In the 1950s, when Georgia's legislature threatened to close public schools rather than integrate them, Covenant Presbyterian Church played a pivotal role in Atlanta's civil rights story. Dr. Herman "Cubbie" Turner, Covenant's pastor and head of the Atlanta Christian Council, led 70-80 white clergy to sign the Minister's Manifesto—a courageous statement advocating Christian values of conversation, reconciliation, non-violence, and peace during the tense school integration period.
As pastor of the northern Presbyterian Church's southern plant, Dr. Turner met this national moment with clarity and conviction. In 1958, he became the first southern leader of the Northern Presbyterian branch, defeating a Black candidate by a narrow margin. Following tradition, Turner immediately appointed his opponent as Vice Moderator—a decision that cost Covenant half its congregation, as the story goes.
Despite personal cost, including a heart attack suffered in the pulpit, Turner's leadership helped position Atlanta as a stabilizing force during southern desegregation, answering Roy O. McClain's question: "Why are the pulpits silent?"
Join us on Sunday, February 1, at 12:15pm, as our special guest Ethel Ware Carter shares more about this story.