Trustees of the Liberia Baptist Theological Seminary have selected a pastor from North Carolina as the school’s next president.
The Rev. Terry Henry, senior pastor of Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church in Wilmington, N.C., for 28 years, officially takes office Jan. 1. He will succeed Richard Wilson, a Mercer University professor who has led the institution since the beginning of 2014.
Deacon Aaron Marshall, chairman of the board of trustees, described Henry’s appointment as an “overwhelming and unanimous action” of the board and predicted a smooth transition.
Jacqui and Terry Henry
Henry, a graduate of Campbell University School of Divinity with a doctor of ministry from Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary, currently serves as a vice president of the Congress of Christian Education, the teaching and training arm for the General Baptist State Convention of North Carolina.
Founded in 1867, the predominantly African-American body cooperates in foreign missions with the Lott Carey Global Christian Missional Community, named after a former slave who purchased his freedom to become a Baptist missionary to Liberia in 1821.
Henry has traveled extensively overseas and is a former site instructor for the Wilmington campus of the Interdenominational Theological Center in Atlanta.
Trustees said Henry is expected to ensure sustainability of Liberia Baptist Theological Seminary through programs such as expanding core curriculum to attract new students and turning the school into a hub for theological education in Liberia.
Olu Menjay, president of the Liberia Missionary and Educational Convention, described Henry as a man with “depth of understanding of the significance of theological education in this contemporary age.”
Richard Wilson
Wilson, a theology professor at Mercer, a historically Baptist school in Macon, Ga., said he leaves the seminary in good shape. “The community is stronger, more focused, more transparent, and more nearly financially stable than when I was appointed president in 2013,” he said.
Appointed to lead efforts to rebuild the Liberian seminary in the aftermath of civil war, Wilson’s tenure has endured an Ebola crisis and a long-running legal dispute with a former president, leading to temporary closing of the campus more than once.
“I tip my hat to the courage of the students, faculty and staff,” Wilson said. “Their endurance and resolve inspired me to learn and lead.”
“Only with the support of the board of trustees were we able to accomplish so much in such a short period of time.”
Henry inherits a staff including James Blay, a native of Liberia hired in September as vice president for administration. Wilson said Blay, a recent graduate of Mercer University, brings strong connections to the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, including many years working with the CBF partner Passport, a Christian camping ministry that has been sending groups to Liberia since 2007.