Hunter Street Baptist Church — Church Directory

Quick Facts

Pastor — the shepherd God holds accountable Dr. James E. 'Buddy' Gray (retiring June 2026 after 40 years)

Founded 1907

Denomination Southern Baptist Convention (SBC)

Service Times Sunday services (check hunterstreet.org for times)

Men's Ministry Yes

Kids Ministry Yes

Website www.hunterstreet.org

10-Point Theological Scorecard

Christology

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

SBC church — affirms orthodox Christology (Nicene, Chalcedonian).

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?

Men's ministry confirmed on website.

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?

Complementarian — SBC standard (CBMW halfway position; MOOP holds patriarchal headship as the biblical standard). Male senior pastor confirmed; verify whether headship convictions are robust or drifting toward functional egalitarianism.

Male senior pastor confirmed. Complementarian per SBC BF&M 2000 (CBMW halfway position; MOOP holds patriarchal headship as the biblical standard); verify whether headship convictions are robust or drifting toward functional egalitarianism.

Caution

Leadership Structure

Male elders/pastors? Accountability?

Homepage notes active 'Pastor Search Updates' section — consistent with Buddy Gray's announced June 2026 retirement. Successor not yet surfaced on landing.

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?

No CRT/DEI language on homepage; standard SBC ministry breakdown visible.

Caution

Accountability Structure

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

Pastor is past AL Baptist State Convention president; strong SBC institutional ties.

Strong

Assessment

Hunter Street Baptist Church is a large SBC church in Hoover (Birmingham area), AL led by Buddy Gray who announced retirement effective June 2026. Established in 1907. SBC affiliation confirmed.

#sbc#alabama#hoover#birmingham-area#megachurch#verified-2026

MOOP Engagement Tracker

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

✓ Researched church website

Sources & Evidence

Enrichment Notes

SBC confirmed; pastoral retirement transition announced.

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 en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hunter_Street_Baptist_Church
[2] Live source thealabamabaptist.org/hunter-street-pastor-named-among-20…

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.