Rev. Thomas L. Bowen has been named General Secretary of the Progressive National Baptist Convention, Inc. (PNBC). Headquartered in Northwest Washington, D.C. and boasting more than two and a half million members, he will steer the denomination organized at the height of the Civil Rights Movement and known as the spiritual home of the late Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Bowen comes to the new role after joining the White House Office of Public Engagement as Senior Advisor for Faith Engagement. He previously served as the African American Strategic Engagement Director, where he held dual positions as Director of the Mayor’s Office on Religious Affairs and the Mayor’s Office on African American Affairs in Washington, D.C.
Bowen is a graduate of Morehouse College and studied for Christian ministry at the University of Chicago Divinity School. An ordained Baptist minister, Bowen has maintained his ties to the community and the local church, serving as the Earl L. Harrison Minister of Social Justice at the historic Shiloh Baptist Church since 2002.
A native of Lorain County, Ohio, but affectionately known as “D.C.’s Pastor,” Bowen said in a press release about his new role: “I am deeply humbled to serve the Progressive National Baptist Convention as General Secretary. This is not simply an administrative role — it is a sacred calling to help steward the legacy of Dr. King and the freedom church tradition that birthed this Convention. We are called to rise with moral clarity in times of confusion, to speak truth with love in times of division, and to build bridges where others have built walls. The Black Church must not only echo the Gospel — it must embody it.”
“PNBC has always stood where faith meets freedom,” Bowen continued. “I intend to carry that torch with conviction, compassion, and courage. This is not a moment — it is a movement. And the Church must lead with both prophetic courage and pastoral care.”
“Rev. Bowen will bring energy and creativity to the Convention. That energy will help chart a direction for the PNBC for the 21st century,” Dr. Eddie Glaude, the James S. McDonnell Distinguished University Professor of African American Studies at Princeton University, said.
“With his experience in the Bowser administration and the White House, Rev. Bowen will bring his extensive connections and experience to the organization to widen the scope of its influence by building a more robust network among churches committed to a transformative Gospel,” he continued. “He has boundless energy and he understands Black churches and the laity.”
“I am also confident that he will work hard to bring younger voices to the table,” Glaude said. “This is an exciting time and I can think of no better leader than Rev. Bowen for our troubling times.”
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Director of The Raceless Gospel Initiative, an associate editor, host of the Good Faith Media podcast, “The Raceless Gospel” and author of Take Me to the Water: The Raceless Gospel as Baptismal Pedagogy for a Desegregated Church.
