| Spheres of Ministry | |
| Worship and Pastoral Care | Acolytes |
| Adult Choirs | Adult Ushers |
| Audio/Visual | Care and Nurture |
| Children's Ministry | Communication Ministry |
| Council on Ministries | Hour of Power |
| Institute for Christian Education | Kids' Kingdom |
| Lay Speakers | Little Vessels |
| PDH Ministry (Prayer) | Praise Propulsion |
| Radio Broadcast | St. James Scene |
| Scouting | Steward Board |
| United Methodist Men |
We are blessed to have Rev. Dr. Vernon P. Howard, Jr. as a member of the pastoral team to the St. James family. Rev. Howard returns to Kansas City from Tucson, Arizona where he has been a Senior Pastor since 1994. Prior to his relocation from the Kansas City area, he was an Assistant Pastor at St. Stephen Baptist Church from 1992 to 1994.
After earning his B.A. degree at William Jewel College in 1986, he received a Master of Divinity from Central Baptist Theological Seminary and a doctorate degree in 2000 at Virginia Union University Samuel DeWitt Proctor School of Theology in Richmond, VA. His 2004 published book, "The Way of an Eagle: Charting Your Path to High Places in Christ" targets the individual Christian with an emphasis on spiritual formation and discipleship.
Since 1997, Rev. Dr. Howard has been invited to make a vast number of scholarly presentations and has taught courses at the University of Arizona and Pima Community College. He has also completed antoher manuscript, "For Those Who Love to Preach: Exploration, Exposure, Ecstasy and Emobidment in the Preaching Moment", written to be a multi-faceted resource for ministers of the Gospel.
It is with confidence and faith that we petition God to continue to inspire Rev. Dr. Howard as he serves the St. James United Methodist Church and the surrounding community.
CAREER OBJECTIVE
To continue in a pastoral, pastoral staff or teaching position within a church, school of religion, school of theology, religion department, ministry program or seminary, utilizing my academic and parish experience in the focused areas of African-American religion, homiletics, or practice of ministry.
EDUCATION
B.A. William Jewell College, Liberty, MO (1986)
M.Div. Central Baptist Theological Seminary, Kansas City, KS (1994)
D.Min. Virginia Union University-Samuel DeWitt Proctor School of Theology, Richmond, VA (2000)
TEACHING EXPERIENCE
*Lecturer, African-American Religion and Culture, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ (2001- 2004)
*Adjunct Faculty, Pima Community College, Tucson, AZ, (1998-2000)
PASTORAL EXPERIENCE
Associate Pastor, St. James United Methodist Church, Kansas City, MO, (2005-Present)
Senior Pastor/Founder, Mountaintop Church, Tucson, AZ, (1998-2005)
Senior Pastor, Mount Calvary Baptist Church, Tucson, AZ, (1994-1998)
Assistant Pastor, St. Stephen Baptist Church, Kansas City, MO, (1992-1994)
PUBLICATIONS
"The Way of an Eagle: Charting Your Path to High Places in Christ", Leathers Publishing, Overland Park, KS, ISBN# 1-58597-256-8. This work, published in 2004, is book targeted toward the individual Christian emphasizing spiritual formation an discipleship.
CURRENT RESEARCH AND CREATIVE ACTIVITY
"Prophetic Models of Ministry for the New Millennium." This is long term, multi-faceted theological and practice of ministry research highlighting models of ministry drawn from the African-American prophetic tradition. The work uses these models as guideposts to authenticate and ameliorate current forms of so-called religious practices aimed at addressing issues of justice, peace freedom and equality. Models for the church as witness to concrete issues of justice such as poverty, livable wages and housing are presented.
"For Those Who Love to Preach: Exploration, Exposure, Ecstasy and Embodiment in the Preaching Moment." This is a book manuscript designed to be a multi-faceted resource for ministers of the Gospel. Focus areas include basic hermeneutics, the theology of preaching, homiletic method, homiletic theory and spiritual formation of the minister.
PRESENTATIONS AND INVITED SCHOLARLY TALKS
- "Indigenous African Cultural Expressions in Contemporary Black Worship," St. James United Methodist Church, Kansas City, MO, February 2006
- "Black Diamonds in the Rough: The African Presence in the Bible," St. James United Methodist Church, Kansas City, MO, February 2006
- "Countering the Crisis of Democracy through the Prism of King," William Jewell College, Liberty, MO, January 2005
- "The Atonement in Context: Toward an African-American View of the Atonement of Christ," University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, September 2003
- "The Seven Dimensions of the Anointing in the Ministry of Christ," First Institutional Baptist Church, Phoenix, AZ, July 2003
- "Religious Doom or Prophetic Hope: Activism and Advocacy in Authentic Faith," University of Arizona, Black History featured guest, February 2002
- "Go Tell It: Theological and Interpretive Strategies for Gospel Proclamation," Mountaintop Institute, Tucson, AZ, March 2000
- "Martin and Malcolm, Dreams and Nightmares: The Dialectic of Two Black Prophetic Voices of the 20th Century," Pima Community College, February 1999
- "God's Answer: Martin Luther King, Jr. as Prophetic Response in Civil Rights Era," National Association for the Advancement of Colored People Annual Meeting, Sierra Vista, AZ, January 1998 and at the Universalist Unitarian Church, Green Valley, AZ, January 1998.
- "A Room with a View: The Synoptic Gospels of the New Testament," Paradise Baptist State Congress of Christian Education, Tucson, AZ 1997
TEACHING SUMMARY SHEET
- AFAS 204 Religion and Culture in the Africana Diaspora, University of Arizona
- AF AS 220 Introduction to African American Studies, University of Arizona AF AS 255 Introduction to African American Politics, University of Arizona
- AFAS 300 History of African American Film and Cinema, University of Arizona
- TRAD 104 Introduction to African American Literature, University of Arizona REL 220 Introduction to the Old Testament, Pima Community College
- REL 221 Introduction to the New Testament, Pima Community College
ADDITIONAL TEACHING INTERESTS
African-American Church, History and Homiletics
- The role of the Christian Faith in the African-American struggle for justice and equality in America with particular emphasis upon the prophetic tradition's practices as it addresses peculiar oppression during the socio-economic institutions of slavery, industrial capitalism and now Post-modern global capitalist order.
- The progression of the theology of the African-American church through its history with particular attention to its norms, sources, aspirations and major voices during the Civil Rights, Black Power and current neo-conservative climate. Special attention is paid to the de-radicalization of its theology and the de-racialization of its identity in such a climate