James J. Pinto, Jr.
Pastoral Associate, Priests for Life
Coordinator: Missionaries-Lay Association
By the grace of God and the power of the Holy Spirit, Jim has lived and proclaimed the Gospel of Life for over 25 years. The truth of the Incarnation - the “infleshment” of God with us in Jesus - has made a profound impact on his life and ministry. Solidarity with the pre-born, minorities and the disenfranchised has led Jim and his family to live a sacramental lifestyle among the people they serve and to invite others to do likewise. Jim has been recognized locally, statewide and nationally for his work in proclaiming good news to the poor, reconciliation among the races and defending the sacredness and dignity of every human being. He was selected as the “Outstanding Young Religious Leader of Alabama,” served as a priest in the Anglican Tradition for over 20 years and entered into full communion with the Roman Catholic Church in 2003.
Known for his ability to communicate the Gospel passionately and effectively, Jim has been a featured speaker in schools, churches, television and radio, addressing the issues of Christianity and culture. He has authored numerous articles and essays among them: “Becoming Christ in the City, ” “Another Letter From the Birmingham Jail,” “The Sacredness of Human Life and the Least” and “The Theology of the Face.” Jim also coordinates the Priests for Life Study Guide Series.
Jim has been at the center of the founding or developing of numerous ministries in Greater Birmingham including: Habitat for Humanity, The Grace House/Village for Girls, Restoration Academy, Her Choice Crisis Pregnancy Center and the Sanctity of Life Ministries. Jim directs the Missionary of the Gospel of Life-Lay Association with hundreds of affiliates throughout the Country. The equipping of God’s people (lay, ordained, youth and adult) for the work of ministry at the dawn of the new millennium is a call he believes incumbent upon him.
Born and raised in Hudson County, New Jersey, he was a member of the All County Football Team in H.S., and the All Conference Team in College. Jim received a Bachelor of Arts Degree from Kean University, N.J., and a Masters of Divinity Degree from Trinity Episcopal School for Ministry, Ambridge, Pennsylvania. He and his wife Joy have been married for 29 years; and are blessed with four children and seven grandchildren. The Pintos live in Fairfield-Birmingham, Alabama and are members of St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church, a parish begun by Franciscans in 1940 with a special call to the African American community. The Pintos consider their marriage and family first priority in authenticating their faith in Jesus and the Catholic Church.
Jim’s chief desire is to be a man who does what is in the heart and mind of God. He seeks to live his life in abandonment to the Holy Trinity knowing that: “he who saves his life will lose it and he who loses his life will find it.” He continually is looking for the Face of God in every face, especially the pre-born, the aged, widow, orphan, alien, and the helpless, believing what Nicholas of Cusa stated: “In all faces is seen the Face of faces, veiled and in a riddle.”