Senate Resolution 39

(As Adopted by Senate)

A RESOLUTION COMMEMORATING AND CELEBRATING THE QUADRENNIAL SERVICE OF BISHOP C. JAMES KING, JR., OF THE FOURTH EPISCOPAL DISTRICT OF THE CHRISTIAN METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH AND COMMENDING HIS CHRISTIAN LEADERSHIP.

WHEREAS, we join the congregation of the Fourth Episcopal District of the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church (CME) in celebrating the Quadrennial Service of Bishop C. James King, Jr.; and

WHEREAS, Bishop C. James King, Jr., was elected the 63rd Bishop of the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church on the fourth ballot on July 1, 2014, in Baltimore, Maryland. He was assigned to the Eleventh Episcopal District. At the 2018 General Conference, Bishop King was assigned to the Fourth Episcopal District, which includes the States of Mississippi and Louisiana; and

WHEREAS, the eldest of twelve children, Bishop King was born May 15, 1948, in Columbus, Georgia, to Charles James King, Sr., and Ruthie Mae Middlebrooks King. He was raised by his grandparents, Horace and Zadie Mae Middlebrooks. Bishop King received his Bachelor of Arts Degree from Paine College, Augusta, Georgia (1974), with a Major in History; Master of Divinity Degree from The Interdenominational Theological Center (Phillips School of Theology) in Old Testament (1979); and he earned the Doctor of Ministry Degree from Ashland Theological Seminary, Ashland, Ohio (1994), in Educational Administration with a special concentration in developing programs of self-help for economically disadvantaged children, youth and young adults; and

WHEREAS, Bishop C. James King, Jr., has been in the ministry for 56 years. He has pastored congregations in Georgia (Murray Memorial, Covington); Washington, D.C., (Bunton Institutional); Kentucky (Brown Memorial, Louisville); Indiana (Trinity, Indianapolis and Murchison Tabernacle, Indianapolis); and Ohio (Peoples Community, Dayton; Phillips Memorial, Cincinnati; and St. Phillips, Hamilton); and

WHEREAS, his administrative experiences included serving as Presiding Elder of the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church in the Cincinnati-Dayton-Indianapolis District in the Ohio-Central Indiana Region for twelve years. He also served in the Second Episcopal District as the Episcopal Director of faith-based and community-based ministries. Bishop King was a member of the General Board of Personnel Services for 24 years and was serving as its Vice Chair when elected Bishop; and

WHEREAS, Bishop King is also the Founder, President and CEO of Project One, Inc., a faith-based, not-for-profit corporation. The Project One, Inc., Ministry has helped over 15,000 youths become engaged in meaningful summer employment and after-school programs. Bishop King has raised enormous amounts of funding to support youth services for Project One, Inc. Some of the programs he has developed are: the Job Annual Summer Jobs Campaign, the Summer Earning and Enrichment Program, the Fatherhood Program, the Talented and Gifted Scholars (TAG) Program, and his latest, the After School University at the Alice Lucille Martin Educational Academy; and

WHEREAS, Bishop King is the former Chair of the Board of Trustees for the Interdenominational Theological Center, the first CME Preacher who has served as the chair of this board. He was instrumental in raising funds for the school's budget, working with the board in any and all administrative capacities, which included the hiring of a new president for the school; and

WHEREAS, we pay tribute to the leadership, stewardship and enormous civic energy of a respected Christian gentleman:

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, That we do hereby commemorate and celebrate the Quadrennial Service of Bishop C. James King, Jr., of the Fourth Episcopal District of the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church (CME) and commend his Christian Leadership.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That this resolution be presented to Bishop King and his family, forwarded to the Fourth Episcopal District of the CME Church and made available to the Capitol Press Corps.