A.R. Bernard

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Rev. A.R. Bernard, Sr. is the founder and Pastor of Christian Cultural Center located in Brooklyn, New York, United States.

Contents 1 Biography 2 Establishment of Church 2.1 Further Growth 2.2 Outreach Programs 2.3 The Bookstore 3 Christian Men's Network 4 Involvement in Education

[edit] Biography

Born in Panama in 1953, Pastor Bernard came to New York at the age of four with his mother and they settled in the Bedford-Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn. He was part of the 1960s desegregation movement in the public school system being bussed to school in Ridgewood, Queens and then attended Grover Cleveland High School. In order to help his mother in their single parent household, Pastor Bernard worked after school in the garment district pushing garment racks for $2.00 per hour. In his senior year, he left the garment district for a job at Bankers Trust Company. Beginning as a clerk in the Consumer Lending Division he earned a number of promotions leading to Operations Specialist in the Consumer Lending Division.

[edit] Establishment of Church

Rev. Bernard left the banking world to answer his calling to full time ministry in 1979. Starting with a Bible Study group in a kitchen, he, and his wife Karen took their savings and rented a small storefront in the Greenpoint section of Brooklyn. As his ministry grew, so did the need for a larger facility. In 1979, Household of Faith Ministries was incorporated with Rev. Bernard as its president and CEO. In 1988 the ministry purchased an abandoned supermarket in Brownsville and renovated it into a 1000 seat sanctuary complete with ministry offices and a bookstore. Christian Life Center became its new name and the ministry moved into its new property in June 1989 with 625 members.

[edit] Further Growth

The ministry was quickly outgrowing its home on Linden Blvd. With four services at capacity, and overflow rooms full, the need for a larger facility was evident. In 1995 a vacant lot adjacent to Starrett City was purchased and soon after, construction began. On December 31, 2000, under the leadership of Rev. Bernard, Christian Cultural Center took its new name and moved into its new home. The 6.5-acre sanctuary and conference center also includes a café, flower shop, newsstand and restaurant. A new paradigm in houses of worship, Christian Cultural Center is one of the largest independent churches in the tri-state area, valued at over forty million dollars, and its President and CEO, Rev. A.R. Bernard, Sr. remains a highly sought after speaker, teacher and community leader.

Future expansion on the newly purchased 4.5 acre of land adjacent to the Cultural center will include a 500-seat theatre for the performing arts, a botanical garden modeled after the U.S. Botanical Garden in Washington, DC, a youth sport complex and senior housing as well as other community development projects.

[edit] Outreach Programs

Outreach programs under his leadership include, a food pantry serving the homeless and those in need, Prison Ministry, Literacy and Sonrise an aid to substance abusers–assisting with counseling and an extensive referral system. A partnership was formed with JHS 275, the neighborhood middle school. As part of that partnership the ministry provided computers, sponsored trips to Washington DC, provided the use of church facilities for their graduations and initiated an annual scholarship to their valedictorian.

[edit] The Bookstore

The Bookstore, which began as a single table operation in the storefront, is now a half a million dollar per year business, serving church members and ministries both locally and internationally. It is a provider of bibles, books, recordings, videos and gifts and is among the larger Christian Bookstores in New York.

[edit] Christian Men's Network

In 1990 while the ministry continued to grow, Rev. Bernard was asked to serve on the Board of Directors for the Christian Men’s Network (CMN) to help restructure the organization. During his six years on the board, CMN grew to an organization with 74 international offices and with a presence in approximately 150 nations. In addition to serving as Treasurer for the board, Rev. Bernard was one of their most requested speakers. With the passing of Dr. Edwin Louis Cole in 2002 he became the President of CMN. He has traveled extensively throughout the United States, the Caribbean Islands and to the continents of Asia, Africa, Australia and Europe addressing religious organizations, businessmen and political dignitaries.

[edit] Involvement in Education

Rev. Bernard opened the Brooklyn Preparatory school in 1993, an educational institution designed to see children from age 3-6 grow and develop. Their June 1999 first grade graduates ranked 91st in the national percentile in reading and 96th in the national percentile in mathematics.

Along with a number of ministers and not-for-profit representatives, Rev. Bernard formed the Christian Renaissance Corporation, established to foster urban revitalization through an alliance of church and para-church organizations. They have already sponsored a forum on Faith-Based Initiatives featuring Dr. John DiIulio and "United We Rise", a Memorial Service in the aftermath of the World Trade Center attacks which was broadcast live via satellite to over 25 sites throughout the tri-state area, churches around the country and 1,700 stations throughout parts of North and Latin America. It has since been rebroadcast throughout the nation and internationally via television and radio. CRC currently represents a constituency of over 100,000 people.

Rev. Bernard is a requested speaker at leading Fortune 500 companies as well as Universities and Colleges. In 1996, Rev. Bernard addressed an unprecedented one million Christian men on racial reconciliation on the mall in Washington, DC in addition to numerous stadium events. Media coverage has included New York Magazine, Charisma, The New York Times, Class Magazine, Fox News Channel, Daily News, CBS Window on America, 700 Club, TBN's Praise The Lord, Tony Brown's Journal and various national and local news programs.

Honored for his outstanding leadership and achievements by Presidents, Senators and a host of influential figures, Rev. Bernard has been personally cited in the Congressional record at least twice. He sits on several different boards including Anchor House, and Teen Challenge – a teen substance abuse program with a 70% success rate. In addition, under Commissioner Howard Safir, he sat on the NYC Police Department Advisory Board for Courtesy, Professionalism and Respect. Rev. Bernard presently serves as Chaplain to the Division of Law Enforcement of the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation Police. He is also a board member of the New York City Economic Development Corporation ("EDC") appointed by Mayor Michael Bloomberg and a member of the Board of Directors of the Brooklyn Public Library.