First Baptist Church Amarillo — Church Directory

Quick Facts

Pastor — the shepherd God holds accountable Howard K. Batson

Founded Unknown

Denomination Southern Baptist Convention (SBC)

Service Times Sunday 8:30 AM, 10:00 AM, 11:00 AM; Sunday Evening 6:00 PM

Men's Ministry Yes

Kids Ministry Yes

Website www.firstamarillo.org

Pastor Credentials B.S. Lander University; M.Div. SWBTS; Ph.D. Baylor University

10-Point Theological Scorecard

Christology

Is Jesus the only way? (John 14:6)

Historic Baptist — Trinitarian orthodoxy expected; specific SOF not displayed.

Strong

Scripture

Inerrancy affirmed? Final authority?

SBC — Baptist Faith & Message 2000 affirms inerrancy and authority of Scripture.

Strong

Men's Discipleship

Intentional formation for men?

Tom Foran listed as 'Business Administrator Men's Ministry' — men's ministry confirmed.

Caution

Soteriology

Faith alone? How is salvation presented?

SBC — salvation by grace through faith. BF&M 2000 framework.

Strong

Gender / Biblical Design

Biblical manhood and womanhood by God's design — patriarchal, complementarian, egalitarian, or affirming gender ideology?

Three female 'Ministers' confirmed on staff page: Molly Brister (Associate Minister to Students), Hannah Bandy (Associate Minister to Children), Elaine Clark (Minister to Preschool). Howie Batson lead pastor + Trevor Brown associate. Pattern is moderate-Baptist female-minister-staffing — not strict complementarian.

Multiple women carry 'Minister' titles: Molly Brister (Associate Minister to Students), Hannah Bandy (Associate Minister to Children), Elaine Clark (Minister to Preschool). Moderate Baptist posture on women in ministry.

WARNING!

Leadership Structure

Male elders/pastors? Accountability?

Male senior pastor. Elder/deacon structure assumed per SBC polity.

Caution

Preaching Style

Expository or topical/therapeutic?

Verify — check sermon archives for expository vs topical.

Caution

Mission Clarity

Great Commission central?

SBC churches give through Cooperative Program; Great Commission emphasis standard.

Strong

Cultural Alignment

DEI/CRT language? Social justice crowding out gospel?

Moderate Baptist culture possible — verify for DEI/progressive drift.

Caution

Accountability Structure

Denominational home, elder plurality, or external network — is the pastor answerable to anyone?

Howard Batson historically aligned with Baptist General Convention of Texas (BGCT) — moderate Baptist body that permits female ministers; SBC affiliation not displayed; CBF-adjacent posture suggested by staff pattern.

WARNING!

Assessment

First Baptist Amarillo is a large SBC church in the Texas Panhandle led by Dr. Howard Batson since 1995. Four Sunday services. Batson holds a Ph.D. from Baylor in biblical studies. Strong missions emphasis — over 10% of weekly attendance leaves the country on mission projects annually.

#amarillo#needs-review#panhandle#sbc#texas#verified-2026

MOOP Engagement Tracker

How this church was personally verified by the MOOP directory team:

✓ Researched church website

Sources & Evidence

Enrichment Notes

Classic moderate Texas Baptist — BGCT, Baptist Standard, female ministers. Likely mis-tagged as 'SBC' when actually moderate/CBF-adjacent. --- Merged from first-baptist-amarillo: Howie Batson + First Baptist Amarillo: denomination affiliation (SBC vs CBF/BGCT) is non-trivial and affects rubric denominational scoring.

These are the URLs consulted to arrive at this church's scoring. Score-note claims are synthesized from homepage content, denominational directories, and public statements of faith at the time of review. Church websites change frequently; we're progressively adding Internet Archive snapshots to prevent link rot.

[1] Live source firstamarillo.org/first-amarillo-our-staff
[2] Live source soundingsproject.web.baylor.edu/congregations/first-bapti…
[3] Archived snapshot web.archive.org/web/20260313011934/https://www.firstamari…
↳ Snapshot of firstamarillo.org (live link)

Transparency note: MOOP ratings are researcher judgments about publicly available theological and ecclesial evidence. They are not infallible. If a church's public posture has changed since our review, or if we've mis-read evidence, tell us — we publish corrections.