ABOUT US
Our HISTORY // Our FUTURE
A BRIEF HISTORY
Founded in 1788, the Pittsylvania Baptist Association has a long and rich history of reaching our region. For over 200 years we have united churches to advance the kingdom of Jesus Christ and send the hope of the gospel into our local community and beyond.
We predate…
the Baptist General Assembly of Virginia (1825) by 37 years.
the Southern Baptist Convention (1845) by 57 years.
the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship (1991) by 203 years.
the SBC of Virginia (1996) by 208 years.
Over those two plus centuries our region has gone through a lot. And yet, at the center of it all it all has been the Church.
The Church is God’s plan - you are part of God’s plan - to reach the greater Danville and Pittsylvania County area, and the PBA is here to help.
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We must work to see every church healthy and taking the hope of the gospel into their local community, throughout our region, and to the ends of the earth.
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The Association is an autonomous body that is self-governing. Currently, all the churches in the association have chosen to cooperate with either the Baptist General Association of Virginia (BGAV), the Southern Baptist Conservatives of Virginia (SBCV), or the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship (CBF).
OUR MISSION FIELD
A Mission Field in Need of Hope
The greater Danville-Pittsylvania County area is a diverse and complex region.
We are home to:
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approximately 41,800 households
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100,400 people
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21,500 children & youth
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3,800 households where English is not the primary language
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a population where 4.5% are either American Indian, Asian/Pacific Islander, or other races besides Hispanic, white or black
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an estimated 3,400 Muslim adherents
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49% of city residents and 43% of county residents live in households making less than $40,000 a year
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over 52,000 residents with an “unclaimed” religious affiliation
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Even here in the traditional “Bible Belt”, Christianity is being pushed to the margins. It leaves a tremendous opportunity for the hope of the gospel to be shared and shown through our local churches.
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At the PBA, we see a mission field that is “ripe for harvest” and our churches are meeting the needs of that harvest.
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The needs are great, but the living hope of Christ is greater.
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Statistics from U.S. Census Bureau, Scan/US, & The Association of Religion Data Archives