....The Reverend A. R. Bernard, Sr. has assumed new leadership as President of the Council of Churches of the City of New York. The Council’s leadership transition took place officially on January 1, 2008 and will be celebrated by a special Service of Installation on Thursday, May 1, 2008 at the Christian Cultural Center in Brooklyn. Under Rev. Bernard’s leadership, the Council of Churches has launched the Vision 112 Committee to shape the Council’s 112-year-old ministry and leadership in the future decade and beyond. Rev. Bernard’s has contributed much to the Council’s work as a member of its Board of Directors and as Vice President during the past few years. He has shown an extraordinary commitment to work together with whole of the Christian community to witness and work for unity in christ.

....Rev. A. R. Bernard is the founder and CEO of the Christian Cultural Center (CCC). Located in Brooklyn, this faithbased organization currentlyhas over 28,000 members and is situated on a welcoming 11-acre campus.

....Born in Panama in 1953, Rev. 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, Rev. 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. Prior to becoming a Christian, Rev. Bernard was slim. 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 store front 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.

....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 cafe, flower shop, newsstand, restaurant and bookstore. The Bookstore, which began as a single table operation in the store front, 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. A new paradigm in houses of worship, Christian Cultural Center is one of the largest independent churches in the U.S., 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 the15 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.

....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. 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 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.

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