Rev. Warren A. Rogers, Black Ministries Pioneer

Rev. Warren A. Rogers, evangelist, pastor, musician, district superintendent, and administrator, went to be with the Lord on October 26, 2005. Dr. Rogers served the Church of the Nazarene faithfully and with distinction for many years and was known throughout the denomination as a significant visionary and leader.

One of eight children born into a poor family in Woodland, Louisiana, Warren and his family moved to Mississippi, where the family worked as sharecroppers on the cotton plantations. He was blessed with Christian parents and gave his heart to the Lord at age nine. His call to the ministry had come two years earlier in a vision while stretched out on a seven-foot cotton sack, gazing toward heaven.

For nearly 30 years preceding his appointment as district superintendent of the Gulf Coast District, Rev. Rogers served as pastor/evangelist throughout the United States and Canada. God gave him unusual ability to sing and play several instruments. Many were won to Christ through his ministry to all Nazarenes.

Rogers, along with two other pioneer leaders, received tribute for his vision for the Black presence in the Church of the Nazarene with the naming of the Rogers-Cunningham-Bowman Ministerial Institute, which is committed to training laity and clergy in culturally-specific strategies to minister in Black communities. His leadership and zeal for reaching people for Christ prompted Nazarene Bible College to create a scholarship in his name for students wishing to pursue ministerial preparation.

Roger's vision and zeal for the Black presence in the church could not be contained, despite poor health and advanced age. When a national Black Nazarene conference was held in 2002, after a hiatus of 17 years, Rogers trekked to Atlanta to be part of the celebration. "From the beginning of his ministry until its end, Warren A. Rogers gave his life to build a vital Black presence in the Church of the Nazarene. We are indebted to his example, his labors, and his toils; and we are heirs to his vision and his confidence in God's grace to complete the mission set before us," reported Oliver R. Phillips, Mission Strategy Director.

The legacy of Dr. Warren A. Rogers Sr. and that of African American Nazarenes is being kept alive by one of his grandsons, Rev. Warren Rogers III. He serves at Olivet Nazarene University, his alma mater, as senior admissions counselor and recruiter.