Tulsa's Bible Belt loosening

Downtown Tulsa (jordanmac101)

Although Oral Roberts University is certainly a big part of the Tulsa, Oklahoma religious scene, it is far from the only part.

As Brad Andrews points out in his Urban Tulsa Weekly article For Whom the Church Bell Tolls, there is more to Tulsa than sometimes meets the (third) eye.  Andrews begins by tracing the European religious roots of the city back to the late 1800s.  At that time, the construction of

"what was believed to be the first permanent Protestant church in Tulsa" (First Presbyterian) was funded by businessman James Monroe Hall (aka Tulsa's "founder").

Soon other Protestant initiatives followed:  Union Sunday School (interdenominational), First Methodist Episcopal Church (1887), Holy Family Cathedral (1914), First Christian Church (1920), First Baptist Church (1927), First United Methodist (1928), and Boston Avenue Methodist (1929).

"Pentecostal Holiness evangelist and faith healer" Oral Roberts began his Tulsa ministry in 1949.  By the mid- to-late 1950s, his televised crusades were being broadcast throughout the land.  Oral Roberts University opened in 1965 and is still going strong.  Today it "is considered to be the largest charismatic Christian university in the world."

Despite this stalwart religious history, Tulsa today is very much a "mixed bag."  Andrews reports that some consider it to now host three co-existing cultures:  "the churched and the apathetic unchurched and discontented dechurched."  There are growing segments of interfaith/interspiritual seekers, atheists, and humanists who are "coming out" with "increasing boldness and strength."

Andrews also reports that Tulsa's All Souls Unitarian Church is "currently the largest Unitarian Universalist Church in the country" (with 1800 members).  Megachurches such as Church on the Move average 11,000 per week.  "Shared-space" models are another growing trend.  Grassroots ministries are partnering with schools and human-service agencies.  Temple Israel, the Islamic Society of Tulsa, and the Boston Avenue Methodist Church have teamed up to assist Habitat for Humanity.

If the Church is to thrive, it must remain relevant to the community.  It seems that Tulsa is well on its way toward this ideal.   

    

Resources

http://www.urbantulsa.com/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid%3A45243

Copyright April 15, 2013 by Linda Van Slyke   All Rights Reserved