Apostle Richard W Baker, Sr.

Apostle, Prophet, Evangelist, Pastor and Teacher
Richard W Baker, Sr.
(January 7, 1919 – November 6, 2000)

Our founding pastor, the late Apostle Richard (Dick) W Baker, BA, MA, was a Midwest regional major player in the Healing Revival of the 1950s and the Charismatic Movement of the 1960s. On a weekly basis, Pastor Baker would invite many well-known evangelists (such as Bob Dunbar, A.A. Allen and R.W. Shambock) to minister at the Stratford Theater in Chicago. These evangelists, including Pastor Dick Baker himself, were major healing evangelists on the revival circuit. The revivalists (as they became known) believed in awaking the church in all the charismatic gifts. In these weekly revivals, there would be an extended time for music and testifying, then a sermon, then an appeal for those in need to come forward and be prayed for particularly in healings and Baptism of the Holy Spirit. These weekly revivals were attended by thousands. Later, Pastor Baker even had a locally televised broadcast “The Stratford Hour” which ran from 1973 to 1975.

In October 1954, Pastor Baker founded/pioneered our two interracial churches: South Side Move of God Church in Chicago and Gary Move of God Church in Indiana. The Stratford Revival Center (as it was later called) was founded on 64th Street and Eggleston Avenue in Chicago. After two years our congregation had outgrown their first facility so they purchased the Stratford Theater on 63^rd Street East of Halsted Street in Chicago. Much to his credit, Pastor Baker would have an interracial presbytery of elders. A truly interracial congregation of believers was a major accomplishment at this time  in America's history.

The 1960's brought its share of challenges for Pastor Baker and our Stratford Revival Center. Due to the decline of the Charismatic Movement, in 1967, God led Pastor Baker to discontinue the weekly revival meetings, and he began having weekly bible study. The 1960 decade was so racially charged that the Caucasian Pastor Baker was stoned with bricks for leading his primarily African-American congregation in the city’s predominantly black south side neighborhood. During 1968 Chicago Race Riots, his black Presbytery of Elders finally convinced him to stay home from services during racially emotional times.

Apostle Baker initially thought God had called him as a missionary to Africa. He had a vision of “black gold.” Later, Apostle Baker learned that his “black gold” vision was teaching God’s African-Americans parishioners on the south side of Chicago. For years, Pastor Baker personally bused dozen of black kids (and subsequently entire families as their parents would join) from the Chicago Housing projects to and from church every Sunday. Apostle Baker was truly a follower of Christ and yielded himself unconditionally as an instrument of God.

A dedicated teacher, Pastor Baker understood the value of higher education. He encouraged many of his African-American congregants to pursue higher education. Pastor Baker would often send or give college students money to encourage them in their pursuits of academic excellence. During the 1970s and 1980s, Pastor Baker’s ministries transformed from the deliverance, healings, Holy Ghost into more traditional teaching ministries.

In 1996, after many years of leadership at Stratford, Pastor Baker turned the reigns of the Stratford Revival center and the overseeing duties of the Gary Move of God Church to Pastor Odell Townsend Sr, our current shepherd. Apostle R. W. Baker went on to be with the Lord in November 2000.

Victor Adams, 5/3/2010
Charis Bible School Indiana
Charismatic Church History
Pastor Greg Strom