Lutheran Church of the Redeemer (Atlanta)

The church was originally founded with 39 charter members on March 15, 1903, as the first English-speaking Lutheran congregation in Atlanta (St. John's Lutheran Church, founded in 1869 as a German-speaking church, was the first Lutheran church in Atlanta).^[1][2][3] The congregation originally held service at a local YMCA.^[4] The first church building was constructed in 1905 near the Georgia State Capitol in downtown Atlanta.^[5] The congregation experienced significant growth during World War I as many members of St. John's became members of Redeemer due to anti-German sentiment.^[6]

In 1937, the congregation moved to its current location at the intersection of Peachtree Street and Fourth Street in midtown Atlanta, near Saint Mark Methodist Church.^[5] This building was nicknamed the "Church of the Lighted Window" because it had a large stained glass window featuring the Good Shepherd facing Peachtree Street.^[7] The current building, a gothic structure built primarily of Tennessee quartzite and Indiana limestone, was constructed in 1952 and was designed by Harold E. Wagoner, a notable ecclesiastical architect.^[5] The building's dedication occurred on September 7 of that year.^[8] In 2002, the church dedicated a new pipe organ built by Orgues Létourneau Limitée: the Opus 80.^[9]

Early in its history, Redeemer became affiliated with the United Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in the South.^[1] Through a series of church unions, Redeemer is a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and is the largest congregation within the church's Southeastern Synod.^[5][10] In 2015, Timothy Smith, the senior priest at Redeemer, was elected bishop of the North Carolina Synod of the ELCA, replacing retiring bishop Leonard Bolick.^[11][12]

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  Interior
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  Georgia Historical Marker
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  Altar
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  Sign