Presbyterians in Austin Since the Republic of Texas
Central Presbyterian Church has stood on the corner of Eighth and Brazos Streets in downtown Austin for more than a century and a half, but the congregation's story reaches back further than the building does. The first Presbyterian service in Austin was held on October 13, 1839, when Rev. William Youel Allen organized six members at Bullock's Hotel on Congress Avenue. Just ten weeks later, Austin was named the capital of the Republic of Texas. Austin was still a frontier town, and the Presbyterians who gathered that day had no permanent home.
Within two years, master builder Abner Cook (who went on to construct the Governor's Mansion and many of Austin's most recognizable nineteenth-century houses) built a small wooden church at Lavaca and Bois d'Arc. A tornado leveled it in 1844, and Presbyterian worship in Austin lapsed. In 1850, Rev. William Mumford Baker, son of missionary Daniel Baker, reorganized the congregation as the First Presbyterian Church of Austin. After the Civil War, that body split: a pro-northern majority in 1866 disclaimed any connection with the Southern Presbyterian Assembly, and a smaller group of dissenters held onto the Southern connection and, recognized by the Central Texas Presbytery, became Presbyterian Church (South). In 1871, that smaller congregation acquired the lot at Eighth and Brazos that the church still occupies. The cornerstone was laid in March 1873. The sanctuary was dedicated in May 1875.
Through the years the church has been called Presbyterian Church (South), Austin Presbyterian Church, Southern Presbyterian Church, Free Presbyterian Church (because pews were never sold to families), and First Southern Presbyterian Church. When the northern and southern branches of American Presbyterianism finally voted to reunite in 1983, the congregation adopted its present name: Central Presbyterian Church. A Texas Historical Commission marker was placed in the courtyard in 1988.
The Sanctuary, the Cross, and the Pipe Organ
The sanctuary that worshipers walk into today was designed by the award-winning Austin firm of Fehr and Granger and completed in 1957. Built in the international architectural style of the 1950s, the building makes a clear visual statement of its own structure: Austin limestone walls set apart from the building frame, a roofline that lifts away from those walls, an absence of applied ornament, and stained glass windows in the masonry that serve as color-and-light expressions of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Inside, the layout follows the Reformed pattern: a lectern for reading scripture, a pulpit for proclaiming the Gospel, a simple wooden communion table on the chancel, and the white marble baptismal font at the front. The center aisle opens the way for processionals.
The first object most visitors notice is the twenty-foot unfinished wooden cross hanging high on the north wall. It was installed in 1967 and was hand-hewn from salvaged timbers by Guenther Oswald, a German-born carpenter who had been wounded five times as a Wehrmacht soldier in World War II, captured, and held in a prisoner-of-war camp in Colorado. He returned to Germany, learned carpentry, then moved to Austin. The two beams he used came from St. Mary's Catholic Academy, which once stood on the block south of the church, where the Omni Hotel now sits. Oswald crafted the cross as a thank-you for the humane treatment he had received in the United States.
The other artifact that draws visitors forward is the baptismal font, one of the few pieces that has been in continuous use since 1875. Its story begins with Dr. William J. Burt, a physician and elder who, after learning that his wife could not bear children, had been saving a portion of his earnings to build her a grand house. When the young church struggled with debt, the Burts gave the savings to the church instead. The owner of a local monument firm, so struck by the gift, presented the three pieces of solid white marble that make up the font. Held together only by gravity, the font bears the simple inscription "Given by a friend."
Behind the cross, set into a vertical walnut screen, sits the church's pipe organ. Dedicated on November 2, 1975, it is a four-division, sixty-rank instrument with more than three thousand pipes, built by master organ builder Otto Jurgen Hoffman, a German-born craftsman from Kyle, Texas, and an advocate of the Organ Reform style. The three-manual console sits behind the pulpit; the swell and choir-positiv divisions are under expression, while the great and pedal divisions are unenclosed. The instrument is regularly used not only for worship but also for community concerts.
Sunday Worship in a Traditional, Progressive Key
Worship at Central Presbyterian gathers each Sunday at 11:00 a.m. in the sanctuary, and it is also livestreamed on the church's YouTube channel. The congregation describes its style as traditional in form and progressive in spirit, holding firmly to a welcoming posture that the rest of the church has worked to make explicit for decades. The congregation's headline welcome reads "Deliberately Diverse and Fully Inclusive"; the church's own statement says it more plainly still: members come from every walk of life and every kind of background, and visitors of every orientation, identity, age, and station are welcomed as a unique expression of divine love.
Inside the service, newcomers can expect a bulletin at the door, an opportunity to introduce themselves by filling out a Visitor Information Card (paper in the pew or online), and a relaxed Passing of the Peace when it is fine to greet those around them. Communion is served on the first Sunday of each month, as well as on special Sundays like Pentecost, and all are welcome to participate. During the Lord's Prayer the congregation uses the older language of "debts" and "debtors." Those who want prayers lifted up can write a name on a blue Joy and Concern card and hand it to one of the ushers walking the aisles before the children's sermon.
Children are not separated from the body of the church. A children's sermon each Sunday invites young ones forward, and elementary-aged children then leave for Sunday school. Nursery care for children under two is offered from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. in the Children's Wing on the second floor. After Sunday school, the children's choir rehearses from noon to 12:30 in the music room during the school year. Large-print hymnals and bulletins are available at both entrances to the sanctuary, and hearing-assist headsets can be requested from an usher.
The service itself sits inside a rhythm that fills the rest of the week. After the service, refreshments are served in Smoot Fellowship Hall, and the last Sunday of every month is a potluck lunch. A pastor or elder remains at the front of the sanctuary after worship to talk with anyone considering membership or simply with questions.
A Music Ministry Built Around the Congregation
If one element of Central Presbyterian stands out beyond any other, it is the centrality of music. The current sanctuary was designed with music in mind. The high ceiling and hard interior surfaces produce a space the church describes as resonating, and the 1975 pipe organ is at home there. Music, in the congregation's own words, is one of the ways it offers praise and deepens its connection with God and with one another.
The Chancel Choir is the heart of the program. It is a volunteer ensemble drawn from the congregation and supported by four professional section leaders hired from the wider Austin music community: soprano Issie Luna, an elementary music teacher and All-City Honor Choir section leader; alto Isabella Anderson, a choir director in Hutto ISD; tenor Ashton McKenzie, a doctoral student in vocal pedagogy at the University of Texas; and baritone Garrison Moore, who has served Central since 2012 and is also a longtime South by Southwest performer. The choir rehearses on Wednesday evenings from 7:00 to 8:30 and leads worship every Sunday throughout the year except for a brief summer break. It regularly takes on major choral works with orchestra, brass, and organ, and new singers are always welcome.
Music ministry is also the reason Central Presbyterian is known across Austin. Since February 21, 1980, the church has hosted a free thirty-minute concert at noon on Thursdays, making it the longest-running free weekly concert series in the Live Music Capital of the World. The Noonday Concert Series, as it is called, presents classical, jazz, folk, and instrumental performers from Austin and beyond. Second and fourth Thursdays are held live in the sanctuary and streamed on Facebook; first, third, and fifth Thursdays are held on Zoom, with curated videos and occasional live online performances. The concerts are open to anyone downtown for work or study and to those looking for a pause in the middle of the week. Coordinator Kathi Thomas can be reached at concerts@CPCAustin.org for booking or information.
A handbell ensemble also contributes to worship on select Sundays and seasonal services. Rather than holding a fixed weekly rehearsal, the ringers prepare music as needs arise.
The Neighbors Program and Central Mission
For a congregation that traces its identity to the prophet Jeremiah's call to "seek the welfare of the city," the Neighbors Program is one of the most visible expressions of that call. It operates through three interlocking parts: a direct-service meal program, a workforce development effort, and an advocacy initiative.
Central Mission happens on Thursday mornings from 8:00 to 11:00 in Smoot Fellowship Hall. Volunteers and staff serve a hot breakfast to roughly eighty unhoused neighbors, distribute hygiene supplies, open a clothing closet, and run a support group. Outside partners are part of the morning: Central Health signs neighbors up for the Medical Access Program, the Other Ones Foundation's Going Home Program issues bus tickets for reunification with family, and Austin Community Court assists with outstanding matters. The fellowship hall stays open until 11:00 so neighbors can use the phone, meet with visiting service providers, or simply be indoors off the streets.
Prep for Success, the workforce development arm, runs on Tuesdays from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. in Smoot Hall. Staff and partners from Workforce Solutions, Building Promise, Indeed Flex, and the American GI Forum help with job-search assistance, resumes, applications, referrals to digital literacy programs, and other services.
Alongside that direct service, the Neighbors Program maintains a robust advocacy effort through the Homeless Advocacy Project. The Project writes policy proposals, organizes meetings among the organizations that work in Austin's homelessness response system, and brings unhoused neighbors into the advocacy work itself. Andi Brauer, a licensed social worker with a background in coalition-building and public policy, manages the program. She also represents Central Presbyterian on the board of the Trinity Center.
Mission Partnerships and Outreach Beyond the Building
Central Presbyterian commits at least 10 percent of every year's pledges to mission. Through the Mission Team, the church supports a roster of local nonprofit partners: the Refugee Collective, Manos de Cristo, Presbyterian Children's Homes and Services, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, Saint Louise House, Austin Pride, and OutYouth. The Mission Team runs a Food on the First collection for the Manos de Cristo food pantry; a Share the Love Mission Fair each February; a Summer Service Week when members spend five days at local nonprofits; a June Dessert Auction that raises money for the Manos de Cristo Back-to-School Program; a Drag Bingo fundraiser for OutYouth; a booth and a march in Austin Pride each August; a September Basic Essentials Drive for Saint Louise House; an October NAMI Walk; and a December Christmas Kids Tree and Family Meals program in partnership with PCHAS. The team organized a blood drive in cooperation with We Are Blood as part of Summer Service Week.
Social Justice Wednesdays gather on the second Wednesday of each month from September through May, with dinner at 6:00 p.m. and a program from 6:30 to 7:30. Topics range from mental health to housing to immigration. Past speakers have included the executive director of the National Alliance on Mental Illness. Parking is free in the St. David's garage.
Children, Youth, and Adult Formation
Children's ministry runs year-round. Sunday mornings begin with the children's sermon in the sanctuary, after which elementary children move upstairs to the Children's Wing for Sunday school. Two classrooms anchor that work: Godly Play for younger children, year-round, and Young Disciples for upper elementary and middle schoolers during the school year. A nursery for babies and toddlers sits nearby. Check-in is handled at the desk by the gate to the wing; first-time visitors fill out a Participation Form that stays on file for the school year. Acolytes serve on Communion Sundays, and the children's choir rehearses after Sunday school during the school year.
Youth ministry meets as the Eden Youth Club at 10:00 a.m. on Sunday mornings in the Youth Room for games, service projects, outdoor recreation, and advocacy work. The youth group also takes on service trips, lock-ins, and retreats, and confirms confirmands each spring.
Adult formation runs through the week. A Reading and Reflection Bible Study meets in the library on Sundays from 9:15 to 10:15. The Women's Morning Circle gathers on the second Tuesday of the month (September through May), working through the Horizon Bible Study series published by the Presbyterian Church (USA). The Holy Scrollers book club meets on Zoom on the third Wednesday of each month. An Adult Spiritual Formation class on the book "Life After God," led by Parish Associate Jim Collier, runs on Thursday evenings over Zoom during the program year. A small gardening group tends the CPC courtyard on Saturday mornings.
Weddings, Funerals, and a Working Sanctuary
Because Central sits in the heart of downtown, its sanctuary has long served as a venue for events well beyond weekly worship. The 350-seat sanctuary and the 125-seat Smoot Fellowship Hall, along with the courtyard, are available for concerts, weddings, art shows, film screenings, festivals, and community gatherings. The church is also a regular host and partner for the South by Southwest Music Festival.
Couples need only have one Christian partner to be married in the sanctuary. Weddings are held any day of the week with some exceptions: no Sunday ceremonies for nonmembers, no Wednesday evening or Thursday noon ceremonies because of regular church programming, and no ceremonies during Holy Week or on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day. The full wedding fee does not include the officiant or musicians; staff clergy, if available, will determine their own honorarium, and guest ministers must be approved by the CPC pastor. The church's own organist, Nathan Quiring, can be booked for ceremonies. Receptions can be held in Smoot Fellowship Hall, which seats 125 and includes sixteen five-foot round tables, four rectangular tables, and up to fifty plastic chairs.
Funerals and memorial services are held without cost for members and their immediate families. The church is also available to nonmembers for a flat $100 facility fee, with additional standard fees for a sexton, organist, and soloist. Pastors consider this ministry among the most essential and do not charge an honorarium.
Outside groups and individuals can rent the sanctuary, Smoot Fellowship Hall, the courtyard, and other spaces. The Special Events Coordinator, Emma Moseley, handles bookings; reservations require an Event Request Form, a signed Event Policy Form, and a $100 deposit, with the balance due two weeks ahead.
Leadership and Connections
Central Presbyterian is governed by an elected session of elders, with classes rotating on a three-year cycle. The session is led by Interim Pastor Rev. Dr. Jack Barden, who joined the church as temporary pastor after a long career pastoring churches in Texas, Kentucky, and Missouri, and a decade as Vice President for Admissions and Enrollment Management at Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary. He also serves as Co-Chair of the Commission on Ministry for Mission Presbytery. The clerk of session is Laurel Stoddard, with Susan Richter as recording clerk.
Two parish associates round out the pastoral team. Mary Swierenga, a graduate of Wesley and Columbia Theological Seminaries, leads Adult Education after a long career in ministry in Virginia. Jim Collier, a retired pastor ordained by John Knox Presbytery, now lives in Austin year-round and leads the adult formation book group.
Other staff include Office Manager Lisa Korson, Neighbors Program Manager Andi Brauer, Children and Youth Ministry Coordinator Robyn Greer, Events and Marketing Coordinator Emma Moseley, Director of Music Ministry André Trahan, Organist Nathan Quiring, and AV Coordinator AJ Gonzales.
The deacons care for and tend to the congregation on three-year terms, and trustees manage the church's real estate and endowments. The church counts as its national body the Presbyterian Church (USA), as its synod the Synod of the Sun (covering Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Louisiana), and as its regional body Mission Presbytery, which serves more than 150 churches across central and south Texas.
Beliefs in Practice
The congregation's stated beliefs emphasize the wideness of God's welcome. "Each individual is a unique expression of divine love," reads the congregation's welcome statement. The church grounds that commitment in Jesus's example of crossing theological, political, socio-economic, and geographical boundaries. Worship, fellowship, Christian education, music, and service are the practices through which the congregation responds.
Central Presbyterian is also a declared Reproductive Freedom Congregation. The Session has resolved that at least 10 percent of pledges go to mission. The Neighbors Program's public advocacy for unhoused Austinites, the congregation's pride booth and march each August, the partnership with OutYouth, and the Drag Bingo fundraiser are all part of the way those beliefs are lived out in public.
Where to Find the Church
Central Presbyterian sits at 200 East 8th Street at Brazos, directly across 8th Street from the Omni Hotel. The sanctuary is on the second floor, and people with mobility impairments can use the sidewalk ramp at the main entrance, the elevator accessed through the Brazos Street door, or the alley entrance behind the church leading through Smoot Fellowship Hall. A wheelchair-accessible bathroom sits adjacent to Smoot Fellowship Hall.
On Sunday mornings, the church has permission to use St. David's Episcopal Church's parking garage at the southwest corner of 8th and Trinity, one block east. On-street parking is free all day on Sundays and after 6:00 p.m. on Mondays and Tuesdays. Two free hours are available at the Capitol Visitors' parking garage on 12th Street between San Jacinto and Trinity. Paid parking can usually be found within two blocks east of the church or at the Omni, First Baptist, or St. David's garages. Nearly every Capital Metro bus route that drops downtown stops within walking distance.
The church office is open Tuesday through Friday from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., and can be reached at 512-472-2445 or office@cpcaustin.org.