History
The church originally was the result of the sustainable work of famed evangelist Dwight L. Moody in the mid-to-late-19th century. Moody concentrated his efforts on promoting his Sunday school, and by 1860, over 1,000 children and their parents attended each week. It had become the largest and most well-known religious outreach of its kind, with the result that President Abraham Lincoln visited the meeting one Sunday. Needing a permanent home, Moody’s ministry built a 1,500-seat church at the corner of Illinois and Wells Streets, called the Illinois Street Church, which was formally dedicated December 30, 1864.
That building was completely destroyed on Sunday, October 8, 1871, when the Great Chicago Fire swept the area. The congregation immediately raised the money to rebuild, this time locating at the corner of Chicago Avenue and LaSalle Street (currently the location of Moody Bible Institute’s women’s dorm, Houghton Hall). The Chicago Avenue Church, which could hold up to 10,000 people, was dedicated in June, 1876. Attendance continued to climb, and on one particular Sunday, the auditorium was filled to capacity, with an additional 6,000 people standing outside the church’s doors.
Dwight Moody died after an illness in 1899, and in 1908, the church was formally renamed “The Moody Church” in his honor. A.C. Dixon took over as pastor in 1906 and he stayed until 1911. In 1912, John Harper of Scotland was called to be the pastor after speaking there in a series of meetings, but tragedy overtook him before he could return to formally take up the pastorate. Returning from Scotland with his daughter and niece, Harper booked passage on the White Star Line’s new ocean liner Titanic. Although his daughter and niece were rescued, Harper was killed in the sinking.
In 1925, the congregation moved to the Church’s current location. In 1930, well-known evangelist Harry A. Ironside became the pastor, serving until his wife’s death in 1948. In 1953, popular British evangelist Alan Redpath was appointed pastor, and served until 1962. From 1966 to 1971, George Sweeting served as pastor, before leaving to become the President of Moody Bible Institute, with his place being taken by Warren W. Wiersbe. On January 20, 1980, the current Senior Pastor, Erwin Lutzer, was installed as the 17th Senior Pastor of The Moody Church.
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