CHANGING OF THE GUARD—Rev. Dr. J. Van Alfred Winsett, pastor emeritus, hands over the church’s bible to Rev. Dr. Vincent K. Campbell.
For more than a year, Ebenezer Baptist Church, in the historic Hill District, was without a senior pastor after the retirement of their longtime shepherd Rev. Dr. J. Van Alfred Winsett in May 2012. But the church that has overcome many obstacles, including two fires and a major rebuild, now welcomes new leadership into their next era under the direction of their new pastor-Rev. Dr. Vincent K. Campbell of Nashville, Tenn.
REV. DR. WILLIAM F. BUCHANAN, presiding pastor, Fifteenth Avenue Baptist Church, Nashville, Tenn.
“I am humbled by God’s choice and Ebenezer’s choice to give me this opportunity to be their pastor. And I’m humbled by the way they and the city (of Pittsburgh) have received me,” said Rev. Campbell. “After a year process of getting to know Ebenezer and going through their search process, I believe that God was calling me to a new ministry field and that Ebenezer and the Hill District was that ministry.”
Reverend Campbell officially began his role as senior pastor Sept. 1 and was installed on Oct. 20. Prior to being called to Ebenezer, Rev. Campbell was the pastor of Kayne Avenue Baptist Church in Nashville, Tenn., where he served for almost nine years. It was in 1993 that he received and answered God’s call to the ministry and in October 1997 he was licensed by New Hope Missionary Baptist Church in St. Paul, Minn. He also spent 13 years with the American Baptist College, where he served as Dean of Students and Chapel, Associate Dean and a professor in pastoral and religious studies.
REV. DR. DARRYL T. CANADY, pastor of Rodman Street Missionary Baptist Church
Reverend Campbell grew up in Altamonte Springs Florida, near Orlando, where, as he describes, he “was the product of a broken school system that was suffering from the effects of segregation. A school system that was just trying to figure it out.” After several years in Florida, his family later relocated North to Minnesota. Rev. Campbell received his bachelor’s degree in Biblical and Theological Studies from American Baptist College in Nashville; his Master of Divinity degree from Vanderbilt University Divinity School; and his Doctor of Ministry degree from Morehouse School of Religion in Atlanta.
When it comes to the Pittsburgh community, Rev. Campbell said that he hopes that the insight he has gained from being a pastor and being actively engaged in the community of Nashville, will help him lead of one of the city’s mega churches.
“I hope to bring all my pastoral gifts to the church and to work with the membership and leadership of Ebenezer, so that we can together discern God’s vision for the church and our role in the Hill District and the larger Pittsburgh community,” he said.
REV. GLENN G. GRAYSON, pastor of Wesley Center AMEZ Church, delivers the pastoral prayer for the pastor and his new congregation.
FIRST FAMILY—Back row, from left: First lady Jamie and Rev. Vincent Campbell. Middle row, from left: Christian, Joshua and Selestina Campbell. Front row, from left: Helena and Zechariah Campbell.
Along with his religious and professional work, Rev. Campbell has and continues to serve on many boards and commissions.
For nearly 40 years Rev. Winsett served as the senior pastor of Ebenezer. He not only left his legacy in the church, but also outside its edifice as a pillar in the community. When asked about any concerns he may have in regards to trying to fill his shoes, Rev. Campbell said although he respects him and the legacy that Rev. Winsett has left at Ebenezer, he has no intention of trying to fill his shoes or any other pastor’s shoes.
“Reverend Winsett is still wearing his shoes and I don’t have any intention or reason to feel that I have to feel that I have to fill his shoes. Rev. Winsett is still an important part of the Hill District and is a leader in his own right. I believe I bring my own set of gifts, talents, skills and experience to this office. God has equipped me for the work he has called me to do.”
Although Ebenezer’s role in the Hill District, the Black community and Pittsburgh as a whole, has remained constant, socially the role of the church in the Black community is no longer what it used to be. When asked his thoughts, Rev. Campbell said, “I think historically it has changed. There was a point in the history of the Black community where the Black church was THE leader in the Black community because the church in some sense was our government. It was our representation.
The church was our social service agency, our educators were there and African-Americans historically learned more in the church than they were offered in the public school system.
CLERGY PRAYER—All the clergy in the church gather together to pray over Rev. Campbell and his wife, Jamie.
“The African-American community had to rely heavily on the Black church for things that others could go to government agencies and other businesses to receive. For whatever reason churches became introverted-they were looking at what was going on inside the church without an eye as to what was going on in the community.”
Although he agrees the role has changed, Rev. Campbell said that with all the pastors working together, they can reclaim the stake of the Black church in the community. “Many of the stakeholders in the Black community are in the Black churches.”
Along with Rev. Campbell, Ebenezer also welcomes his wife, Jamie, who was previously the executive director of a child learning center in Nashville, and their five children-Selestina, Christion, Joshua, Helena and Zechariah. In his spare time, he said he enjoys golf, exercising with his children, sports, especially the Steelers, reading, and being a master level player and studier of chess.
Ebenezer is on the move and Rev. Campbell is ready to take the lead.
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