*The man who helmed the landmark Abyssinian Baptist Church in Harlem has died. The Rev. Calvin O. Butts III, who presided over generations of worshippers as well as local, national and international political leaders, died Friday at age 73, the church announced.
“It is with profound sadness, we announce the passing of our beloved pastor, Reverend Dr. Calvin O. Butts, lll, who peacefully transitioned in the early morning of October 28, 2022,” read a tweet from the Abyssinian Baptist Church posted shortly after 6:30 a.m. “The Butts Family & entire Abyssinian Baptist Church membership solicit your prayers.”
The cause of death was not released, however, several officials indicated Butts was battling cancer.
Rev. Butts was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut in July of 1949 and joined Abyssinian as a youth minister in 1972 where he led the Harlem church as pastor for decades, becoming a trusted council of politicians and the public alike as its senior pastor.
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He was also President Emeritus of the State University of New York College at Old Westbury and served in the Fordham University Graduate School of Education as a Distinguished Visiting Professor in the Educational Leadership, Administration and Policy Division.
He worked with political leaders across the ideological spectrum.
“This is someone who could call up any mayor,” said Dr. Christina Greer, an associate professor of political science at Fordham University told Gothamist. “Not just David Dinkins, but Michael Bloomberg and Bill de Blasio and Eric Adams, as well. It’s a powerful church because — not just the membership — but the stewardship of Rev. Butts made it a place where every political leader wanted and needed to get his opinion.”
The Rev. Al Sharpton called Butts a major pillar in the Harlem community. “He was a dominant faith and academic leader for decades,” Sharpton said in a statement. “We knew each other for more than 40 years, and while we did not always agree we always came back together.”
“Rev. Butts was a major pillar in the Harlem community and is irreplaceable. He was a dominant faith and academic leader for decades,” Rev. Sharpton added “We spoke as late as a couple of weeks ago about this work, as he was still fighting cancer. He will be tremendously missed.”
Butts was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut, and grew up in the New York City borough of Queens. He graduated from Morehouse College in Atlanta, then returned to the New York area and earned a master’s degree from Union Theological Seminary and a doctor of ministry degree from Drew University. He began his ministry at Abyssinian while in graduate school.
Like other churches, Abyssinian was forced to go online only in the first months of the coronavirus pandemic and then gradually reopened.
The church hosted a private memorial service for the pioneering Black actor Cicely Tyson last year, with Bill and Hillary Clinton and Tyler Perry in attendance. Butts praised Tyson as an example of “an example of how we all might live.”
Rev. Butts’ survivors include his wife, Patricia, three children and six grandchildren.
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