For almost two centuries, the Ebenezer Baptist Church in Pennington, Alabama, served the community and provided a spiritual home for Christians.
On Tuesday, the building caught fire and was a total loss, per Jerry Snowden, chairman of the church's deacons. As of right now, a cause hasn't been determined, but this is one of several major church fires around the country, and it's raising more than a few red flags.
🚨 UPDATE: ANOTHER church has burned down — 175-year-old Baptist Church in Pennington AL was officially decimated by a fire over night and is NO LONGER STANDING
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) August 19, 2026
This is a GROWING TREND happening in places like New York where church burnings have been declared ARSON
Christians… pic.twitter.com/XFo50cS94Y
Efforts to reach church representatives for comment were not immediately successful.
Choctaw County emergency dispatch told AL.com Pennington police and officers from the county sheriff’s office responded to the scene Tuesday evening, along with emergency medical services.
Efforts to reach the police department and the sheriff’s office for comment were not immediately successful.
...
Members of the church shared their grief in posts throughout the day on Wednesday.
“I’m so thankful for Ebenezer Baptist Church and although the building is gone, I will never forget the laughter, tears, and love I felt and the lessons learned inside those brick walls!” wrote Becky Wheeler, who said her father helped construct the church when the family first moved to town.
There's an alarming upward trend of "acts of hostility" toward churches, including vandalism and arson.
open-source and media-reported "acts of hostility" against US churches (vandalism, arson) by year:
— McFlurryMachine🏴☠️ (@HedgieEater) August 19, 2026
2020: 55
2021: 98
2022: 198
2023: 485
2024: 415
That's scary.
🚨 UPDATE: ANOTHER church has burned down — 175-year-old Baptist Church in Pennington AL was officially decimated by a fire over night and is NO LONGER STANDING
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) August 19, 2026
This is a GROWING TREND happening in places like New York where church burnings have been declared ARSON
Christians… pic.twitter.com/XFo50cS94Y
Back in April, ISIS called on Muslims across the globe to set fire to churches and synagogues.
It's completely possible the fire started because of electrical issues or a lightning strike, but we'll keep an eye on what authorities say in the coming days and weeks as the investigation unfolds.
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