By Conita R. Butts, Church Liaison Journalist
St. Stephen’s Cathedral Church of God in Christ installed their new pastor, Elder Glenn A. McKinney, on Saturday, September 17. A great number of attendees witnessed the historical appointment of only the second pastor of the church.
Pastor Glenn follows in the footsteps of his legendary father, the late Bishop George Dallas McKinney, a national icon and former General Board member of the five-million-strong Church of God in Christ, Bishop McKinney, who passed away March 20, 2021. His mother, Founder of the St. Stephen’s Nursery School, and Director of the St. Stephen’s Academy, Dr. Jean C. McKinney, passed on June 2, 2004.
Not new to service, Pastor Glenn was the Youth Pastor for over 15 years. Then in 2019, he was appointed as Assistant Pastor. On March 30, 2021, he was appointed by the Presiding Bishop of the Church of God in Christ, Bishop J. Drew Sheard, as pastor of St. Stephen’s.
This committed man of God to kingdom work, shared his thoughts regarding St. Stephen’s, “Working under the late Bishop George McKinney, I trained and saw firsthand how to implement and do ministry; how to care and follow through. He taught me to be sensitive to people and where they are. A lot of that momentum was stopped with the pandemic and during the pandemic, it was a big reset and the needs of people changed. There was a lot of psychological and traumatic damage that people never experienced before. The very face and application of ministry changed; changes brought forth after my father’s death. There is a whole new challenge and way in doing ministry because we all are experiencing things we never have in life. My vision is to continue to seek God for how to bring about necessary help to people where they are in this time and dispensation where we find ourselves. It was the tools that I learned from my father, that even though it is a different environment the tools are still applicable to new issues we are facing. Through what I learned from Bishop I hope to continue to minister to the whole man, looking at the needs for mankind, from the cradle to the grave. When babies are born, they are born into a world that is different than what we grew up in. For those babies to understand who Jesus is, there are different things we must implement because the environment is rapidly trying to snuff the gospel out. So, God, in His wisdom will give us ways in which we can get His message across through this new normal in which we live.”
St. Stephen’s, a vital ministry, has seen its share of difficult circumstances over the years.
A mentally disturbed man burned the church. His actions caused extensive and expensive damage to the building. They were no longer able to hold service in the sanctuary. Ever resourceful, Bishop McKinney and the leadership erected a tent on the church grounds where the members and visitors worshiped until the sanctuary was restored.
The parishioners of St. Stephen’s Church are a stalwart, faith-filled group of Christians. They have withstood the test of time and have now rallied behind their newly appointed pastor. Longtime member, Norma Handy shared her thoughts, “The scripture tells us that God gives us pastors, after His own heart. As a long-time member of Ste. Stephens, I believe that God has honored us and blessed us with Pastor Glenn A. McKinney and Lady Carol as First Lady. St. Stephens has been around for 60 years, doing ministry in this community and our latter days will be great.”
Deacon Jerome Kennedy had this to say, “He [Pastor Glenn] had been told for years that he was going to take Bishop’s place as the next pastor. Of course, we don’t know God’s will. But his will did come to fruition with Pastor Glenn, Bishop’s, and Sister Jean’s youngest son.
“As Chairman of the Deacon Board, and serving at the church since 1988, I am looking forward to following his leadership and supporting him in any way that I can and having the Deacon Board follow with their support as we did with Bishop McKinney.”
Not only are the members onboard for continued growth and community support and development, but community pastors also shared their support of Pastor Glenn. Says Pastor Michael White, “This young man has stood the test of time and has been faithful to God, the church, to his father. It’s a great honor to say that he has been installed as the pastor of St. Stephen’s Cathedral Church of God in Christ, and it’s a blessing.”
Pastor Glenn and First Lady Carol McKinney are the parents of three adult children and one grandchild. They have been married for over 20 years.
