boarding school for girls called Tudor Hall, now known as Park Tudor school, and participation in overseas missions.

The Call to 34th and Central

While calling on families in the early 1920s, on the fast-growing north side Indianapolis, Dr. J. Ambrose Dunkel saw a need for a Sunday School in that part of the city. So, the church purchased land at 34th and Central. The Sunday School was so successful, it was decided to relocate the church and build the Gothic structure that has ever since been home to Tabernacle Presbyterian Church.

The cause of Christ has always been the foundation for the activities, missions and programs of Tab. The 1920s and ’30s saw the formation of the Recreation department, starting with 12 boys playing basketball in the church coal bin; the first Vacation Bible Schools; and women of the congregation helping to pay for the church mortgage by selling peanuts and fried doughnuts.

The growing congregation, with Dr. Roy Ewing Vale as pastor, saw the addition of Ministers to Youth, a Director of Christian Education and office secretaries-all serving a congregation that supported the cause during World War II; and overseeing church growth brought on by the increase of families during the post-war baby boom.

The Decision to Stay and Serve the Community

Soon, Tab was no longer the country, suburban church that it was in the ’20s. It was becoming a city church, and while innovative ministry and vibrant congregational life was continuing; membership was declining, and a decision had to be made, whether to move the congregation to suburbs or to stay in the neighborhood at 34th and Central.

In 1967, the church’s long-range planning committee decided to stay-a prayerfully made, and God-inspired decision that would define the ministry of Tab over the decades:

Growth in Bible study and a deepening of youth ministry during the 1960s and ’70s.

Growth in support for world missions, and the foundation of Media Ministries during the 1970s and ’80s.

The purchase and establishment of the Allison Christian Center, including the Raphael Health Clinic, and a deepening of urban ministry during the 1990s, which continues today.

All of these wonderful ministries have been the hallmark of Tabernacle Presbyterian Church over the first 159 years of its life.

“Men and women of rare fidelity.”

Following the name change to The Tabernacle Church and the disappointment of having lost their pastor, a member wrote these words about the congregation in 1883, words that have been true throughout the life of Tab:

“They were men and women of rare fidelity, to whom the church was not second in affection and interest, but really first; whose devotion to it, because it was their church and the church of their Lord and Master, was a conspicuous and constant element in life; who gave of prayer and time and labor and money that it might be prospered and do valiantly for the cause of God and the Gospel; who ‘counted it all joy’ to bear its burdens and do its work, and whose high pleasure was in its prosperity.”