The Reverend June Montague, DD LHD, Pastor and founder of the United Pentecostal Deliverance Temple, is hailed as a strong black woman used by God to effect positive change in the thought process and way of living in her audience. She was called to the ministry in 1978 at an era when men dominated the ministerial offices and women were denied the opportunity to preach on the pulpit.
To explain the dynamics of how explosive her ministry was when she came on the scene is to refer to her as a beacon of light, which shined in dark places. Her ministry was marked with anxieties, persecutions and sufferings. She persevered because she possessed the confidence that the Spirit of the Lord had anointed and called her to preach the gospel. She preached with faith, boldness and power and has paved the way for other women with similar calling.
Reverend Montague was born in Jamaica, West Indies to a family of political ambitions. From an early age she was exposed to speaking in public and developed a passion for speaking against injustice and encouraged others to rise above their failures, the origin of Reverend Montague’s faith was strongly influenced by her grandmother who today would be considered a “Bible thumper, Holy Ghost filled and fire baptized Christian”. As a teenager in Jamaica, Reverend Montague was a member of the Methodist church where she was very active singing on the choir, teaching Sunday school and counseling with young people. Although she was knowledgeable in some aspects of the Christian faith she did not come into full knowledge of salvation until she migrated to the United States as a Jamaican Diplomat and became a member of the Deliverance Center Church and was nurtured in the way of holiness and the deliverance ministry by this great man of God, the Late Apostle Arturo Skinner.
Her ministry started in homes as she counseled and ministered to people of all walks of life. Her ministry extended to evangelism and later into Pastorship. Reverend Montague sponsored crusades God were without financial support from any church organization. She gave all her earthly possessions to get the ministry started and consistently gives back from the little she received. God blessed her with faithful workers who gave pledges and special contributions, as well as dedicated their time and energy to the work of the Lord.
Reverend Montague received her biblical training at the Bethel Bible Institute and the New York School of Bible. Her achievements included Honorary Doctorate degrees in Divinity in 1983 and Humane Letters in 1984. She also received awards for outstanding achievement in Church and Christian Development and International Evangelist between 1985 and 2003. Her formal training coupled with her experience in the field of evangelism and revelation knowledge of God provided Reverend Montague the foundation for her work as a Pastor. In 1980, Reverend Montague founded the United Pentecostal Deliverance Temple.
The Church was organized, as Reverend Montague sought the Lord for direction. She has built three church foundations. The Church was first located at 1125 Church Avenue, Brooklyn from 1980-1988, and 75 Clarkson Avenue, Brooklyn from 1988-1991 and now at its present site, 810 East 49th Street. The church is a lighthouse for those who are afflicted and have given-up hope. The Lord gave Reverend Montague a burden for souls. Through the powers of the Holy Ghost many received salvation, healing from many life-threatening diseases and freedom from the powers of sin. She has restored families and brought husbands, wives and children together to live as a family unit. Reverend Montague is both an Evangelist and a Pastor. She is also a Teacher and Counselor.
These accounts of Reverend Montague’s life in the ministry were written and submitted by the Administrative Board and members of the United Pentecostal Deliverance Temple. The life and teachings of our Pastor and mentor have inspired us to fear God, know and respect ourselves and others, secure an education, and give thanks to God for all our natural resources and achievements. Reverend Montague waged a life long battle against sin and its effects.
Her famous words are “You must live Holy! Holy! Holy!”
For her dedication and service in shepherding her local congregation and congregation at large, we have concluded unequivocally that Reverend Dr. June Montague is deserving of the prestigious honor of “Pastor of the Year” awarded by the Church Women United in Brooklyn, Inc. on October 24, 2004.
