Rev. Dr. Mark V. C. Taylor is a native of Chicago, Illinois. He was licensed in 1979 at the Living Hope Baptist Church in Chicago under the leadership of Rev. James F. Jordan. From 1978 to 1981 he attended the Faith Temple Church Of God In Christ under the leadership of Bishop Carliss L. Moody, who was one of the participating ministers at Dr. Taylor’s ordination in 1979.
Dr. Taylor received his BA in History from Northwestern University; Masters of Divinity in Theology and Church History, Masters of Philosophy in Church History and a PH.D. in Church History from Union Theological Seminary in New York.
Dr. Taylor is currently the Pastor at The Church Of The Open Door in Brooklyn, New York where he has developed several new programs; a Council of Ministries, which includes thirteen ministries specifically addressing the needs of the community (AIDS, Anna & James, CHOSEN, Evangelism, Family, Marriage, Men Of God, Prison, Seniors, Singles, Recovery Through Christ VIRTUE and Work & Employment) and Black Male Emphasis Sundays. He has developed an extensive outreach ministry through outdoor services. He works closely with the youth and conducts a monthly Bible study where the youth of the church openly discuss pertinent issues of the day and how they relate to the Word of God.
Recently he has formed a Bible Institute which seeks to provide a pleasurable and informative encounter with the Word of God. He has sponsored a new Church School curriculum and a new summation of the Church’s Doctrine called the Doctrine of Christian Wholism. He is very active in the community and can often be found at public hearings and in community meetings.
Dr. Taylor has published articles in The State Of Black America 2001, The Courage to Hope: From Black Sufferings To Human Redemption, Union Seminary Quarterly Review, his dissertation “Godless Spots in Paradise: Social Christianity and Public Housing 1932-1955. His most recent publication titled, “In Times Like These: Sermons of Christian Power for Post-Modern Urban America”, is an uplifting collection of his sermons dealing with today’s issues.
Dr. Taylor also is an evangelist. Besides the outdoor services in the community surrounding the church, he preaches to many local congregations and has preached in churches from New York to Los Angeles. Dr. Taylor defines the focus of his ministry as “Progressive Pentecostalism”, the attempt to link the best of western rationality and the democratic tradition to the need to be filled with the Holy Spirit.