Bishop Henry Allen Belin, Jr., a native of Louisiana, was born on September 9, 1927, to Mrs. Beatrice Boney Belin and the Rev. Henry Allen Belin, Sr. Bishop Belin’s father was an active African Methodist (AME) minister in the 8th Episcopal District (Louisiana and Mississippi) for more than 60 years.
Bishop Belin received his undergraduate degree from Campbell College in Baker, Louisiana, and a Master of Arts degree from the Lampton School of Religion in Jackson, Mississippi.
Bishop Belin pastored, remodeled, and built churches in both the 8th and 13th Episcopal Districts, most notably, Payne Chapel in Nashville, Tennessee. He also served as a presiding elder in the 8th Episcopal District.
Prior to his election to the episcopacy of African Methodism, Bishop Belin was elected Secretary-Treasurer of the AME Church Sunday School Union at the 1972 General Conference in Dallas, Texas. During his tenure, he purchased land and built a brand new million-dollar headquarters for the publication of vital religious materials. He also remodeled the nearby John Avery Apartment Complex, owned by the Sunday School Union.
As the publisher for African Methodism, Bishop Belin brought many powerful voices to the printed page, including Cecil Cone’s Identity in Crisis in Black Theology, George Champion’s Pastor’s Manual (volumes I and II), and Black Methodism’s Basic Beliefs, as well as George Sewell’s Where Are You Going? In addition, Bishop Belin added to the history of African Methodism by publishing Howard Gregg’s The History of the AME Church, James Madison Granberry’s The History of the AMEC Pension Department, and Robert H. Reid, Jr.’s Irony of African American History. One of the highlights of his career as publisher was the compilation and distribution of the AME Church Bicentennial Hymnal in 1984.
Bishop Belin was elected the 104th Bishop of the African Methodist Episcopal Church at the 1984 General Conference in Kansas City, Missouri. He went on to preside over the 15th, 16th, 12th, 3rd, and 7th Episcopal Districts before his retirement.
Bishop Belin died on July 31, 2024, and was preceded in death by his late wife, Episcopal Supervisor Mrs. Lucinda Crawford Belin. His children who survive him are all ministers in the African Methodist Episcopal Church: Rev. Dr. Henry A. Belin III, Pastor of First AME Church – Bethel, Harlem NY; Rev. Dr. Toni Belin Ingram, Presiding Elder of the Augusta North District; Rev. Dr. Roderick D. Belin, President/Publisher of the AMEC Publishing House; and Rev. Lynne Burkhead, Comfort and Care Pastor of Turner Chapel AME Church, Marietta GA.
St. Phillips African Methodist Episcopal Church, 240 Candler Rd, Atlanta, Ga.30317 , Friday, August 9, 2024 – Public Viewing 9am – Service of Celebration 11 am.
