Houses of Worship Resist Losing Their Buildings to Gentrification

Image via RNS/Larry McCormack/The Tennessean

The church’s predominately black congregation once mirrored the neighborhood’s demographics. But today hip and eclectic East Nashville, with its rising property values and trendy restaurants, draws white millennials, said the Rev. Morris Tipton Jr., the church’s pastor.

Given the neighborhood’s shift, is Tipton worried about the church’s future?

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An image of the November 2026 issue of Sojourners, titled "Face to Face." It features George Lakey on the cover
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