Jesuit priest, missionary, diplomat, orator, and theologian Antônio Vieira was born in Lisbon, the capital city of Portugal, on February 6, 1608, the first of the four sons of Maria de Azevedo, a mulatto woman and civil servant Cristóvão Vieira Ravasco. At age six, when … Read MoreAntônio Vieira (1608-1697)
Wavel Ramkalawan is a Seychelles politician and Anglican priest who has served as President of Seychelles since October 26, 2020. Wavel Ramkalawan was born on March 15, 1961 on Mahé, the main island of the Seychelles. His father was a metal worker and his mother … Read MoreWavel Ramkalawan (1961- )
On May 20, 2019, Reverend Lakeesha Walrond, Ph.D., made history when she was appointed President of the New York Theological Seminary (NYTS), founded in 1900 as the Bible Teacher’s College. Walrond is the first woman and first Black woman to serve as president of NYTS, … Read MoreLakeesha Walrond (1971- )
American sociologist, social worker, and minister Richard Robert Wright Jr. was born on April 16, 1878, in Cuthbert, Georgia to Richard Robert Wright, Sr., who had been born into slavery but graduated from Atlanta University and founded the National Freedom Day Association. Wright’s mother, Lydia … Read MoreRichard Robert Wright Jr. (1878-1967)
Allan Boesak is an award-winning South African theologian and political activist known for his participation in the anti-apartheid movement alongside Desmond Tutu and Nelson Mandela. Boesak was born in Kakamas, Northern Cape province on the eastern border of South Africa on February 23, 1946. He … Read MoreAllan Boesak (1946- )
The Rev. Dr. Regena Lynn Thomas is a former politician who formerly held the office of secretary of state for New Jersey and is the director of the Human Rights and Community Relations Department of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT). Thomas was born and … Read MoreRegena Thomas (1957- )
DeForest Blake “Buster” Soaries Jr. is a minister, author, and former secretary of state for New Jersey. Soaries was born on August 20, 1951, in Brooklyn, New York. His parents were both West Indian immigrants and his father was a preacher. After graduating from high … Read MoreDeForest Soaries (1951- )
Francis Lewis Cardozo was a minister, educator, and politician, who was born free in Charleston, South Carolina, on February 1, 1836. Cardozo was of mixed ancestry, as his father, Isaac Nunez Cardozo, was a Sephardic Jew, and his mother, Lydia Williams Weston, was a free … Read MoreFrancis Cardozo (1836-1903)
Carlton D’Metrius Pearson is an American preacher, author, and gospel singer. He was born on March 19, 1953, to the Rev. Adam Louis Pearson and Lillie Ruth Johnson Pearson in San Diego, California. Pearson’s father was the pastor of St. John’s Church of God in … Read MoreCarlton D’Metrius Pearson (1953- )
George Washington Lee was an African American civil rights leader, minister, and entrepreneur. On May 7, 1955, Lee was murdered by white supremacists in Belzoni, Mississippi. The murder remains unsolved. Lee’s murdered was one of two key events that occurred in Mississippi in 1955 along … Read MoreGeorge Washington Lee (1903-1955)
