James Alexander Forbes, Jr. (born

September 6 Events Pre-1600 * 394 – Battle of the Frigidus: Roman emperor Theodosius I defeats and kills Eugenius the usurper. His Frankish ''magister militum'' Arbogast escapes but commits suicide two days later. *1492 – Christopher Colu ...

1935 Events January * January 7 – Italian premier Benito Mussolini and French Foreign Minister Pierre Laval conclude an agreement, in which each power agrees not to oppose the other's colonial claims. * January 12 – Amelia Earhart ...

) is the Senior Minister ''Emeritus'' of the Riverside Church, an

interdenominational Interdenominationalism is an evangelical Protestant movement of cooperation among various Christian denominations. History The movement has its origins in the founding of the London Missionary Society, a missionary society, in 1795 by various ...

( American Baptist and

United Church of Christ The United Church of Christ (UCC) is a mainline Protestant Christian denomination based in the United States, with historical and confessional roots in the Congregational, Calvinist, Lutheran, and Anabaptist traditions, and with approximatel ...

) church on the

Upper West Side The Upper West Side (UWS) is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It is bounded by Central Park on the east, the Hudson River on the west, West 59th Street to the south, and West 110th Street to the north. The Upper West ...

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. He was the first African American minister to lead this multicultural congregation, and served it for 18 years.

Early life and education

James Forbes, Jr. was born in

Burgaw, North Carolina Burgaw is a town in, and the county seat of, Pender County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 3,872 at the 2010 census. Burgaw is part of the Wilmington Metropolitan Statistical Area. History The town most likely derives its na ...

, son of James Forbes and Mabel Clemmons Forbes. His family moved first to

Goldsboro, North Carolina Goldsboro, originally Goldsborough, is a city and the county seat of Wayne County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 33,657 at the 2020 census. It is the principal city of and is included in the Goldsboro, North Carolina Metropol ...

then to

Raleigh Raleigh (; ) is the capital city of the state of North Carolina and the seat of Wake County in the United States. It is the second-most populous city in North Carolina, after Charlotte. Raleigh is the tenth-most populous city in the Southeas ...

, where he grew up. Forbes attended college at

Howard University Howard University (Howard) is a Private university, private, University charter#Federal, federally chartered historically black research university in Washington, D.C. It is Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education, classifie ...

in Washington, D.C., where he earned a B.S. degree in Chemistry in 1957. He was called to the ministry in 1956 and in 1962 he completed a Master of Divinity Degree from Union Theological Seminary in New York City. He earned a Doctor of Ministry Degree from

Colgate Rochester Divinity School Colgate Rochester Crozer Divinity School is a Baptist seminary in Rochester, New York It is affiliated with the American Baptist Churches USA. History 1820s-1960: Early history Four Baptist institutions merged over the course of the 19th and 20t ...

Rochester, New York Rochester () is a City (New York), city in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, the county seat, seat of Monroe County, New York, Monroe County, and the fourth-most populous in the state after New York City, Buffalo, New York, Buffalo, ...

, in 1975, after beginning his pastoring and teaching careers. Forbes became ordained in both the

American Baptist Churches The American Baptist Churches USA (ABCUSA) is a mainline/evangelical Baptist Christian denomination within the United States. The denomination maintains headquarters in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. The organization is usually considered main ...

and the Original United Holy Church of America.

Career

From 1976-1989, Forbes taught preaching at Union Theological Seminary. In 1985 he became the first Joe R. Engle Professor of Preaching. After being called as senior minister by Riverside Church, he became an adjunct professor. Dr. Forbes also teaches at

Auburn Theological Seminary Auburn Theological Seminary, located in New York City, teaches students about progressive social issues by offering workshops, providing consulting, and conducting research on faith leadership development. The seminary was established in Auburn, N ...

in New York. On June 1, 1989, Forbes was installed as the fifth Senior Minister of the Riverside Church, succeeding the Rev.

William Sloane Coffin William Sloane Coffin Jr. (June 1, 1924 – April 12, 2006) was an American Christian clergyman and long-time peace activist. He was ordained in the Presbyterian Church, and later received ministerial standing in the United Church of Christ. In h ...

. Forbes was the first

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

to serve as Senior Minister of one of the largest multicultural congregations in the nation. The church stands on the border of the

Morningside Heights Morningside Heights is a neighborhood on the West Side of Upper Manhattan in New York City. It is bounded by Morningside Drive to the east, 125th Street to the north, 110th Street to the south, and Riverside Drive to the west. Morningside ...

and

Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and Central Park North on the south. The greater Ha ...

neighborhoods, and serves an interdenominational congregation. He helped support Pernessa C. Seele's efforts with the first years of the Harlem Week of Prayer for Healing of AIDS, the start of a national movement to deal with public health issues through communities of faith. She founded the Balm in Gilead, Inc., which continues the work with thousands of congregations such as Riverside Church. Opera star Stacey Robinson (left) with Riverside theologian James A

Opera star Stacey Robinson (left) with Riverside theologian James A

Forbes also brought Riverside Church to play a role in the redevelopment of Harlem, with the consortium of churches in Harlem Congregations for Community Improvement. He brought his charismatic gift of preaching to the congregation and attracted new members. Rev. Forbes participated in a Drum Major Institute-sponsored event titled, "The Power of Restorative Justice with

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17t ...

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Michael Hennessey Michael Hennessey (born c. 1948) was the longest serving Sheriff in the history of San Francisco and was the longest tenured Sheriff in the State of California. Hennessey was elected in a run-off election in December 1979 and had been reelected ...

". On June 1, 2007, after 18 years of service, Forbes officially retired from this position to become president of the Healing of the Nations Foundation, a national ministry of healing and spiritual revitalization. In 2009, Forbes authored the book ''Whose Gospel: A Concise Guide to Progressive Protestantism'', in which he offers a compelling vision of progressive social change and addresses the most crucial issues of our time—poverty, war, women's equality, racial justice, sexuality, and the environment. Forbes hosted the radio program '' The Time Is Now'', which aired weekends on the Air America Radio

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until July 28, 2007. He is a member of Chi Phi fraternity. He is a member of

Alpha Phi Alpha Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. () is the oldest intercollegiate historically African American fraternity. It was initially a literary and social studies club organized in the 1905–1906 school year at Cornell University but later evolved in ...

fraternity.

Marriage and family

He married Bettye Franks from

San Antonio, Texas ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , subdivision_ ...

. They have one son, James A. Forbes III.

Legacy and honors

*2010 - Forbes was awarded the "Ossie Davis Human Rights Lifetime Achievement Award" by the Westchester County Human Rights Commission on December 10, 2010. *2003 - Forbes was featured on ''Speaking to Power: A 'NOW With Bill Moyers' Special Edition'', PBS, 26 Dec 2003. *1996 - In a

Baylor University Baylor University is a private Baptist Christian research university in Waco, Texas. Baylor was chartered in 1845 by the last Congress of the Republic of Texas. Baylor is the oldest continuously operating university in Texas and one of th ...

worldwide survey of 341 seminary professors and editors of religious periodicals, Forbes was voted one of the "12 Most Effective Preachers" in the English-speaking world.[ *1993 and 1984 - ''Ebony'' magazine named Forbes one of the US's greatest Black preachers. *

's Alumni Charter Day Award for Distinguished Post-Graduate Achievement in Ministry.

References

External links

Riverside Church: Distinguished Senior Minister Emeritus
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Forbes, James A. 1935 births Living people American Pentecostals Pentecostal theologians African-American Baptist ministers Baptist ministers from the United States People from Raleigh, North Carolina People from Manhattan Colgate Rochester Crozer Divinity School alumni Union Theological Seminary (New York City) alumni Union Theological Seminary (New York City) faculty Howard University alumni Auburn Theological Seminary faculty People from Burgaw, North Carolina Baptists from North Carolina Baptists from New York (state)