Black Greekdom Mourns the Passing of Bishop E. Lynn Brown of Alpha Phi Alpha

The following is from a press release issued to Watch The Yard by Lane College

Jackson, Tenn. (November 26, 2019). – The College regrets to inform you of the passing of Lane Man Bishop E. Lynn Brown on Friday, November 22, 2019. 

Bishop Brown is a native of Madison County, Tennessee, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Lane College in 1960. He received a Master of Divinity degree from Phillips School of Theology at the Interdenominational Theological Center in Atlanta, then went on to complete his doctoral studies at the McCormick Theological Seminary in Chicago. 

Brown was elected the 46th Bishop of the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church in 1986 in Birmingham, Alabama. Upon his election, he was assigned to the Ninth Episcopal District, which encompassed the California, Arizona, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Oregon, Washington and Alaska Regions. 

Prior to his elevation to the office of Bishop, he was general secretary of the Board of Publication Services of the CME Church.  He was a pastor at the Temple of Love CME Church in Memphis, where he founded the CME Publishing House. Brown was also a pastor at Mt. Pisgah CME Church in Memphis, where he developed an urban ministry model for the entire community. At the 2010 general conference, held in Mobile, Bishop Brown was honorably retired.

The Bishop served in many positions in the CME Church, as well as in the community. He was chairperson of the CME Lay Ministry, the Department of Evangelism, as well as Social Justice and Human Concerns, among many other positions. 

Until his passing, he was Resident Bishop in Cincinnati for the Ohio-Central Indiana and Kentucky regions. He was chairperson of the Department of Publication Services, a member of the Board of Trustees of the Phillips School of Theology; a national board member of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, chairperson of Closing the Health Gap of Greater Cincinnati, chairperson of the Clergy Advisory Health Council, chairperson of both the MLK Coalition and a member of the Electoral Reform Commission in Cincinnati.

He is also a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc.

Bishop Brown is survived by his wife, Gladys, his daughters Donna Brown and Cheronda Brown Guyton and four grandchildren.