“I never want people to think that this church is only a museum,” stated Rodgers, a native of eastern North Carolina, who says he did not dive into Second Baptist’s history until he responded to a “call from the Lord” while serving as a pastor in Baltimore and searched the internet for national pastor openings, which led to him being selected by Second Baptist out of 200 applicants. “This history is not just about what we have done, it’s also about who we are right now. My predecessors improved the conditions of our people during the institution of slavery, the Great Depression, World Wars, the Civil Rights Movement, the Detroit Rebellion of 1967 and other challenging periods in our history. They offered us a way to survive and even thrive. And that is a tradition that we need to apply today.” 

After immersing himself in Second Baptist’s history, Rodgers came to Detroit in 2020 full of enthusiasm and a desire to continue the church’s tradition of serving humanity as the 24th senior pastor to lead Second Baptist Church of Detroit. Nonetheless, despite having the best intentions, Rodgers faced a challenge that no other Second Baptist pastor before him had to navigate during the COVID-19 pandemic. Visits to the homes of church members and other extended in-person interactions were not possible when “everything was on lockdown” and “everyone was afraid.” But as time went on, with help from connections Rodgers made through the Council of Baptist Pastors of Detroit and Vicinity, and his own exploration across the city for basic essentials, Rodgers says he witnessed and felt a spirit that allowed him to appreciate Detroit in a different way. 

“I can’t tell you exactly when it happened, but, at some point around the middle of my second year here, I called my mother and I said, ‘Detroit is like down home, up North,’ ” recalled Rodgers, who earned a master’s degree in divinity in 2017 from Howard University, where he graduated at the top of his class, while receiving numerous awards in the process. “Around the same time, I found a Detroit barber and a Detroit tailor and bought a pair of Detroit-style glasses. One of our members saw me afterwards and he said: ‘Now you look like one of us.’ But more than the member’s words, there was a sense of community and warmth that I felt — like Southern hospitality — that you don’t see or feel in a lot of places that have these temperatures.” 

Powered by the “spirit of Detroit” that Rodgers described, he and the Second Baptist congregation have aggressively addressed challenges that continue to plague Detroit and our nation, including the opioid crisis; food insecurity connected to families and the unhoused, and human trafficking. And while helping Detroiters “survive,” Second Baptist is also committed to providing resources that enable Detroiters to “thrive,” such as resources and programs focused on financial and STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics) education.

Rodgers says that with each historical tour, training session and seminar provided at his church, along with direct outreach into the community performed by Second Baptist members, including providing food and other necessities to unhoused Detroiters, a message is sent that is felt well beyond the city. 

“There was a time when the world looked to Detroit because of the automotive industry, but today the world is looking to Detroit to see how we are responding to challenges faced by our entire nation,” said Rodgers, who also has shared his concerns and ideas for helping Detroiters with the nonprofit Greektown Neighborhoods Partnership, which is leading the ongoing initiative to transform the Greektown district into a pedestrian-friendly destination. “The world wants to know how we are going to ensure that all people are served. Going into 2026, I’m so excited to be in Detroit at this time and I look forward to building on the relationships and partnerships that we have established at Second Baptist such as our partnership with the DTE Energy Foundation, which will allow us to expand our youth STEAM program and continue our mission to empower the next generation.