Black ministers come together for Designated CREDO
Affirmation was on the menu when participants from a CREDO gathering of Black ministers broke bread in November with folks at a small African American church in Little Rock, Arkansas. Seated all around were Black Presbyterians from across the country, validating African American membership in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). “That was important for people in my congregation,” said the Reverend Marion Humphrey Sr., pastor of Allison Memorial Presbyterian Church and a CREDO participant.
In a denomination that’s nearly 90% white, “it’s almost like … ‘oh, there’s another brown face,’” said the Reverend Carla Jones Brown, Conference Administrator for this CREDO conference and pastor of Oxford Presbyterian Church, Philadelphia. Rev. Jones Brown, who wasn’t born into the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), said even she’d been surprised to learn there are Black cradle Presbyterians.
This CREDO conference, held Nov. 4-10, 2025, at Ferncliff Camp and Conference Center in Little Rock, responded to the unique experience of being a Black minister in the PC(USA). It included visits to Little Rock Central High School and the Daisy Bates House, sites on the U.S. Civil Rights Trail.
Generally, CREDO conferences connect to a particular phase of ministry — recently ordained, mid-career, and late career. This Designated CREDO, a version of the popular weeklong conference, was designed around the unique vocational characteristics of what it means to be a Black minister in the PC(USA).
Attending CREDO with others who face similar opportunities and challenges can enhance the experience of the conference, which provides an intimate space for participants to examine, in small groups, their lives and ministries, said the Reverend Dr. Michael Wilson, Director, Education for the Arc of Ministry, at the Board of Pensions. “Our denomination is rich in diversity of people and ministries,” Rev. Wilson said. “Designated CREDOs acknowledge that our lived realities can vary greatly.”
At each CREDO, experienced faculty guide participants in a visioning and discernment process through key areas of well-being: spiritual, vocational, physical and emotional health, and financial. At this CREDO conference, the entire faculty was African American and the programming was designed for Black ministers, unlike the first African American CREDO, in May 2019.
“It made a huge difference,” said the Reverend Dr. Byron A. Wade, the Conference Leader, who also led the first CREDO for Black ministers. Simply having “someone who looks like me” was important, he said, as was focusing on such things as physical and emotional health through the lens of being Black in America.
CREDO is known for creating safe spaces, which was essential if ministers were to feel comfortable sharing concerns during financial and other discussions at Ferncliff. “Money is a thing,” Rev. Jones Brown said. Some participants focused on investments and savings; others, on how to pay their bills. “There was a whole spectrum,” she said.
Rev. Humphrey, who has pastored Allison Memorial for 41 years while practicing law and serving as a judge, saw financial worries tied to declining PC(USA) membership. “People are serious about their calls,” he said. “They have this feeling that it’s not an easy journey for those who aren’t bivocational.” He said it’s important that the CREDO experience be made available to more ministers.
“There is a great commitment by the Board to make sure that all types of pastors have the opportunity to participate,” said Dr. Wade, who serves as General Presbyter of the Presbytery of Western North Carolina. CREDO eligibility was extended in 2025 to any PC(USA)-ordained minister enrolled in the Medical Plan and/or Defined Benefit Pension Plan, and there was a “groundswell” of demand from African American pastors who were previously ineligible, he said.
The gathering in November, which drew 22 PC(USA) ministers, included three indigenous Africans. “That was a new experience itself,” Dr. Wade said. “There was a learning curve for each,” describing their experience as “more of an immersion.”
The Reverend Mwat Asedeh, who is from Nigeria, said the conference was “mostly geared toward the social context here. … At the beginning, it was trying to catch up.” But when the African ministers told the group that they were struggling a bit to keep up with the program, they received recognition and acceptance, he said.
“It was truly a blessed time for me,” said Rev. Asedeh, who pastors Stewartstown Presbyterian Church, in York County, Pennsylvania. “I met a lot of people from all over. I’m not alone. I have a lot of people in my boat.”
The Board of Pensions will offer a Specialized Ministry CREDO in fall 2026, designated for eligible ministers who work in validated ministries beyond the congregation. In 2027, there will be a Designated CREDO for eligible mid council leaders.
