Geography of Shreveport - Religion

Religion

Shreveport has churches of many denominations and sizes. At the head of Texas Street is the large First United Methodist Church, established at that site in 1884. The current sanctuary dates to 1913. The church is pastored by Pat Day. Among its former pastors were D. L. Dykes, Jr., and John E. Fellers. The fiberglass steeple of the church fell onto a passing car during a severe thunderstorm in 2009, and has yet to be replaced.

A second Methodist congregation is named for J. S. Noel, Jr. The church was begun as a mission in 1906. Methodist layman James Noel and his wife, Fannie, provided financially for the church in its early years. The congregation decided to name the church for the Noel's late son. Like First United Methodist, it opened in the current sanctuary in 1913 and grew rapidly. A fire gutted the building in 1925, and only a portion of the loss was covered by insurance. The members expanded their ranks and rebuilt at the 500 Herndon location. The current Noel Memorial pastor is Flint Shea.

The large Holy Trinity Catholic Church located downtown was founded in 1858. Five priests died of yellow fever in 1873. The current sanctuary in Romanesque revival style architecture dates to 1896.

A large First Baptist Church was once pastored by Monroe E. Dodd, an early radio minister and founder of the former Dodd College for Girls. Former Governor Jimmie Davis, a Shreveport city commissioner too, taught history for a year under Dodd's tutelage. Other large Baptist congregations include Calvary Baptist, Broadmoor Baptist, and Summer Grove Baptist. The last was previously pastored by Wayne L. DuBose, now a Baptist denominational officer. Westview Christian Church is an independent Christian church that serves the area as well with members from diverse denominational backgrounds.

Shreveport is also home to Shreveport Community Church, a non-denominational church formerly belonging to the Assemblies of God doctrine. The congregation has experienced exponential growth from the 100 members in 1950 to more than 6,000 it claims now. It is pastored by Denny Duron, who succeeded his father, Rodney Duron after 45 years at the pulpit. The church also has an education program in Evangel Christian Academy, a pre‑K through 12th grade private school that has produced an average of 1 million dollars of scholastic scholarships for its graduating seniors every year. The church has also produced a biblical musical, "Songs of the Season", during the Christmas holidays for the past 20 years at the Historic Strand Theater in downtown Shreveport.

Particularly striking in size and architecture is St. Mark's Cathedral, an Episcopal congregation at 908 Rutherford Street in the Highland section of Shreveport. St. Mark's dates its establishment to the first religious service held in Shreveport in 1839.

The Jewish community dates to the organization of Congregation Har El in 1859, which later became B'nai Zion Temple, today the city's Reform congregation and largest synagogue. Agudath Achim, founded in 1905, as an Orthodox congregation is today a traditional Jewish synagogue. Rabbi Foster E. Kawaler, the current rabbi, is focused on rebuilding the congregation, which dwindled in size during the second half of the twentieth century. Shreveport, historically, has had a large and civic-minded Jewish community and has elected three Jewish mayors.