Web Verified
Formerly Southern Baptist Convention (departed 2009); now Alliance of Baptists / Cooperative Baptist Fellowship / Association of Welcoming and Affirming Baptists

Riverside Church at Park & King (formerly Riverside Baptist Church)

2650 Park Street, Jacksonville, FL 32204
BLACK — ex-SBC FL congregation; now affirming with female pastoral leadership
Quick Facts
Pastor — the shepherd God holds accountable Pastor Courtney; Rev. Clair (specific titles unverified on current site)
Founded 1926
Denomination ex-SBC (departed 2009 over LGBTQ+ affirmation); now Alliance/CBF/AWAB
Service Times Sunday Worship — verify times on website
Men's Ministry No
Kids Ministry Yes
Website riversidetogether.org/
10-Point Theological Scorecard
Christology
Is Jesus the only way? (John 14:6)
Progressive-Baptist orientation; no specific christological documents reviewed.
Caution
Scripture
Inerrancy affirmed? Final authority?
Affirming hermeneutic on sexuality and gender; departs from BF&M 2000.
WARNING!
Men's Discipleship
Intentional formation for men?
No verified men's ministry data publicly listed.
Caution
Soteriology
Faith alone? How is salvation presented?
Progressive Baptist; not the documented drift point.
Caution
Gender / Biblical Design
Biblical manhood and womanhood by God's design — patriarchal, complementarian, egalitarian, or affirming gender ideology?
Female pastoral leadership documented (Pastor Courtney, Rev. Clair); aligned with Alliance of Baptists egalitarian polity.
Female pastoral leadership documented (Pastor Courtney, Rev. Clair) on current 2025-2026 social channels. Specific titles (Senior, Associate, Co-Pastor) not crisply listed on current site — needs human triage to confirm titles and full names.
WARNING!
Leadership Structure
Male elders/pastors? Accountability?
Affirming polity for women + LGBTQ+ pastors and deacons.
WARNING!
Preaching Style
Expository or topical/therapeutic?
Female pastors preach in primary worship.
WARNING!
Mission Clarity
Great Commission central?
Now CBF/Alliance-aligned, not SBC.
Caution
Cultural Alignment
DEI/CRT language? Social justice crowding out gospel?
AWAB membership; openly welcoming/affirming on sexuality.
WARNING!
Accountability Structure
Denominational home, elder plurality, or external network — is the pastor answerable to anyone?
Departed SBC in 2009 over executive director John Sullivan's challenge to the church's LGBTQ+ acceptance; now in AWAB+Alliance+CBF.
WARNING!
Assessment
Riverside Church at Park & King is a Florida-historical case of SBC departure over both LGBTQ+ affirmation and (subsequently) female pastoral leadership. The church separated from the Southern Baptist Convention in 2009 after then-FL Baptist Convention Executive Director John Sullivan challenged the church's LGBTQ+ acceptance; today the church is openly affirming, lists female pastoral leadership (Pastor Courtney, Rev. Clair), and is a member of the Association of Welcoming and Affirming Baptists, the Alliance of Baptists, and the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship. Pre-2020 departure date noted; included as a FL SBC drift datapoint because it remains widely cross-listed in legacy SBC directories and demonstrates the FL Baptist Convention's enforcement pattern that later led to the 2023 Freedom Church and 2026 Crossing Church disfellowshipments.
#sbc#drift#ex-sbc#female-pastor#lgbtq-affirming#alliance-of-baptists#cbf#awab#fl#jacksonville#needs-review
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Church Social Media
MOOP Engagement Tracker

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

✓ Researched church website
Sources & Evidence
Enrichment Notes

2009 SBC departure pre-dates the post-2020 sweep cutoff. Pastor names (Courtney, Clair) gleaned from current Facebook posts and Instagram; full names and crisp titles need human verification before final publication. Address verified at 2650 Park St, Jacksonville FL 32204.

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. [1] Live source riversidetogether.org
  2. [2] Live source en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Riverside_Baptist_Church
  3. [3] Live source floridacbf.org/all-churches/2014/4/23/riverside-baptist-c…
  4. [4] Live source floridacaribbeancbf.org/findachurch/riverside-baptist-church

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.

Last reviewed: 2026-05-16 — Annual review recommended
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