Bishop Chandler David Owens, Sr. (October 1, 1931 – March 6, 2011) was an American minister, youth organizer and ordained pastor in the Church of God in Christ (COGIC), for which he served as the Presiding Bishop from 1996 to 2000.
Bishop Owens was born in Birmingham, Alabama, to Rev. William Owens and Martha [Thomas] Owens. The fifth of eight children, Bishop Owens and his family attended the Smithfield, Alabama COGIC. When Rev William Owens was assigned to the Power View Church of God in Christ, his son assumed the role of Junior Pastor and served as an adjunct to the church’s founder Bishop Charles Harrison Mason. In June 1950, after Owens had graduated from A.H Parker High School, the family moved to Detroit and worshiped under the pastorate of Bishop John Bailey.
After moving to Newark, New Jersey, Bishop Owens was assigned his first pastorate at the Wells Cathedral Church of God in Christ and was consecrated Bishop of New Jersey's Third Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction. In 1976, he became the youngest Bishop elected to the General Board of the COGIC, a seat he held until his death.
During this period, Bishop Owens also served the church in a number of additional capacities including as International President of the Youth Congress, Chairman of the Constitution Committee, Second Assistant Presiding Bishop and First Assistant Presiding Bishop. He moved to Georgia to serve as Pastor of the Greater Community Church of God In Christ in Marietta and, subsequently, as the Prelate of Central Georgia Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction.
After the 1995 death of Bishop L. H. Ford, Bishop Owens was elected Presiding Bishop of the church. During his tenure as Presiding Bishop, he served on several committees for President Bill Clinton’s administration and hosted the President at the National Annual Holy Convocation in Memphis, Tennessee, the Bishop’s Conference in Washington, DC. And the International Women’s Convention in New Orleans, Louisiana. He held the position until the 2000 election of Bishop G. E. Patterson to the post.
Bishop Owens died in Atlanta at the age of 79. He left behind his wife Mrs. Shirley Owens and three children, Chandler David II, Chandra Stephanie and Shirilitha Jeanette (deceased)
