CTS Distinguished Alumni Award

The Rev. Dr. Frank A. Thomas' Sermon

The Chicago Theological Seminary (CTS) Board of Trustees annually selects the recipient of the distinguished alumni award. This award is given to a graduate of CTS whose ministries and distinguished contributions to public society are highly representative of the mission and vision of the Seminary. This year CTS is pleased to honor the Rev. Dr. Frank A. Thomas, Senior Servant Pastor of Mississippi Boulevard Christian Church in Memphis, Tennessee, and CTS alum of 1981 (Master of Divinity) and 1986 (Doctor of Ministry).

2010 Recipient: Frank Anthony Thomas

Dr. Frank Anthony Thomas is the Senior Servant of Mississippi Boulevard Christian Church in Memphis, Tennessee.

Dr. Thomas has earned a Doctor of Philosophy degree with a major in Communications from the University of Memphis, a Doctor of Ministry degree from Chicago Theological Seminary in Chicago, Illinois and a Doctor of Ministry degree in Preaching from United Theological Seminary in Dayton, Ohio. He received a Master of Divinity degree from Chicago Theological Seminary, a Master of Arts degree in African-Caribbean Studies from Northeastern Illinois University in Chicago, Illinois, and a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana.

He has taken his pastoral experience, his love of African American preaching and his abilities as a scholar to McCormick Theological Seminary in Chicago, Illinois where he serves in an adjunct capacity in the Doctor of Ministry in Preaching Program and in the Master of Divinity Program. As a co-mentor, he assisted in guiding 16 students to their Doctor of Ministry degree at United Theological Seminary in Dayton, Ohio.  He has also served as an Adjunct Faculty member at Memphis Theological Seminary in Memphis, Tennessee.

He is the Chief Executive Officer of Hope for Life International, Inc. which is the non-profit that owns The African American Pulpit (TAAP), a quarterly journal that serves as a repository for the very best of African American preaching and provides practical and creative resources for persons in ministry. It is the only African American owned, non- denominational, preaching and ministry journal in the country.

His first preaching method book, They Like to Never Quit Praisin’ God:  The Role of Celebration In Preaching, was published by Pilgrim Press in 1997.  In 2001, Judson Press published, What’s Love Got To Do With It? Love, Power, Sex and God, a collection of essays on the intricate connections between love, power, sex, and God. The book was so successful that a special workbook, What’s Love Got To Do With It? Love, Power, Sex and God: The Workbook was released by Judson Press in January, 2002.  In Spring 2002, Fortress Press released Spiritual Maturity:  Preserving Congregational Health and Balance in book and workbook that set forth his thinking on spiritual maturity in every day matters and in congregational relationships. Chalice Press released his most recent book, The Lord’s Prayer In Times Such as These, with September 11, 2001 as its central focus. Dr. Thomas and Rev. Martha Simmons co-edited, 9.11.01 African American Leaders Respond to An American Tragedy (Judson Press, December 2001).  The book sold out of the first print run of 10,000 copies in two months.

Dr. Thomas is privileged to serve as a preacher, teacher, lecturer, and revivalist in diverse settings including the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship at Calvin Theological Seminary, Boston University, Baylor University, Hampton University Ministers’ Conference and the Morehouse School of Religion where he was inducted into the Martin Luther King, Jr. Board of Preachers. In addition to these opportunities, Dr. Thomas recently served internationally as a visiting lecturer at the University of South Africa and he is well known for his preaching and teaching ministry at the “Under African Skies Conference” in Johannesburg, South Africa.  Sermons by Dr. Thomas have been featured in The African American Pulpit, Patterns of Preaching, ed. Ronald Allen (Chalice Press 1999), and Pilgrim Press released Atonement: The Million Man March in 1996.

He is married to The Rev. Joyce Scott Thomas.  They have a son, Anthony William, and a daughter, Rachel Sojourner Thomas.