New to the Pittsburgh area, Rev. Nathaniel Colvin III and his wife, Pastor Nicole Colvin, are happy to serve Bethel AME Church in the Hill District.
A Detroit native, Rev. Colvin finds Pittsburgh to be similar to his hometown. Together, the pastors find warmth and love among the 300 active members at Bethel. Reverend Colvin is a graduate of Wilberforce University in Wilberforce, Ohio. He received his master’s degree from Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio, and completed his theological studies with a master’s of divinity from Ashland Theological Seminary in Ashland, Ohio.
Pastor Colvin also is a graduate of Wilberforce University and holds a master’s degree in business from Tiffin University in Tiffin, Ohio. She earned a master’s of divinity from Ashland Theological Seminary. Both have been in the ministry since 1993.
REV. NATHANIEL COLVIN III
AND PASTOR NICOLE COLVIN
This summer, Bethel will celebrate its 200th anniversary. The history of Bethel is rich and lends volumes to the African-American experience in this area. Bethel touts the honor of being the oldest African Methodist Episcopal church west of the Allegheny Mountains. Bethel is the oldest Black congregation in the city of Pittsburgh. Organized in 1808, the congregation began in a home on Front Street with 20 members and by 1818, three of the members were freed slaves.
Under the theme of: “Celebrating 200 Years of Excellence and Service: The Best is Yet to Come.” Beginning June 8 (through June 15), Bethel will celebrate its anniversary with services nightly at 7 p.m. with a host of guest pastors gracing the pulpit.
Bethel sees to the needs of those it serves in the Hill and beyond. The church houses a food pantry that provides food to neighborhood families monthly. A scholarship program provides educational aid to more than 25 adult students. The Small Seeds Development, Inc., Mother to Son program assists single mothers raising sons ages nine to 13, and has served more than 100 families in East Liberty, Rankin and Wilkinsburg.
Reverend Colvin holds to a life motto of “expect great things.” He says he believes that if you have a spirit of expectation, then you can eventually expect to see God move in your life. “You can expect to see your destiny fulfilled if you expect to see God perform a major working in your life. You can expect to see everything that you’ve prepared or trained for come to pass,” he said. Without expectation or having a positive attitude, you can expect to fail, he continued. “So if you want great things to happen, you have to expect it. You have to see it in order to become it,” he said.
Q: How did you get started in the ministry?
A: It actually had been prophesied to me while growing up. My father was a Baptist minister. I grew up in the church and got started in ministry when I was in college. I started out as a youth pastor and was involved in the men’s ministry. At the point when I was considering the call, it was confirmed to me about three or four times, so I just decided to undertake the calling. I avoided the inevitable for a number of years. Being a PK (preacher’s kid) I knew that I was supposed to be called to the ministry. I finally decided that it was the thing that I was supposed to do.
Q: How do you suggest that others get started in the ministry?
A: Well, you have to know that this is something that God is calling you to do, because it’s not necessarily a career choice. A calling is something you have to be passionate about. It is something that you have to understand. It takes vision and leadership versus just skills and talent. You definitely have to be called to this work by God.
Q: What do you feel is the role of the church today?
A: The role of the church is to minister to those individuals who are hurting, lost or don’t have a full understanding of who they are and what they are to accomplish in life. The church also needs to minister to the rich and those who are misunderstood many times. We are to minister to the needs of all people and to seek to point all people to the mission and cause of Christ.
Q: What can the church do to help with the crisis with today’s youth?
A: We can offer guidance and wisdom to young people as well as a listening ear to try and address many of the issues and circumstances that are prevalent in today’s society. What they need are adults and those who have experience to respond to their issues properly. The Bible says the youth will lead the way, so I think if we pay attention and listen to them, we can help address their needs. We need to earn their trust by being present for them, by not being condescending towards them. We can offer a helping hand and a peace lily, if you will, by reaching out to them first.
Q: Do you think the church should be involved in secular activities, such as health care, housing, etc?
A: I do believe in a social gospel. I do believe that the church has a role to play in some of the secular affairs in the world. Part of the mission of the church is to be prophetic.
The minister is representative of the kingdom of God, meaning that the preacher is a voice for God and not necessarily a voice for the nations. The preacher is supposed to speak to power for the needs of all the people. Christ said to render unto Caesar that which is Caesar’s, but God’s things to God. So he expects us to, in essence, be an active part of the society in which we live but I don’t think the church needs to try and over throw the government, but we should be helping to try and solve some of society’s ills and sometimes that means speaking to powers and offering a prophetic voice.
Q: What makes your ministry different?
A: It’s not that I’m necessarily trying to make my ministry different. My ministry is simplistic in trying to address the areas that God has gifted me to address. In the ministry that I perform, I do what I do well. I try not to do what I’m not called to do. I don’t try to be a jack of all trades and a master at none. I try to be a master of some and leave other areas where I am not gifted to perform to those individuals who are called to do that.
Q: Would you say that the church today is gaining more or less influence?
A: The church is very influential because of the response on the attacks that some organizations emphasize upon the church. If you didn’t have a strong voice, people wouldn’t respond to you. I believe the church is just as strong and powerful today as it was yesterday, it is just operating differently in response to some of the problems society is having. I think the church has a larger media base, meaning there are more ways through the media for churches to get their messages across; you have radio ministries, television and Internet ministries today. The church has more resources financially and humanly, to utilize throughout the nation. The church has more of a morality and value base throughout the nation. We see this in our current election, candidates are indirectly steering their campaigns towards things that are held in very high regard by the church. So that is an indirect way that I feel the church has a major influence.
(For more information regarding Bethel AME’s 200th anniversary celebration, call 412-683-2160 or go to the Web site, www.bethel-ame-pgh.com.)