Jack Hyles
| Jack Hyles | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Jack Frasure Hyles September 25, 1926 Italy, Texas |
| Died | February 6, 2001 (aged 74) Hammond IN |
| Nationality | USA |
| Alma mater | East Texas Baptist University |
| Occupation | Pastor |
| Predecessor | Owen L. Miller |
| Successor | Jack Schaap |
| Spouse(s) | Beverly Hyles |
Jack Frasure Hyles (September 25, 1926 – February 6, 2001) was a leading figure in the Independent Baptist movement, having pastored the First Baptist Church of Hammond in Hammond, Indiana, from 1959 until his death. He was well known for being an innovator of the church bus ministry that brought thousands of people each week from surrounding towns to Hammond for services. Jack Hyles built First Baptist up from fewer than a thousand members to a membership of 100,000. In 1993 and again in 1994, it was reported that 20,000 people attended First Baptist every Sunday, making it the most attended Baptist church in the United States In 2001, at the time of Hyles's death, 20,000 people were attending church services and Sunday school each week. He was accused of several scandals while pastoring the church, and his doctrinal positions often put him at odds with other Christians — even with other fundamentalist Baptists.
Hyles was born and raised in Italy, Texas, a low income area in Ellis County south of Dallas. Hyles often described his less-than-ideal upbringing which, he said, included a distant father. At the age of eighteen, Hyles enlisted in the United States Army and served as a paratrooper with the 82nd Airborne Division during World War II. He and his wife, Beverly, were married during the war.
After the war was over, Hyles completed his college education at East Texas Baptist University (then College) in Marshall, the seat of Harrison County. After his graduation from East Texas, Hyles started preaching at several small Texas churches, whose memberships began to grow. These churches included: Marris Chapel Baptist Church, Bogata, Texas; Grange Hall Baptist Church, Marshall, Texas; and Southside Baptist Church, Henderson, Texas. After receiving his education Hyles pastored at the Miller Road Baptist Church in Garland in Dallas County for about six years. During this time the congregation grew from 44 to 4,000 members. It was during those days that Hyles left the Southern Baptist Convention and became an independent Baptist. Hyles then led Miller Road Baptist Church as an independent preacher for a while.
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