As John Oliver proved on Last Week Tonight, the routes to form a church in the U.S. are remarkably easy to navigate. The Church of John Coltrane, though, may not be having as easy a time remaining intact, as the Church's headquarters at the Fillmore Auditorium is under fire as the landlord is threatening to evict.
For the Church of John Coltrane, the community's Archbishop Franzo W. King has presided over the institution for some 48 years. Dubbed the St. John Coltrane African Orthodox Church, it is, obviously, rooted in the jazz teachings of the seminal jazz trumpeter, directly touching upon his famous A Love Supreme LP.
But the West Bay Center, which has housed the church and is a part of the Fillmore cultural institution, has grown tired of King's inability to foot the $1,600 rent each month.
An attorney for the West Bay center issued a satatement on the eviction, which reads that the eviction "is based on a single issue: SJCC's failure to make rent payments for more than one year," and continued to claim that West Bay "has the highest level of respect for the spiritual and cultural benefits SJCC brings to the Fillmore community."
But the outpour of support for Church Coltrane in San Francisco has created a buzz around the fledgling institution's plight. This next closure will be another addition to Frisco's long list of businesses closing due to rent increases.
As of late, a petition to support Church Trane has signed up 2,591 names as of Monday this week. For now, the future of the church remains uncertain, but Archbishop King, of course, remains in high spirits.
If you aren't familiar with A Love Supreme then be sure to preview the album below and keep the church in your thoughts while it fights to stay alive.
