Bishop Sylvester Reid was born in South Carolina. At the early age of 12, Bishop Reid accepted Christ as his personal savior. He began preaching at the age of 14 and has dedicated his life to preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ. It has been said that Bishop Reid would rather die than stop preaching. For him, preaching is the essence of life. He believes in the redemptive power of Jesus Christ and his motto embraces the ideals of repairing, restoring, and re-building the lives of men, women, and children everywhere. He spent most of his formative years and adult life in New York. There he was educated in the New York City educational system and attended City College, where he majored in civil engineering.
He attended the W. L. Bonner College in Columbia, he has received several certificates and accolades in religious education. He is a life member of the Church of Our Lord Jesus Christ (COOLJC) of the Apostolic Faith and serves in numerous capacities. He is the immediate past chief of administrative staff of the COOLJC International Congress, he previously served as assistant pastor of Greater Refuge Temple Church in New York, and served as assistant pastor of Refuge Temple Church, Southern Regional Headquarters, in Columbia, South Carolina, alongside his father in the gospel, Bishop William L. Bonner. He was consecrated as Bishop at the COOLJC 92nd International Holy Convocation, July 2011 in Baltimore, Maryland, and installed as pastor of Refuge Temple Church of the Southern Regional Headquarters in Columbia on January 12, 2014.
Bishop Reid has overcome enormous obstacles and credits God as his source for survival. Those obstacles have revealed to him the love and forgiveness of Jesus Christ. It is with this same love and compassion that he ministers to the body of Christ and has made it his quest to seek and save those that are lost. Bishop Reid is indeed a dynamic man of God.
Highlights
Life member of the Church of Our Lord Jesus Christ (COOLJC) of the Apostolic Faith
Previously served as assistant pastor of Greater Refuge Temple headquarters church in New York
Serves as assistant pastor of Refuge Temple Church, Southern Regional Headquarters, in Columbia, South Carolina. In January 2014 he was appointed Pastor by Chief Apostle William L. Bonner,
Immediate past chief of administrative staff of the COOLJC International Congress
Embraces the ideals of repairing, restoring, and re-building the lives of men, women, and children everywhere.