Arch-Bishop
Richard A. Thomas became a member of the Spiritual Baptist religion in 1947
when he accepted water baptism by Bishop Gabriel Hunte of St. Peter’s
Spiritual Baptist Church, in Gonzales, Port of Spain Trinidad. In 1967 he
migrated to the United States from Diego Martin, Port of Spain.
After settling
in Brooklyn he yearned to worship in
a church like the one he had left behind in
Trinidad.
Thomas sought a ‘spiritual home’ whereby he can continue his worshipping. He
learned that there was a church which not only opened its doors to members
of the Spiritual Baptist Faith but also operated similarly to the one he had
left at home. That church was ‘Sons and Daughter of Zion Pentecostal Church,
Inc. located at 762 Putnam Avenue,
Brooklyn.
In 1968 he was
ordained as a Minister of Religion at ‘Sons and Daughter of Zion Pentecostal
Church, Inc. Later, the church changed its name and became known as ‘Sons
and Daughter of Zion Spiritual Church, Inc. This church still stands today.
The Spiritual Baptist Online News Magazine learned that Archbishop Thomas
felt that there was greater need for him in another ministry and moved on to
St. John’s Spiritual Church run Mother Violet Smith at Fulton Street in
Brooklyn. This church later moved to Herkimer Street, Brooklyn. However it
was here at St. John’s that Thomas’ destiny unfolded. In 1975, Thomas was
consecrated as the First Archbishop of Spiritual Baptist religion in the
entire United States.
Today
Arch-bishop Thomas no longer functions at St. John’s but has established his
own Ministry. He is head of the St. Michael’s Spiritual Church in Brooklyn,
New York and also in Ghana, West Africa. Together with his wife, Reverend
Mother Joan Thomas, members of his congregation and friends, he is doing
Missionary and charitable work on the African continent
