Who was Bishop G.E. Patterson?

Gilbert Earl Patterson was the presiding bishop of the predominantly African-American Christian denomination the Church of God in Christ from 2000 until his death in 2007. In addition to presiding over the entire denomination, Bishop Patterson served as pastor of the Temple of Deliverance, a church of over 6,000 members.

As of the time of his death, the Church of God in Christ was the largest African-American Pentecostal denomination in the United States with around 6 million members. As a part of his ministry, Patterson made regular appearances on the Word Network, the Trinity Broadcasting Network and Black Entertainment Television, and served as the editor and publisher of Bountiful Blessings Magazine.