THE REVEREND BENJAMIN LEDELL REYNOLDS, MDiv

Community UCC was delighted to have Rev. Reynolds as our interim Pastor for for the summer of 2007.

Pastor Benjamin's sermons are heartfelt, poetic and healing. His lively, articulate style makes stories of the Bible come alive with relevance for us living in these radically changing times. Our community felt incredibly blessed to have been guided by this man who relates to our stuggles and offers encouraging solutions to them.

The Colorado Springs’ Gazette has called him "The People's Preacher." With over 31 years of preaching, Benjamin Reynolds, former pastor of the  Emmanuel Missionary Baptist Church of Colorado Springs, recalls the skinny and scared, fourteen year-old young man who stood before the congregation and delivered his first sermon. The young Benjamin Reynolds was no ordinary child. A licensed minister when he was hardly 14, in the church that he would later come to pastor, he could often be found at the library while others boys were on the baseball diamond or the basketball court.

Reverend Reynolds is a graduate of the University of Denver with a Bachelor of Arts in Speech Communication and Mass Communication, and a Master of Divinity from the Iliff School of Theology, Denver. During his tenure as pastor of Emmanuel, Reynolds was instrumental in leading the 1,200 member congregation to offer a myriad of ministries including prison outreach, HIV/AIDS ministry and a scholarship program for graduating senior high students. Reynolds himself, who served as president of the local branch of the NAACP during the period of 2003 to 2005, had become one of Colorado Springs' most visible civil rights champions, while privately wrestling with making the public aware of his sexuality.

He has been actively involved in national affairs and his credits include being an active member of the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated, serving as a member of the Religious Advisory Committee for the National Black Justice Coalition, and is actively involved in the Human Rights Campaign and a myriad of other involvements.

He has completed an internship with the Regional AIDS Interfaith Network (RAIN) of Colorado, and has served as a member of the Board of Directors of the Southern Colorado AIDS Project.   The First Congregational Church of Colorado Springs honored him with the Micah 6 Award, as he proclaims justice, mercy, and humble communion as a life of faithfulness and has also been inducted into the Morehouse College Board of Preachers in 2002.

Reynolds became an advocate for the rights of gays and lesbians, officially welcoming them into the life of the church. He taught a series called "The Black Church and Sexuality," which among other things examined how black congregations often discriminate against gays. His position on homosexuality caused some congregants to leave the church. Reynolds said it was the congregation's opposition to his advocacy for gays and lesbians – not his own sexual orientation - that convinced him it was time to leave. He knew in order to depart with integrity the congregation needed a face for same-gender love, and that such individuals could be faithful servants of God. The fallout was predictable: some congregants were fully supportive, some downright angry. Most felt his views on sexuality were simply incompatible with those of the church, and he was voted by the congregation to depart sooner than the date his resignation incited.

Now living in Denver, Reverend Reynolds is in transition preparing to begin a doctorate program, seeking privilege of call in the United Church of Christ. At the same time he brings a pastoral dimension to financial aid at the Iliff School of Theology and is the Program Director for Brothas4Ever, a Denver based organization, which is a peer led program of It Takes A Village promoting the physical, emotional, and spiritual health of same-gender loving African American men by building community. 

Reverend Reynolds long-term goals are to teach and facilitate social justice and preaching on the seminary level to students preparing to go into congregations as leaders.  Eventually, he plans to return to a permanent pastorate.

As for the spare time Benjamin Reynolds manages to find, he has a passion for cycling and travel. In reflecting on his over thirty years in ministry, he is struck with the realization that some things have changed very little from the days of his youth when the 14 year old took the pulpit. He still loves reading, Sunday services, singing along with the choir and is still abundantly excited about the things of God.

To learn more about Pastor Benjamin, check out the article about him in the Boulder Daily Camera.