DR. J. ALFRED SMITH, SR.

Senior Pastor

Doctor J. Alfred Smith, Senior is the Senior Pastor. He earned a Doctor of Ministry (D.Min.) from Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary; a Master of Theology (M.Th.) in American Church History from American Baptist Seminary of the West; a Master of Theology (M.Th.) in Church and Community; a Bachelor of Divinity (B.D.) from Missouri School of Religion; and a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) from Western Baptist College.

He has given lectures at a number of institutions, including Stanford, Vanderbilt, Baylor, Hampton Harvard Divinity School, Morehouse, and Howard.  He has spoken extensively in Asia, West Africa, Europe, North America, and Central America.  He is former president of the 1.8 million member Progressive National Baptist Convention and a former member of the Oakland Board of Education.  He has received over 100 awards for leadership in the African American community, including recognition in Ebony Magazines' list of the 100 influential Black leaders (1987 and 1988).  In April 1989, Doctor Smith addressed the United Nations on South African apartheid.  Doctor Smith is the author of 16 books.

Dr. J. Alfred Smith, Sr. is the Senior Pastor of Allen Temple Baptist Church.  He is Professor of Christian Ministry at the American Baptist Seminary of the West and the Graduate Theological Union of Berkeley.  He is currently Visiting Professor at Fuller Theological Seminary.  He has served as Acting Dean of the American Baptist Seminary of the West, and as Area Representative for the American Baptist Churches of the West. He has served as Visiting Professor at numerous seminaries across the country, including the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Louisville, Kentucky, and Harvard University School of Divinity.  He has also been guest lecturer for the Hoskins Lectures on Ministry at the School of Divinity at Duke University.  Dr. Smith has been Distinguished Pastor in Residence at the School of Divinity of Howard University.

Dr. Smith is the Past President of the American Baptist Churches of the West and the Progressive National Baptist Convention. Dr. Smith is the Founding Chairperson of the Bay Area Black United Fund, a member of the Advisory Boards of the School of Divinity of Howard University and the United Theological Seminary.  He is also a member of the University of California, Berkeley Community Advisory Board, the California State Legislator's Commission on the African American Male, a member of the Advisory Board of the National Conference of Black Seminarians, and a member of the Executive Board of the National Council of Churches.

Dr. Smith has traveled extensively to speak at churches, universities, and seminaries nationwide.  He addressed the Baptist World Alliance when the body convened in Toronto, Canada, and in Seoul, Korea.  He served as preacher for the 1991 Bermuda Bible Conference.  He has spoken in West Africa, Jerusalem, Sweden, Denmark, Mexico, Canada, Switzerland, and the Virgin Islands. 

In April of 1989, Dr. Smith addressed the United Nations on apartheid in South Africa and the anti-apartheid efforts of African American churches.   In February, 1988, Dr. Smith led a delegation from the U.S. on a fact finding mission to Sierra Leone, where he and others have established a Baptist Mission.

Dr. Smith is the author of sixteen books which are used by seminaries, Bible students, teachers, and scholars worldwide.  Recent publications include:  Giving To A Giving God, Basic Bible Sermons, a chapter in From Prison Cell To Church Pew, and a sermon in Best Sermons For 1993.  He is a contributing author of Holman Bible Publisher's The Discipleship Study Bible.  Books on Dr. Smith and Allen Temple include Guidelines for Effective Urban Ministry.  Preaching As a Social Act Discusses Dr. Smith's personal theology.

The work of Allen Temple Baptist Church and Dr. Smith have been featured in numerous media, including NBC's Today Show, CNN, Christianity Today, Ebony Magazine, the Oakland Tribune, the San Francisco Chronicle, the Los Angeles Times, the San Jose Mercury News, and the American Baptist Magazine.  A video tape, available through Allen Temple Baptist Church, titled "Caring and Sharing" has been produced highlighting some of the Allen Temple ministries.

Dr. Smith has earned over 125 awards, including those from Stanford University, the Martin Luther King International Chapel of Morehouse College, the National Council of Negro Women, Alpha Phi Alpha, the Bay Area Free South African Movement, the U.S. Congress, and AFRICA.  He has been elevated to the 33rd Degree of Prince Hall Free and Accepted Masons.  In November, 1993, Dr. Smith was named by Ebony Magazine as one of  America's fifteen greatest African American preachers.  Then, in 1994, the Oakland Tribune named him as the 1994 Outstanding Citizen of the Year.  He has received honorary doctorates from Western Baptist College and Inter-Baptist Theological Center.  In 1990, Dr. Smith was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from the American Baptist Seminary of the West.

A native of Kansas City, Missouri, Dr. Smith is married to JoAnna Goodwin Smith.  He has been a licensed minister since 1948 and an ordained minister since 1951.  He earned his Doctor of Ministry from Golden Gate Seminary, his Master of Theology in American Church History from American Baptist Seminary of the West, his Master of Theology in Church and Community and Bachelor of Divinity, both from Missouri School of Religion, and his Bachelor of Science from Western Baptist College.  Under his leadership, Allen Temple Baptist Church has grown from fewer than 1,000 members in 1970, to over 5,000 members.  As Senior Pastor, Dr. Smith administers over 25 community and family-oriented programs and services of the church. 

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