Part of the great westward thrust of The Episcopal Church in America, Calvary Episcopal Church was founded in 1832 by the Reverend Thomas Wright and 10 parishioners. From that original congregation, Calvary’s numbers have increased 100 fold. Calvary is a Memphis landmark, and its sanctuary is the oldest public building in continuous use in the city. Its bell tower dates to 1848, its chancel to 1881.   Calvary added its parish hall in 1906, and the education building in 1992. 

Calvary is the mother parish of the Episcopal Church in Memphis and Shelby County, founding five daughter churches, including St. Mary’s Church in 1857, now St. Mary’s Cathedral.

From its early days of ministry, Calvary has been shaped by its urban location and its faithful and determined leadership and congregation.

The twentieth century, in particular, brought a number of strong clergy to the parish, who established vibrant and ongoing outreach activities for residents of Downtown—including the Sunday breakfast for the needy and the Lenten Noonday Preaching Series and accompanying Waffle Shop—and put energy and resources into rehabilitating Calvary’s structures.

When Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated in Memphis in 1968 only a short distance from Calvary, the church responded with integrity and compassion.

Then-rector the Reverend Robert P. Atkinson and the Calvary parish were among those who played a major part in the healing of the city.

In the 1970s, as the reputation and vibrancy of Downtown Memphis slid and the city’s population shifted further east, Calvary, too, suffered decline. But in 1978, the Rev. Dr. Douglass Bailey answered the call to serve as rector and began a new era for the church.

Under Bailey’s leadership both membership and ministries grew, and Calvary became known for its many outreach and social justice projects: the Calvary Street Ministry, Samaritan Counseling Center, Calvary Place Childcare Center, AIDS Burial Ministry, Integrity-Memphis (the diocesan chapter of Integrity USA), Palm Sunday City Hall procession and Calvary & the Arts Concert Series, among others.

Unfortunately, Bailey’s last years at Calvary were marred by infighting.  By 2000, after 22 years of ministry, relations between Bailey and his vestry and staff had become strained.  Finally in 2001, when strong disagreements sparked and resolution proved impossible, the rector resigned. Because many parishioners were unaware of how bad things had become behind the scenes, Bailey’s departure was a devastating shock. For some, Calvary was synonymous with Doug Bailey—they had never known Calvary without him, they admired his leadership and they thrived under his pastoral care. For some of those parishioners, Calvary was no longer Calvary, so they left.

After an interim period and search, the Rev. Dr. Andrew MacBeth came to Memphis as Calvary’s 20th rector, and immediately set about reorganizing the staff and taking significant steps to balance the church budget.  During MacBeth's tenure (2003-2010), the number of young families grew significantly, and Calvary joined other churches to establish the Hospitality HUB as a ministry to the homeless. However, MacBeth's leadership style was the source of significant problems.  When ongoing difficulties could not be resolved, MacBeth was asked to resign.

Following the abrupt departures of both of our most recent rectors, many parishioners felt hurt and angry.  They perceived the vestry as having acted in secret to orchestrate outcomes, and asserted that the congregation should have been informed and consulted.  The resulting tension was openly addressed in a series of town-hall style meetings, where parishioners aired grievances and learned more about vestry responsibilities and rules of engagement in the Episcopal Church.