Bishop Julius Harrison McAllister, Jr. is a servant leader whose ministry has been shaped by compassion, integrity, and a deep commitment to shepherding God’s people. At the Fifty-Second Quadrennial Session of the General Conference of the African Methodist Episcopal Church in Columbus, Ohio, Bishop McAllister was elected and consecrated as the 144th Bishop of the African Methodist Episcopal Church and now joyfully serves as the Presiding Prelate of the Ninth Episcopal District, where he leads God’s people across the State of Alabama. For the 2024– 2028 Quadrennial, he was elected to serve as Chair of the Commission on Women in Ministry for the African Methodist Episcopal Church.
A fourth-generation preacher and lifelong churchman, Bishop McAllister has devoted 32 years to pastoral ministry grounded in a caring and relational approach to leadership. His pastorate was distinguished by a shepherd’s heart; being present with his members, ministering to them through life’s joys and sorrows, and building ministries that nurtured spiritual growth, Christian stewardship, community outreach, and holistic support for families.
After 16 years of devoted and transformative pastoral leadership at the Bethel AME Church in Tallahassee, Florida, Bishop McAllister was elevated to the episcopacy in 2024. His tenure at Bethel stands as a testament to his pastoral heart; where he loved, cared, lifted, and led the people of God with excellence, compassion, and an unwavering commitment to Christ and community.
During his 16-year pastorate, Bishop McAllister led a ministry of strong spiritual formation, stewardship, and impact. He received 1,300 new members into the church, strengthened Christian stewardship with a strong emphasis on tithing, and guided the congregation in raising Two Million Dollars annually in tithes and offerings. He oversaw the construction of 85 single-family homes at a cost of Fifteen Million Dollars to provide affordable housing for first time homeowners and rental opportunities for economically challenged families; helped more than 1,000 men and women overcome their drug and alcohol addiction through the Christ-centered A Life Recovery Center operated by the church; and developed a ten-acre church campsite valued at Two Hundred and Fifty Thousand Dollars, which was completely paid off in two and a half years. As pastor of Greater Institutional AME Church in Chicago, Illinois, he launched the Come Home for Christmas Outreach Ministry, serving over 5,000 homeless men and women and providing more than 2,000 children with a clothing shopping spree at Target or Sears at a cost of Seven Hundred and Fifty Thousand Dollars to support needy families in Chicago during the Christmas season.
Bishop McAllister, the son of Supervisor Joan McAllister, holds a unique place in AME history. Alongside his father, Bishop Julius Harrison McAllister, Sr., they stand as the only father and son since the founding of the African Methodist Episcopal Church in 1787 and its incorporation in 1816 to serve concurrently in active episcopal ministry, marking a moment of profound generational legacy in the life of the Church.
Bishop McAllister is blessed to share ministry with his wife, Supervisor Deana Elizabeth Young McAllister, a dynamic, prayerful, and innovative leader. She is the daughter of the late Senior Bishop McKinley Young and Supervisor Dorothy Young, who also served as episcopal leaders in the AME Church. They are the proud parents of three sons: Julius Harrison McAllister III, a graduate of Morehouse College in Atlanta, Georgia; Colin (pronounced Collin) McKinley Young McAllister, a junior at Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University; and Dylan (pronounced Dillan) David Jeremiah McAllister, a senior at Florida State University High School in Tallahassee, Florida.