Ted Thomas Sr.
American clergy
Bishop Ted Gera Thomas Sr. (October 19, 1935 – June 24, 2020) was an American cleric with the Church of God in Christ (COGIC) who was consecrated to be the Jurisdictional Prelate of the Historic First Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction of Virginia, one of the largest dioceses/jurisdictions of the COGIC in Virginia.
Background
Born in Raeford, North Carolina, his parents were the late Simuel Thomas Sr. and Nancy Thomas. He was the seventh of seven children. He was married to Charletta C. Thomas, and they had six children, Ted Jr., Christopher, Marc, Charles, Jonathan, and Reuben, and several grandchildren, Charles Jr., Emmanuel, Kiara, Marc Jr., Evan, Aaron, Ted Jr., Na'ami, and Marson.
Education
Bishop Thomas was a graduate of Norfolk State University, with a Bachelor of Science degree in Mathematics; Hampton University, Master of Science degree in Mathematics; and Trinity Hall College, with a Doctor of Divinity Degree. He completed further studies at Moody Bible Institute, Chicago, Illinois; Old Dominion University, Norfolk, Virginia; University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia; Virginia Polytechnic University, Blacksburg, Virginia; College of William & Mary, Williamsburg, Virginia.
COGIC clergyman
Licensed to preach in 1959, Ted Thomas Sr. served the Church of God in Christ in varying capacities as a minister of music, pastor of several COGIC churches in Virginia, a church musician (Hammond Organ, piano, and drums), a State Sunday School Superintendent, a District Superintendent, and an Administrative Assistant to the famed COGIC minister and Bishop David C. Love before being elevated to Jurisdictional Prelate of the Virginia First Jurisdiction in 1984.
The public source identifies “Ted Thomas Sr.” as american clergy. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Thomas, American and clergy.
Why this record matters
A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Ted Thomas Sr.”, the useful work is to connect “american clergy” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
Named sources, stable identifiers and responsible institutions provide the strongest route from overview to verifiable evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 3, 2025. The linked authority identifier is Q7693795. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1935, 2020, 1959 and 1984.
A concise general-reference account can conceal disagreements about scope, terminology or the weight assigned to individual sources. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Ted Thomas Sr.”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Ted Thomas Sr. primary sources, Ted Thomas Sr. archive and Thomas research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Ted Thomas Sr.”?
- Which cited source is closest to the event, object or claim?
- Which institution is responsible for the underlying evidence?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Ted Thomas Sr.” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.