Our Pastor
Kenneth Darryl Ray Clayton is the Senior Pastor of the St. Luke Baptist Church of Paterson, NJ. A native of Paterson, he is the oldest of three children born to Vivian Clayton and the late George Clayton and is a product of schools of this city.
At a young age, he confessed Christ as his personal savior was baptized and became a member of the Shiloh Baptist Church of Paterson. After acknowledging his call to the preaching ministry, he was licensed by the Shiloh Church on September 18, 1988.
In 1990, he united with the Calvary Baptist Church of Garfield, NJ, under the pastoral leadership of the Rev. Dr. Calvin McKinney. In 1992 he was added to the Calvary Church Staff and served in a variety of ministerial capacities.
Rev. Clayton earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from Upsala College of East Orange, NJ and a Master of Divinity degree from New York Theological Seminary.
He is active within the ranks of the Baptist denomination having served in a variety of capacities within the national, state, and local levels of the Baptist family.
He is a former Associate Editor of the National Baptist Voice; past President of the United Missionary Baptist Convention of NJ, Inc., and past Moderator of the Shiloh Baptist Association of NJ. In 2014 he was appointed to serve as the Statistician of the National Baptist Convention USA, Inc. He is also an Executive Board Member of the Hampton University Ministers Conference.
In 1997 he was called to serve as Assistant Pastor of the St. Luke Baptist Church of Paterson, NJ under the leadership of the Rev. Dr. A. M. Tyler. Upon Rev. Tyler’s death he was named Acting Pastor. On Wednesday, October 22, 1997 the St. Luke Church officially extended the call to Rev. Clayton to serve as the sixth (and youngest) pastor in their history.
Under his leadership, St. Luke has experienced significant quantitative and qualitative spiritual, and physical growth as the St. Luke Church emphasizes worship, discipleship, fellowship, outreach, and service as its primary purposes.
Widely traveled, Rev. Clayton has preached extensively throughout the country.
Realizing that he is a servant of God and God’s people, Rev. Clayton is an advocate for human rights and social justice. He was the first African-American male to be appointed a Commissioner on the Board of the Passaic County Technical and Vocational High School, where he served as Vice-President. He also formerly served as member of the Board of Commissioners for the Passaic County Board of Social Services. He presently serves on the Board of Commissioners of the Paterson Parking Authority where he formerly served as President. He is also a chaplain for the Paterson Police Department. He has been featured in local and national media outlets for his advocacy in our community. He is a life member and current President of the Paterson Branch NAACP.
In addition to a broad preaching ministry, he is also a frequent teacher and lecturer. He has lectured and/or preached at New York Theological Seminary and Princeton Theological Seminary. He has served as an Adjunct Professor for Palmer Theological Seminary’s (formerly Eastern Baptist Seminary) Certificate in Christian Ministry Program.
He is the recipient of numerous awards and citations too numerous to mention. Among his many notable honors, was his 2006 induction to the prestigious Martin Luther King, Jr. Board of Preachers at Morehouse College of Atlanta, Georgia, and his invitation to be the Keynote Preacher for the 2003 Martin Luther King Celebration at Connecticut College’s Harkness Chapel (New London, CT). In 2012 Rev. Clayton was privileged to participate in a White House Briefing for selected community leaders from around the country and he was also honored to have been present to hear President Barack Obama deliver his third State of the Union Address to the 112th Congress on January 24, 2012.
Rev. Clayton is the proud father of twin sons Kenneth and Kendrick. He prides himself as, “A Pastor Determined to Know Christ and Make Him Known.”
At a young age, he confessed Christ as his personal savior was baptized and became a member of the Shiloh Baptist Church of Paterson. After acknowledging his call to the preaching ministry, he was licensed by the Shiloh Church on September 18, 1988.
In 1990, he united with the Calvary Baptist Church of Garfield, NJ, under the pastoral leadership of the Rev. Dr. Calvin McKinney. In 1992 he was added to the Calvary Church Staff and served in a variety of ministerial capacities.
Rev. Clayton earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from Upsala College of East Orange, NJ and a Master of Divinity degree from New York Theological Seminary.
He is active within the ranks of the Baptist denomination having served in a variety of capacities within the national, state, and local levels of the Baptist family.
He is a former Associate Editor of the National Baptist Voice; past President of the United Missionary Baptist Convention of NJ, Inc., and past Moderator of the Shiloh Baptist Association of NJ. In 2014 he was appointed to serve as the Statistician of the National Baptist Convention USA, Inc. He is also an Executive Board Member of the Hampton University Ministers Conference.
In 1997 he was called to serve as Assistant Pastor of the St. Luke Baptist Church of Paterson, NJ under the leadership of the Rev. Dr. A. M. Tyler. Upon Rev. Tyler’s death he was named Acting Pastor. On Wednesday, October 22, 1997 the St. Luke Church officially extended the call to Rev. Clayton to serve as the sixth (and youngest) pastor in their history.
Under his leadership, St. Luke has experienced significant quantitative and qualitative spiritual, and physical growth as the St. Luke Church emphasizes worship, discipleship, fellowship, outreach, and service as its primary purposes.
Widely traveled, Rev. Clayton has preached extensively throughout the country.
Realizing that he is a servant of God and God’s people, Rev. Clayton is an advocate for human rights and social justice. He was the first African-American male to be appointed a Commissioner on the Board of the Passaic County Technical and Vocational High School, where he served as Vice-President. He also formerly served as member of the Board of Commissioners for the Passaic County Board of Social Services. He presently serves on the Board of Commissioners of the Paterson Parking Authority where he formerly served as President. He is also a chaplain for the Paterson Police Department. He has been featured in local and national media outlets for his advocacy in our community. He is a life member and current President of the Paterson Branch NAACP.
In addition to a broad preaching ministry, he is also a frequent teacher and lecturer. He has lectured and/or preached at New York Theological Seminary and Princeton Theological Seminary. He has served as an Adjunct Professor for Palmer Theological Seminary’s (formerly Eastern Baptist Seminary) Certificate in Christian Ministry Program.
He is the recipient of numerous awards and citations too numerous to mention. Among his many notable honors, was his 2006 induction to the prestigious Martin Luther King, Jr. Board of Preachers at Morehouse College of Atlanta, Georgia, and his invitation to be the Keynote Preacher for the 2003 Martin Luther King Celebration at Connecticut College’s Harkness Chapel (New London, CT). In 2012 Rev. Clayton was privileged to participate in a White House Briefing for selected community leaders from around the country and he was also honored to have been present to hear President Barack Obama deliver his third State of the Union Address to the 112th Congress on January 24, 2012.
Rev. Clayton is the proud father of twin sons Kenneth and Kendrick. He prides himself as, “A Pastor Determined to Know Christ and Make Him Known.”