Faith matters for Nov. 7, 2009

• By TERRY ROBINSON
• Advocate News Features staff
• Published: Nov 7, 2009

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The faith of a few led to the founding of the Star of Bethlehem Baptist Church.

That same kind of faith has brought the church to a very special place in its history: its 100th year anniversary with the theme “We’ve Come This Far by Faith.”

The service will start at 11 a.m. Sunday at the church, 1204 St. Joseph St. The Rev. Charles Southhall, pastor of the First Emanuel Baptist Church of New Orleans, will be the guest speaker.

 “If we go by sight, we would not have come this far,” said the Rev. Henry J. Brown, who has served as pastor of Star of Bethlehem for nine years. “We have come this far by faith. You have to trust in God.”

The congregation grew from a gathering of five people who met for prayer and praise services in the home of Matthew Brown. By 1909, the gathering became a church, getting its name from Alice Mitchell, who said a “star” had guided a faithful few from the early days to erect a place of worship for believers in Christ.

The first pastor was the Rev. S. M. Clark. The group would later meet in an old grocery store and other sites before settling in at St. Joseph and Julia streets after 1946 under the leadership of the Rev. Robert A. Clark.

Robert Clark was perhaps the church’s most prominent pastor, leading the congregation for nearly 50 years, from 1946 until his death in 1993.

After Clark, two pastors —  the Revs. W. Marshall Myles and D.C. Darensbourg — led the church before Brown took over in 2001. Brown, who is also pastor of First Emmanuel Baptist Church of Baton Rouge, said he has memories of visiting the church as an 8-year-old Boy Scout while Clark was the pastor.

“Part of the strength of church is the camaraderie and the love that we have for each other,” said the Rev. Gerald Ann Tobias, co-chairwoman of the church’s anniversary committee. “In times of crisis, the church comes together truly as a family and we are all one in Christ.”

One member who has been associated with the church since nearly its inception is the Rev. Joseph Stewart. He has been associated with the church for 89 years.

“When I was 6 years old, I started attending Sunday school there,” said the 95-year-old Stewart. “To me, it’s been a great adventure.”

Baptist District session

The Fourth District Missionary Baptist Association will hold its 135th Annual Session Sunday through Thursday at St. Mary Baptist Church, 1252 N. Acadian Thruway E.