BARRINGTON

ROSS

FOR BISHOP

more about rEVEReND rOSS

Reverend Barrington Bernard Ross, a native of Winnsboro, S.C, has offered himself for Episcopal service in the AME Church for 2024.  His ministry began in 1989 at Tanner Chapel African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church in Phoenix, Arizona. In 1993, he moved to Durham, N.C., where he attended Duke Divinity and  St. Joseph’s AME Church.  At St. Joseph’s, he served as an ordained deacon; and in 1997, he was ordained Itinerant Elder at the hand of Bishop Frederick C. James at Bethel AME-Greensboro. He has pastored five AME churches over 27 years. In April of 2021, he was appointed Pastor of Robinson AME Church in Grasonville, Md. by Bishop James L. Davis, presiding Prelate of the Second Episcopal District of the AME Church.

In the AME Church, he has chaired the Memoirs and Necrology Committee in the Western N.C. Conference., and he currently serves as chair of the Deeds, Properties, and Abstracts committee in the Baltimore Annual Conference (BAC). He is also a member of the Board of Examiners for Ministerial Orders in the BAC. 

In 1982, he obtained a bachelor of science degree in Educational Biology (Teaching) from North Carolina A&T State University in Greensboro. He attended Duke Divinity from 1996-1998; but completed his master of divinity degree in 2018 from Payne Theological Seminary in Wilberforce, Ohio (the oldest Black Seminary in America). At Payne, he was awarded the “Faculty Award for Service” as the student body’s President, Vice-President, Payne Seminary Trustee Board Member, and a Payne recruiter. 

1.Honoring the Four Horsemen 

  Bishops Richard Allen, Daniel Payne, Henry McNeal Turner, and Paul Quinn  

  • All of the 4 Horsemen were Bivocational- had more than one job; the church is supported by bivocational clergy! Celebrate Bivocation!

  • The Free African Society movement that evolved into the AME Church was founded on economic thrift and self sufficiency. Embrace rebuilding individuals to rebuild the communities that we serve.

2.Preserving the AME Brand  

  • Be Kind and welcoming in the spirit of Jesus Christ

  • Remove Barriers that lead to misinformation and distrust.

  • Celebrate the ANVIL- that represents the toughness and integrity of a people who’ve been battered and bruised but heads still held high.

  • Make the Black Church, THE CHURCH! Embrace Afrocentric and Africentric liturgy, worship, and polity. Too long we’ve been doing Black church like our oppressors, ENGAGED in dialogue to stray away from Eurocentric theology and liturgy. 

  • Create new theologies that undergird the original JESUS, our Savior of the World.

WAYS TO GIVE

CASHAPP: $ROSS4BISHOP

ZELLE: Barringtonross26@gmail.com

Payable to: ROSS4BISHOP

Mail Checks To: Barrington Ross

12204 Chesterton Drive

Upper Marlboro, MD, 20774

3.Transferring the Legacy of African MethodisM in the 21st Century Globally. 

  • Create new paradigms for memberships virtually 

  • Embrace best practices from congregations that are seeing success 

  • Engaging ourYoung People in such a way they will want to apart.

  • Teaching them how to manage, maintain and improve what we have today. 

  • Give our young the freedom to explore the vision that God has given them to serve the present and future age.

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Views and Challenges

  • Supporting small churches - Every new pastor should partner with a seasoned pastor as a point of reference for ministry.  It’s the responsibility of the Annual Conference to ensure the success of every charge in the conference and to visit and support struggling congregations, help them get to meetings, and listen to their needs.

  • Creating opportunities for evangelism and support - Expanding the AME church in Far West Africa, namely Dakar, Senegal and Mali.

  •  Partnering AME US congregations with AMEs internationally. 

  • Providing the Liberating message of Christ and African Methodism to communities oppressed by foreign interest. Rebuilding and creating infrastructure.

  • Create middle to high school learning academies all male and all female in each annual conference that will produce college and career ready individuals. 

  • Produce state of the learning centers for pre- K and Kindergarten that will teach our children how to read, write, and count for school readiness.

  • Create yearly excursions to cultural identity missions and educational tours that explore cutting edge careers, colleges, trades, and military opportunities.

  • What is mission work? Global transformation that changes the environment.

  • Interconnection - Begin dialogue and partner with other African American denominations, AMEZ, CME, COGIC, BAPTIST, Black UMC, Black Catholics and others about strategies to best serve our communities.

  • Same Sex Unions - Pastors should refrain from being the officiant in uniting individuals who have the same sex. I believe this is a legal issue that the government is infringing upon the church. The religious institution of marriage is by design Christ (male-groom) and the Church (female-bride) to procreate the church and produce children. Across the AME church in the US, Caribbean, Europe, Africa, and India we must maintain this stand and be welcoming and inviting to everyone in all our churches to serve as the Lord permits. 

  • The future of the church finances -

    • Continue to investigate what happens and share with the GENERAL CONFERENCE. Be Transparent!

    • Pay everyone what is due to them 2024, 2025, 2026, and 2028 and who have already retired what is due to them prior to mismanagement of funds.

    • Create a new board of directors for the annuity. Eliminate anyone from the old board from serving for 10 years.

    • Have all annuity funds electronically transferred from every participating clergy or member into the annuity accounts directly.

    • Have quarterly meetings of directors via telecommunications or face to face and send minutes of meetings to annuity participants.