Pastor Robert Jeffress says Trump reached out after fire engulfed historic First Baptist Dallas sanctuary
Church holding Sunday worship service at different location
Pastor Robert Jeffress said former President Donald Trump sent him a note after he was informed that the historic sanctuary of First Baptist Dallas was engulfed in flames.
“This historic sanctuary that burned to the ground was the site that presidents visited when they came to Dallas. Woodrow Wilson, Gerald Ford, President George H. W. Bush were all worshipers in that sanctuary,” Jeffress told CBS affiliate KTVT about the 134-year-old church building in downtown Dallas that was reported on fire just after 6 p.m. Central time Friday evening.
Trump, who previously spoke at the church on Dec. 19, 2021, sent Jeffress a note and "offered his help to do anything he could,” Jeffress added.
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When asked if he thought the church was attacked because someone was angered by his vocal support for the former president, Jeffress responded that he did not believe there was any connection.
“I don’t believe my support for President Trump has anything to do with this fire," he maintained.
On Saturday, fire investigators were joined by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and the FBI to investigate the cause of the fire.
I am back at the scene of what’s left of the historic sanctuary from First Baptist Church in downtown Dallas. It is a total loss. @KRLD@firstdallas#breaking#firepic.twitter.com/iQvfJuBe67
— Joe Kelley (@talkradiojoe) July 20, 2024
When asked if arson was suspected as a cause of the fire, Dallas Fire-Rescue Interim Chief Justin Ball said Friday evening that investigators would have to determine that as the cause was yet unknown.
Ball said it appeared the fire “may have started in the basement and moved up to the second floor” where firefighters first battled the blaze. As many as 100 firefighters responded to the four-alarm fire. "Thank God [there were] no casualties," Ball added.
The basement housed the church’s library where the church’s historic records were stored.
“We’re not going to let those flames have the final say,” Jeffress told KTVT. “The truth is, the church is not made up of wood and brick and mortars; it is made up of the people who are in that worship center.”
First Baptist Dallas had just wrapped up its Vacation Bible School, which was attended by 2,000 children, and used a portion of the historic sanctuary for some of its events. The fact that the fire started after VBS ended and no one was injured was “miraculous protection by God,” Jeffress said.
The church announced Saturday morning that because smoke affected newer areas of the church built in 2013, Sunday worship would be held as one service at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center at 11 a.m. local time.
On Saturday, the Dallas Fire Department told church staff that what remains of the historic part of the church built in 1890 will have to be torn down because it has no "structural integrity" and will have to be demolished soon so that the street can be reopened to traffic.
The red brick building, known as the church's old sanctuary, was built in 1890. It was the church's home before the new $130 million worship center was built in 2013.
"We have experienced a fire in the Historic Sanctuary. To our knowledge, no one is hurt or injured, and we thank God for His protection. He is sovereign even in the most difficult times," Jeffress wrote on X Friday night. "'And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.' — Romans 8:28."
In an interview with Fox 4, Jeffress said that the sanctuary was the site of many personal events, including his baptism when he was 6, and ordination for the ministry at 21.
"It holds a lot of memories," Jeffress said. "We thank God nobody was hurt. … I'm grateful that the church is not brick and mortar, its people. The people of God will endure. First Baptist Dallas will endure. We thank so many of our friends around the country who are praying for us right now."
U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, who noted that world-renowned evangelist Billy Graham was once a member of the church, extended his prayers to its pastors and members in a post on X, adding, “I am confident God’s Light will shine down on First Baptist.”
While the late Graham didn’t reside in Dallas, he was a member of the church from 1953 until 2008, when he moved his membership closer to his home in North Carolina, The Dallas Morning News previously reported.
Denny Burk, the director of the Center for Gospel and Culture at Boyce College of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Kentucky, wrote on X that he and his wife were members of the church before moving to Louisville. He called the fire a “grievous loss.”
“The church had back-to-back historic pastorates in the twentieth century. Two pastors who each ministered for 50 years. Two pastors in a hundred years! George W. Truett followed by W.A. Criswell. Both of them preached in that building. Both of them towering figures in the SBC.”
