Berean Presbyterian Church
Berean Presbyterian Church
In 1879, Matthew Anderson was enroute from New Haven, Connecticut to his home in Greencastle, Pennsylvania, when he stopped by Gloucester Mission in Philadelphia. In 1880, Matthew Anderson took over the Gloucester Mission and turned it into the Berean Presbyterian Church. He was installed as pastor on October 14, 1880. Through Anderson's persistent fund raising efforts, the church was built at 1924 South College Avenue, providing medical, financial, and educational services to the Black community. In 1899, W.E.B. Du Bois in his book The Philadelphia Negro noted that, "Berean Church...conducts a successful Building and Loan Association, a kindergarten, a medical dispensary, and a seaside home, beside the numerous church societies. Probably no church in the city, except the Episcopal Church of the Crucifixion is doing so much for the betterment of the Negro..." Today, Berean Presbyterian Church ministers to the needs of the community from their second home at Broad and Diamond Streets.
by Aslaku Berhanu
References
Anderson, Matthew. Presbyterianism : its Relation to the Negro. Philadelphia: J.M. White, 1897
Du Bois, W. E. B. The Philadelphia Negro: a Social Study. Philadelphia: Pennsylvania Press, 1899.