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Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Denzel Washington was baptized and received a minister’s training license at a Harlem church on December 21, 2024. But that did not mean he was ordained: in a later interview, Washington said he was not an ordained minister and still needed to take courses to obtain a license.
What happened at the Harlem church?
On December 21, 2024, Washington was baptized at Kelly Temple Church of God in Christ in Harlem, New York, and received a minister’s license during a ceremony livestreamed on Facebook, according to ABC News. The Guardian also identified the church as Kelly Temple Church of God in Christ, affiliated with the Church of God in Christ denomination.
At the service, Washington said, “It took a while, but I’m here,” ABC News reported. The event was described in some headlines as Washington becoming a minister, but that phrasing can blur the distinction between receiving a license and being ordained.
Was Denzel Washington ordained?
No. In a later interview with The New York Times, Washington said: “I got baptized, and I have to now take courses to obtain a license. But I did get baptized, but I’m not an ordained minister.” His statement distinguishes his baptism from ordination and describes further coursework as part of obtaining a license. The contemporaneous reports described him as receiving a minister’s or training license at the ceremony; the accounts do not establish the precise authority of that license or his status after the later interview.
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Why did Washington visit the church?
Washington told The New York Times that he drove to Harlem and stopped at the church where his mother grew up. He went inside while it was celebrating young students heading to college; he said “one thing led to another” and that he was baptized weeks or months later. He described wanting to speak more specifically about his faith.
ABC News also reported Washington’s recollection of a woman named Ruth Green, whom he said he met in his mother’s beauty parlor. He remembered her telling him, “Boy, you are going to travel the world and preach to millions of people.” This is Washington’s account of an earlier conversation, not an independently verified prediction.
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What the reports establish—and what they do not
- Established: Washington was baptized at Kelly Temple Church of God in Christ in Harlem on December 21, 2024, and was reported to have received a minister’s or training license.
- Clarified by Washington later: He said he was not ordained and needed to take courses to obtain a license.
- Not established by these accounts: The exact authority of the license, current Church of God in Christ licensing requirements, or any change in Washington’s status after his later interview.
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