Bishop Warner H. Brown, Jr.

Warner H. Brown, Jr. Bishop Brown

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Bishop Brown was born and raised an only child in Baltimore, Maryland, the son of Ida and Warner Brown. At the age of thirteen, while reading the New Testament, he felt a call to serve. At first he did not see himself serving as a pastor in a church; but he began preaching as a youth, and was encouraged to continue doing so. He graduated from the University of Maryland with a B.A. in Sociology in 1969. Then, at the urging of his pastor, he attended Wesley Seminary, graduating in 1974. It was at Wesley, while serving as a student intern, that the ordained ministry finally called with clarity.

In 1973 Warner was ordained a Deacon in the Baltimore Annual Conference, transferred to the Western Pennsylvania Annual Conference, and was appointed as both pastor of a church and Director of Bethany House Ministries in Pittsburgh, a social service ministry for two housing projects. He was next appointed Senior Pastor at Warren United Methodist Church in Pittsburgh. While serving in Pennsylvania, he was ordained an Elder in the Western Pennsylvania Conference of the United Methodist Church. Then, in 1979, he answered a national search for an associate conference staff position in the California-Nevada Conference, and transferred there: he admits that upon leaving Pennsylvania, he “joyfully threw the snow shovel in the trash.” Once in California, it was only six months later that internal staff changes opened the door to his stepping up to serve as Conference Council Director.

From this role of program and administrative oversight for the Conference, Bishop Brown was appointed just four years later to the Superintendency of the Golden Gate District, the richly diverse area around San Francisco. Then again after only four years, he was given the charge of Taylor Memorial U.M.C. in Oakland, California. As the congregation was experiencing a significant turn-around, the Loma Prieta earthquake and subsequent fires assaulted the Oakland community. Warner led the community’s ecumenical disaster response, serving as chairperson of the Oakland Inter-religious Network.

Following a successful eleven-year pastorate in Oakland, Warner was given a new challenge as Senior Pastor of the predominantly white First U.M.C. of Bakersfield, California. Only two years into this pastorate, he was nominated and endorsed by his conference for the episcopacy: at the Western Jurisdiction Conference Sessions in Casper, Wyoming in July, 2000, he was elected on the 19th ballot.

Throughout these years, Bishop Brown has been active in the social justice ministries and programs of those communities and church connections where he has been appointed. To list but a sampling: Volunteer Police Chaplain, Trustee of the Glide Foundation, vice-chair of the Community Advisory Commission for Alameda County Medical Center, member of the Governing Board of United Way for Kern County, chair of the Board of Directors for the Bakersfield Homeless Shelter, recipient of the 1996 Outstanding Leadership and Service Award for Emergency Response Ministries, given by United Methodist Committee on Relief, and a recipient of a 1998 Congressional Commendation from Congresswoman Barbara Lee.

Bishop Brown’s Leadership in the church has been extensive: a delegate to General Conference twice, a member of the General Commission on Religion and Race, a faculty member for New DS/CCD training, a Harry Hoosier Member of and twice the host for the Black Methodists for Church Renewal, chair of the Board of Missions in California-Nevada as well as numerous other conference boards and agencies, adjunct consultant to the Alban Institute, and a Wesley Seminary Distinguished Alumni.

Currently he serves as a director for the General Board of Discipleship, the Division on Ministries With Young People, and the Upper Room Division. In 2007, he was advisor for the United Methodist Church's first Global Young People's Convocation in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Bishop Brown is married to Minnie Jones Brown; their family includes Catina Marie Harvin, Warner III and Calvin Brown.