J. Alfred Smith remembered as giant among preachers and justice advocates

J. Alfred Smith will be remembered in services Oct. 9 and 10 as one of the most influential Black Baptist pastors of his generation.

Smith died Sept. 19 at age 94. The congregation he served across four decades, Allen Temple Baptist Church in Oakland, Calif., will host an evening of worship and witness Oct. 9, at 6:00 p.m. Pacific Time and a celebration of life on Oct. 10 at 11 a.m. Both services will be livestreamed at Allen-Temple.org.

Not only did the church grow from 500 to 4,500 members under his leadership, he and the church became synonymous with the fight for social justice in Oakland and beyond. Smith led the church to developing ministries that served and advocated for the community, particularly residents of Deep East Oakland, and advocated for justice from City Council to the halls of Congress and beyond.

“Dr. Smith did not set out to become famous; however, he became a renowned, celebrated pastor, preacher, professor, prophet, author and theologian,” said Allen Temple historian Martha Taylor. “He has been honored as one of the top Black preachers of America, earned and received countless awards, and was the recipient of hundreds of honoree acknowledgements that would be a small book in itself.”

Oakland Mayor Barbara Lee said Smith’s ministry at Allen Temple “helped influence the moral and spiritual fabric of our city. He preached with power, organized with purpose, and always reminded us that faith must live through action. His leadership gave strength to movements for equality, dignity and opportunity, and his legacy will continue to guide Oakland for generations to come.”

Known as an exemplary orator, Smith was as much at home on the streets of Oakland and in the classrooms of seminaries. He became a denominational leader and a strategist for justice at the same time.

He was elected president of the Progressive Baptist State Convention of California in 1979 and president of the Progressive National Baptist Convention in 1986. He joined the faculty at American Baptist Seminary of the West as professor of Christian ministries in 1992. He wrote 16 books, including On The Jericho Road: A Memoir of Racial Justice, Social Action, and Prophetic Ministry, Speak Until Justice Wakes: Prophetic Reflections, and Sounding the Trumpet: How Churches Can Answer God’s Call to Justice.

Smith was born May 19, 1931, in Kansas City, Mo., and began preaching in 1948, the year he graduated from high school.

“He was a national and international leader whose prophetic voice challenged injustice and whose tender care lifted communities.”

In 1952, he received a bachelor of science degree in elementary education from Western Baptist College, then in 1959 he earned a bachelor of divinity degree (now the master of divinity) from the Missouri School of Religion, along with a master’s degree in theology, church and community in 1966. He later earned a master’s degree in American church history from American Baptist Seminary of the West in 1972 and a doctor of ministry degree from Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary in 1975.

He was named senior pastor of Allen Temple Baptist Church in 1971 and served there until his retirement in 2009. He was named pastor emeritus and continued to teach and advise and influence ministry leaders.

He was twice named one of Ebony magazine’s “Most Influential Black Americans” and was named among its “15 Greatest Black Preachers.” He lectured at Oxford University and Cambridge, and keynoted Baylor University’s Conference on Black preaching. He was professor emeritus of preaching and church ministries at the Berkeley School of Theology, which established the J. Alfred Smith Sr. Endowed Chair of Theology in the Public Square in his honor.

Jacqueline A. Thompson, current senior pastor at Allen Temple, said Smith “was more than our pastor emeritus. He was a national and international leader whose prophetic voice challenged injustice and whose tender care lifted communities. … He stood with courage in the public square, taught with brilliance in the classroom, and preached with conviction from the pulpit. His legacy is found not only in the church he led, but in the countless leaders he mentored.”

Sid Smith III (no relation to J. Alfred Smith) was among those whose life in ministry was shaped by the great Oakland pastor.

“Every time I spoke with him, he expressed his tremendous gratitude for my father’s role in helping him get his first book published. They were colleagues and brothers navigating the often-turbulent waters of their respective denominational involvements through the ’70s, ’80s and ’90s, providing needed encouragement to each other as iron sharpening iron.”

“As we were having lunch one day while I was serving as worship pastor at First Covenant Church of Oakland, I asked him for his wise counsel on how to approach a complicated passage in preparation for a sermon I was to deliver that following Sunday — which he gave in enthusiastic abundance. What shocked and surprised me was to look up that Sunday as I preached to see his smiling face encouraging me from the congregation!”

J. Alfred Smith “not only demonstrated excellence in his many leadership roles, but he also displayed a very uncharacteristic humility which evidenced the fragrance of Christ, an unmistakable aroma that followed him and lingered in his wake,” Sid Smith said. “When I grow up, I want to be like Dr. J. Alfred Smith. He did it the right way. I will miss his voice, his friendship, his encouragement, his correction, his counsel and his love.”