Reverend Hilton Holt

The Reverend Hilton Holt welcomes you to Mother Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church.  I hail from the Republic of Liberia, West Africa. My journey with the AME Church began in 1973, when I joined The Eliza Turner AME Church (Monrovia) and became a member of the Liberia Annual Conference of the Fourteen Episcopal District.   

In 1986, I graduated from the University of Liberia with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Sociology.   It was the same year that I migrated from my native land to the United States. I transferred my membership to First Episcopal District when I joined Allen AME Church in Providence, Rhode Island. At Allen, I served in the music and transportation ministries. In 2001, I transferred my membership to Wayman AME Church (Minneapolis) and became a member of the Chicago Annual conference, of the Fourth Episcopal District. At Wayman, I was appointed by Pastor Alphonse Reff to serve on the Steward Board and later that year, was elected to represent the church as a member of the ecumenical initiative commission for the city of Minneapolis, St Paul, and the surrounding suburbs. I responded to the call to Ministry and was ordained, an Itinerant Deacon at the 138^th session of the Chicago Annual Conference. In 2008, I transferred back to the First Episcopal District of the New Jersey Annual Conference and served on the Ministerial staff at Bethlehem AMEC Burlington City.  In 2011, I was assigned as Supply Pastor to Bethel AME Church Cookstown.   In 2014, I requested a transfer to the Philadelphia Annual Conference and joined the ministerial staff at Mother Bethel, under the Pastoral charge and mentor of The Reverend Mark Kelly Tyler PhD. My assignment included provided pastoral care to the sick and shut- in members living in New Jersey.  In 2017, I matriculated studies as a resident student at Payne Theology Seminary in Wilberforce, Ohio and graduated with the Master of Divinity Degree. In Ohio, I served on the Ministerial Staff at Greater Allen AMEC, under the Pastoral charge of The Reverend Elmer S. Martin D.Min. 

In addition to continuing my services at Mother Bethel, I am a Resident Chaplain at Christiana Care, Newark, and Wilmington campus. My goal as a chaplain is to seek Board Certification with The Association of Clinical Pastoral Education to provide a more effective and efficient support (holistic care) to the membership, their families, and the community. In May 2020, I was elected Itinerant Elder at the 204^th session of the Philadelphia Annual Conference. However, due to the restriction on in-person gatherings, the ordination service is pending. I have five loved children from my previous marriage, and five precious grandchildren. My curriculum vitae as I continue this journey reads this single testimony: “I’ve had my share of life’s ups and downs; God’s been good to me, and the downs have been few; I would guess you can say, God has blessed me; But there’s never been a tim e in my life, he didn’t bring me through; If anyone should ever write, my life story; For whatever reason there might be; You’d be there, between each line of pain and glory; Jesus is the best thing that ever happened”