Judge Approves Settlement Over Historic Nashville Church Building
The estate of A.M. Burton has reached a settlement agreement with the Nashville Church of Christ after years of dispute over the downtown Nashville, Tenn., church building formerly known as the Central Church of Christ.
According to the settlement, approved by a Davidson County judge Wednesday, the court ruled the Nashville church violated a clause in the property’s deed that reserved it for “the use and benefit of the Church of Christ.” Therefore, ownership of the property reverts to the estate of the church’s founder, A.M. Burton.
However, the agreement will have a probate court oversee the property’s sale at fair market value. Tax documents assess its worth at $11 million.
Proceeds will be split, with 80 percent going to the Burton estate — managed by two descendants of the Central church’s founder, singer-songwriter Amy Grant and Andy Burton.
The remaining 20 percent will fall to the Nashville Church of Christ. The church website lists Shawn Mathis and his father, Larry Mathis, as its elders.
The adjoining parking lots are not included in the settlement and will remain the property of the Nashville church.
As The Christian Chronicle previously reported, the Central church became embroiled in controversy after Shawn Mathis became its third elder in 2017.
In the following years, Mathis led the church to incorporate as a nonprofit, rename itself as the Nashville Church of Christ and move to private, online-only worship services.
Meanwhile, longtime church members left, unpaid taxes piled up, and the building languished, trash collecting around its locked front entrance.
The church sued the Burtons in 2020 after family members began investigating and voicing concerns about the church’s state. Church leaders sought a judgment that the clause was either unenforceable or had not been violated by the church’s lack of in-person meetings.
The Davidson County Chancery Court ruled in 2022 that the restriction was enforceable, but after the estate countersued that the church had violated the deed, that second question remained in dispute.
The state itself found that “the property is not used in furtherance of exempt purposes” and began assessing property taxes in 2020. Those went unpaid, today totaling $558,000 plus accrued interest, according to Davidson County tax records.
As part of the settlement, the payment of those taxes will be split by the Nashville church and Burton estate. However, the estate’s portion is capped at $50,000.
As administrators of the estate with a fiduciary duty to its heirs, Grant and Andy Burton chose to settle to avoid the additional cost, delays and uncertainty of awaiting a jury trial, they said in a statement.
“We care deeply about protecting A.M. Burton’s legacy,” Grant said in a statement. “We were passionate and determined to stand up for our family and help right this wrong.”
The family hopes to find a charitable buyer who will continue the property’s use in service to the Nashville community. However, the probate court will ultimately select the buyer, and there is no condition requiring its use as a church once sold.
In honor of what would have been the Central church’s 100th anniversary on Oct. 4, Grant and Andy Burton have launched the A.M. Burton Matthew 25 Fund, with a mission “to preserve, impart and build upon the guiding values of A.M. Burton, to elevate his legacy of selfless generosity and faith in action, and to furnish charitable services that uplift individuals and strengthen our community.”
The charity’s name references Jesus’ call to do good to the “least of these”: “I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.”
Grant and Burton will invite their fellow heirs to contribute their portion of the building sale proceeds to the fund.
“This year, Central Church of Christ should be celebrating a 100-year anniversary of serving the community,” Andy Burton said. “Instead, it stands as a shuttered eyesore in the very heart of our city.
“Our hearts remain broken for the members who abruptly lost their beloved church home in 2018. … But we hope this significant milestone will shift the focus toward healing and moving forward.”
Meanwhile, the Nashville church maintains that it committed no wrongdoing, Jeremey Goolsby, attorney for the church, told the Chronicle by email.
He cited the Great Commission, to “go and make disciples of all nations,” as the guiding force in the church’s efforts to “serve not only the local community but also all souls across the globe.”
“With that broadened, global perspective,” he said, “the Church has made the strategic decision to settle the very narrow litigation related to certain deed restrictions attached to a single parcel of property owned by the Church. … The Church looks forward to investing its portion of the proceeds from the sale of the building to support its global mission efforts.”
This article was originally published at The Christian Chronicle.
Calvin Cockrell is Managing Editor for The Christian Chronicle and serves as the young adult minister for the North Tuscaloosa Church of Christ in Alabama. Reach him at calvin@christianchronicle.org.