The Metropolitan Tabernacle is a

Reformed Reform is beneficial change. Reform, reformed or reforming may also refer to: Media * ''Reform'' (album), a 2011 album by Jane Zhang * Reform (band), a Swedish jazz fusion group * ''Reform'' (magazine), a Christian magazine Places * Reform, Al ...

Independent Baptist Church in the

Elephant and Castle Elephant and Castle is an area of South London, England, in the London Borough of Southwark. The name also informally refers to much of Walworth and Newington, due to the proximity of the London Underground station of the same name. The n ...

area in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. It was the largest non-conformist church of its day in 1861. The Tabernacle fellowship has been worshipping together since 1650. Its first pastor was William Rider; other notable pastors and preachers include

Benjamin Keach Benjamin Keach (29 February 1640 – 18 July 1704) was an English Baptist minister and author whose name was given to '' Keach's Catechism''. Biography Keach was born on 29 February 1640 to John and Fedora Keeche at Stoke Hammond, Buck ...

, John Gill,

John Rippon John Rippon (29 April 1751 – 17 December 1836) was an English Baptist minister. In 1787 he published an important hymnal, ''A Selection of Hymns from the Best Authors, Intended to Be an Appendix to Dr. Watts’ Psalms and Hymns'', commonly ...

and C. H. Spurgeon. The present pastor is

Peter Masters Peter Masters has been the Minister of the Metropolitan Tabernacle in central London since 1970. He founded the ''Evangelical Times'', an evangelical newspaper, in 1967. He also directs the School of Theology, an annual conference for pastors a ...

History

The Tabernacle fellowship dates back to 1650, when the English Parliament banned independent

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

organisations from meeting together. This congregation braved persecution until 1688, when the Baptists were once again allowed to worship in freedom. At this point, the group built their first chapel, in Horsleydown,

Southwark Southwark ( ) is a district of Central London situated on the south bank of the River Thames, forming the north-western part of the wider modern London Borough of Southwark. The district, which is the oldest part of South London, developed ...

, an area of London immediately south of the present-day Tower Bridge. In 1720, John Gill became pastor and served for 51 years. In 1771,

became pastor and served for 63 years. During these times, the church experienced growth and became one of the largest congregations in the country. Afterwards decline set in and by 1850 the congregation was small. In 1854, Charles Haddon Spurgeon started serving at the Tabernacle at the age of 20. The church at the beginning of Spurgeon's pastorate was situated at

New Park Street Chapel The New Park Street Chapel, nowadays Metropolitan Tabernacle, was a Particular Baptist chapel in Southwark, London, built in 1833. The church was formed in 1650 and initially was General Baptist. Its first pastor was William Rider, and many notab ...

, but this soon became so full that services had to be held in hired halls such as the Surrey Gardens Music Hall. During Spurgeon's ministry, it was decided that the church should move permanently to larger premises. The location chosen was at

, a prominent position near the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, s ...

South London South London is the southern part of Greater London, England, south of the River Thames. The region consists of the Districts of England, boroughs, in whole or in part, of London Borough of Bexley, Bexley, London Borough of Bromley, Bromley, Lon ...

, partly because it was thought to be the site of the burning of the Southwark Martyrs. The building, with a 6,000-seat auditorium, designed by William Willmer Pocock, was finished in 1861 and dedicated on 18 March. In 1881, the church had 5,500 members. Spurgeon also founded a college for preachers and church workers (now Spurgeon's College), and orphanages for girls and boys, and wrote many Christian books which are still in print today. Met Tab Pulpit

In 1887, the church left the Baptist Union because of the widening influence of theological

liberalism Liberalism is a Political philosophy, political and moral philosophy based on the Individual rights, rights of the individual, liberty, consent of the governed, political equality, the right to private property, and equality before the law. ...

within the union. Spurgeon was adamant that the church would not " downgrade" the faith as he believed other baptist churches were doing. At the end of 1891, membership was given as 5,311. Spurgeon served for 38 years and died in 1892. The original building was burned down in 1898, leaving just the front portico and basement intact, before the rebuilt church was destroyed again in 1941 during the German bombing of London in

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. Once again, the portico and basement survived and in 1957 the Tabernacle was rebuilt to a new but much smaller design incorporating surviving original features. The war led to the Tabernacle fellowship being greatly diminished as few members of the old congregation were able to return to heavily blitzed central London. It rejoined the Baptist Union in 1955. By 1970 the congregation had fallen to the point where it occupied only a few pews. It left the Baptist Union again on 22 February 1971, just after

became the pastor, over the same issues as under Spurgeon in 1887. Numbers greatly increased and this gave rise to the full church and galleries of today, together with numerous professions of faith. It hosts an annual school of

theology Theology is the study of religious belief from a Religion, religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an Discipline (academia), academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itse ...

, runs a part-time

seminary A seminary, school of theology, theological college, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called seminarians) in scripture and theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as cle ...

for pastors, has five Sunday schools, and provides free video and audio downloads, along with live-streaming of services. By 2009, it would have 500 people in its main service.

Criticism

According to

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

, the church's sermons are characterized by an obsession with

sin In religious context, sin is a transgression against divine law or a law of the deities. Each culture has its own interpretation of what it means to commit a sin. While sins are generally considered actions, any thought, word, or act considered ...

moralism Moralism is a philosophy that arose in the 19th century that concerns itself with imbuing society with a certain set of morals, usually traditional behaviour, but also "justice, freedom, and equality". It has strongly affected North American and ...

, and a perfectionism impossible to reach.

Church basic policies

The Metropolitan Tabernacle is an independent reformed Baptist church. The following seven points show the key biblical policies followed, laid down by forebears, such as C. H. Spurgeon. * Doctrines of grace, commonly called 'Calvinistic'. * Free offer of the Gospel * Traditional worship * Working church * Biblical separation * The prayer meeting * Wider ministries.

Pastors

* William Rider, c. 1653–c. 65 (12 years) *

, 1668–1704 (36 years) * Benjamin Stinton, 1704–18 (14 years) * John Gill, 1720–71 (51 years) *

, 1773–1836 (63 years) * Joseph Angus, 1837–39 (2 years) * James Smith, 1841–50 (8 ½ years) * William Walters, 1851–53 (2 years) *

Charles Spurgeon Charles Haddon Spurgeon (19 June 1834 – 31st January 1892) was an English Particular Baptist preacher. Spurgeon remains highly influential among Christians of various denominations, to some of whom he is known as the "Prince of Preachers." ...

, 1854–92 (38 years) * Arthur Tappan Pierson, 1891–93 (pulpit supply only, not installed as a Pastor – 2 years) * Thomas Spurgeon, 1893–1908 (15 years) * Archibald G. Brown, 1908–11 (3 years) * Amzi Dixon, 1911–19 (8 years) * Harry Tydeman Chilvers, 1919–35 (15 ½ years) * W Graham Scroggie, 1938–43 (5 years) * W G Channon, 1944–49 (5 years) * Gerald B Griffiths, 1951–54 (3 years) * Eric W Hayden, 1956–62 (6 years) * Dennis Pascoe, 1963–69 (6 years) *

,. 1970–present.

References

Bibliography

* .

External links

* {{coord , 51, 29, 39, N, 0, 6, 4, W, type:landmark_region:GB, display =title Greek Revival church buildings in the United Kingdom Churches completed in 1861 19th-century Baptist churches Baptist churches in London Churches in the London Borough of Southwark 1650 establishments in England Religious organizations established in the 1650s 17th-century Protestant churches 19th-century church buildings in England Independent Baptist churches in England