St. Philip’s Episcopal Church, one of the longest-standing Black institutions in Indianapolis, proudly honored its 125th anniversary with a celebration on May 10, 2026.
Rooted in Black history
The Right Reverend Jennifer Baskerville Burrows, oversees 47 churches across central and southern Indiana in her role as the Episcopal Bishop of the Diocese of Indianapolis.
“The Episcopal Church, and the Black presence in it, has been a part of our country’s history since its founding,” Baskerville Burrows said. “And so, to have a congregation here in Indianapolis, which is one of two historically Black Episcopal churches in the state, is really important, and it’s thriving.”
Notably, Baskerville Burrows is the first Black woman elected to head a diocese in the Episcopal Church.
“We are not telling the full story of who we are as a community, a city, a neighborhood, if we’re not talking about the Black presence there,” Baskerville Burrows said. “And not just the historical presence, but the one that is there right now. The richness of Black culture and the Black spiritual tradition is something that, it’s just a part of who we are.”
Rhoda Stuart Keough joined St. Philip’s as a baby. She remembers being confirmed in a “little white dress” as a child and going to the Walker after church to see a movie and visit the coffee shop.
Stuart Keough contributed to securing a historical marker recognizing the location of the Phyllis Wheatley YMCA on Senate Avenue, which was the home of the Monster Meetings, a series of events bringing notable civic leaders and speakers to the community.
Father Peter Gray stepped in as interim rector following the retirement of Reverend Michelle Roos. Gray, a doctoral candidate in American Studies at IU Indy, has a “professional and academic interest” in the intersection of race and religion.
During his time at St. Philip’s, he studied the church’s origins and founders. While some accounts indicate that the church was established after Black parishioners were “kicked out” of the white Episcopalian church, Gray learned something different. The earliest members weren’t being acted upon by outside forces, he said; they were acting.
“What has stood out to me … was the level of leadership and agency of the earliest African American members of the congregation,” Gray said. He described the founding members as massively energetic social entrepreneurs,” who also established other prominent institutions at the time.
Gray learned that two of the founding members were instrumental in the creation of the Flanner Guild, which later became the Flanner House. Another early member was an organizer in what became the Senate Avenue YMCA. Others were involved in local, state and regional politics.
“The Black history of the city is one that we want to make sure that we claim for everyone’s benefit. You know, everyone needs to know that story. It’s not just a Black story; it’s just history for all of us,” Baskerville Burrows said.
‘Where everybody belongs‘
The Episcopal faith has ancient roots, but according to Baskerville Burrows, it is progressive and welcoming to all without exception.
“I think what we try to do at our church is to be of good stewards to each other and to the city and to whomever comes through that door,” Stuart Keough said.
Gray said, “This church has its origins in a human who needed a found family. And that has been the gift of this congregation for its entire history.”
Located on Martin Luther King Jr. Street, near Indiana Avenue, St. Philip’s was founded when community members came together to lead a memorial service for their friend, Hulda Abrams, who died without a next of kin.
Gray, a Mississippi native, said like many others he spoke with, this church became a way for him to find his people.
“This church has just a really strong, easy capacity to welcome folks who need to be known, who need to be cared for, who need to laugh, who need to cry,” Gray said. “… That ability to welcome newcomers is like, it’s absolutely essential.”
Herman Ward joined St. Philip’s Episcopal Church in 1974. Since he joined, he has been a volunteer custodian, a youth leader, a part of the vestry, an acolyte, and a junior warden, acting as an administrator over the property.
Ward said that’s part of the church’s way of operating — welcoming people in and finding activities for them to get involved in.
In his well-known speech at Shiloh Baptist Church, Martin Luther King, Jr. said that the most segregated hour in America is 11 o’clock on Sunday morning, but Ward said that St. Philip’s is different. Throughout the years, Ward has seen the demographics change of this historically Black church.
“We have folks from the Caribbean; we have folks from the African continent now; we have white folks that attend the church and are contributing members. All that’s been the biggest change,” Ward said.
“We’re still growing, and we want to keep on growing, and we don’t turn anybody away because it’s the Lord’s house,” Stuart Keough said.
St. Philip’s is proudly multiracial and multicultural, and Gray added that it’s “… still very clearly grounded in African American spirituality.”
The next 100 years
American culture and the political climate at large are shifting but, Gray said, St. Philip’s “has its spiritual roots in a source that are deeper than the changes and chances of the present moment.”
On Palm Sunday, the church rented a donkey and walked through the Ransom Place neighborhood singing “Right on King Jesus” and other hymns.
“It just felt like … we’ve got a deeper tradition that we can draw from that has sustained ancestors for a very long while. And that level of resilience is necessary,” Gray said.
As St. Philip’s is preparing to call its next priest, Baskerville Burrows said the diocese has invested resources to find someone to care for the congregation and “take advantage of the wonderful opportunities that are coming with the Purdue University campus growth” and other developments in the neighborhood. They’re looking for someone who is “excited about Black culture” and recognizes the role St. Philip’s plays in the city.
“So, we’re glad that the church has been there for 125 years, excited about what the next hundred years will bring, and particularly as it relates to Black culture and presence in the community,” Baskerville Burrows said.
St. Philip’s Episcopal Church is located at 720 Martin Luther King Jr Street, Indianapolis. Learn more at stphilipsindy.org.
Contact Editor-in-Chief Camike Jones at 317-762-7850.
Camike Jones is the Editor-in-Chief of the Indianapolis Recorder. Born and raised in Indianapolis, Jones has a lifelong commitment to advocacy and telling stories that represent the community.
