INDIANAPOLIS—Reverend Greg Dixon, long-time pastor of the Indianapolis Baptist Temple has died, according to the church. He was 87.
An obituary from the G.H. Herrmann Funeral Home says Dixon pastored the south side temple from 1955 to 1996 and was associated with it for many more years.
Outside the church, he is best remembered for his defiance of federal tax laws by not withholding taxes from the pay of temple employees. Dixon maintained the church was exempt from taxation.
All this led to a legal standoff in the late 1990's when the federal courts ordered the church pay about $6 million dollars in back taxes or face having the property seized.
The church refused and in late 2000, members locked themselves inside the building and began a three-month peaceful standoff that put the temple in the national spotlight.
Federal agents eventually seized the property and wheeled Dixon out on a stretcher.
The church then moved to its current location on East Southport Road.
Visitation for Reverend Greg Dixon will begin at 11 a.m. Friday at the temple with his funeral at 3 p.m.
