The Rev. Dr. Michael Brown
Denomination: Other
Organization: Marble Collegiate Church, New York, NY
Dr. Michael B. Brown is an author, motivational speaker, adjunct professor, and for the past 10 years was the Senior Minister at Marble Collegiate Church in New York City, America’s oldest existing Protestant congregation (served for many years by Norman Vincent Peale who wrote the international best seller, The Power Of Positive Thinking). All across America in civic arenas, at corporate events, on college and university campuses, and for Chautauqua Institutes, Dr. Brown carries the mantle of positivity to audiences of all ages, teaching a proven approach to discovering meaning, healthy relationships, and joy in life.
A native North Carolinian, Michael Brown graduated from High Point University, earned a Masters degree from Duke University, and received Doctoral degrees from both Drew University and Pfeiffer University. He is the author of numerous books and also contributes regularly to The Huffington Post and Thrive Global.
Dr. Brown has been featured in four ABC-TV specials, one NBC special, and two PBS specials. He is a member of the National Speakers Association (NSA) and the C-Suite Thought Council. He has also been a guest on MSNBC, Fox News, and NET TV. A frequent speaker on the international radio program Day1, Dr. Brown has been a featured guest on a variety of network radio and Sirius programs (including shows hosted by Cardinal Timothy Nolan, Jeffrey Hayzlett, Mike Stoller, Rabbi Joe Potasnik, and Laura Smith on “Saturday Café”). Dr. Brown is the recipient of the 2018 Normal Vincent Peale Positive Thinking Award by the Blanton-Peale Institute, the John Borchert Communicators Award, and was selected as part of the Great American Authors Series by CSS publishers.
Michael Brown always designs his message of “practical positivity“ to meet the specific needs of the particular audience he addresses, using humor and anecdotes to describe a philosophy of life assured to bring meaning, joy, and hope to those who practice it. Whatever your institution’s agenda may be, Dr. Brown will be happy to work with you in developing the ideal presentation to meet your goals.
Dr. Brown is married to Page Plummer Brown, a native of Richmond, Virginia. The Browns are the proud parents of four children: Adam, Alison, Zachary and Katharine, and the delighted grandparents of Anderson Haile (daughter of Alison and Andy Haile).
Day1 Weekly Programs by The Rev. Dr. Michael Brown
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To See Ourselves as Others See Us
Tuesday February 06, 2024
Sometimes we take ourselves too seriously, and that’s always to our detriment, failing to see the humorous parts of our own lives. And if we cannot laugh at ourselves from time to time, our lives become shallow and painful. Other times, however, we fail to see the tragic aspects of our lives. I knew a man who was a textbook workaholic. He spent ten hours a day, five days a week, on the job and often went back in on weekends. He rarely spent quality time with his wife or kids, almost never seeing his children’s ballet recitals or little league ball games. The man said to me following his divorce, “I never realized how much time I was absent from them until they decided to be permanently absent from me.” “Oh, would some Power the gift give us to see ourselves as others see us!”
Michael Brown: The Hard Work of Making Life Right
Tuesday December 12, 2017
In his sermon for the 2nd Sunday of Advent, Dr. Michael Brown says Isaiah speaks to the Israelites who had returned home after 70 years in Babylonian captivity, and it was worse than they expected. It was a mess. It takes hard work to make things right again, in order to make home feel like home.
Michael Brown: God at Our Doorsteps
Tuesday December 05, 2017
Dr. Michael Brown says the Bible never promises that God will wave a magic wand and make all the bad things in life go away. Instead the Bible promises that there will be highways in the desert places of our lives where God will come to be with us, to comfort us, and eventually even to deliver us. And God almost always does that incarnationally--through a human being.
The Baby Is the Easy Part
Tuesday December 15, 2015
Cute little infant-in-the-manger stories aside, Michael Brown says the issue that confronts us as people of faith sooner or later is, if I call myself a Christian, then will I actually choose to live as one?
Peace Amid Bedlam
Tuesday December 08, 2015
As we look ahead to Bethlehem, Michael Brown reminds us that Jesus was born into a world of oppression--exactly when a Prince of Peace is needed most. Jesus did not promise a peace that would magically erase painful realities, but a peace that exists in the midst of them.
Does Baptism Matter?
Tuesday January 08, 2013
In his sermon for the Baptism of the Lord Sunday, Marble Collegiate Church minister Dr. Michael Brown points out that to the gospel writers, baptism is crucial. Everything starts at the river where Jesus enters the waters of baptism--it was the moment when Jesus was claimed and called. We too belong to God and are called to do something special.
Articles by The Rev. Dr. Michael Brown
Michael Brown: Faith And Politics: A Way Forward
Saturday November 05, 2016
In the midst of a heated campaign season, it is important to understand there is a difference between religious and political realities. The intents differ, and thus the approaches to achieving those goals vary, as well. And yet, the bottom line is that whether the arena is church, politics, work environment, neighborhood, school, home, etc., when people relate to other people there are some basic tenets that most of us wish would be consistently honored.
Michael Brown: Face Time Redefined: Figuring out Faith and the Flexible Congregation
Tuesday April 19, 2016
Very recently I was introduced to a church-word I had never heard before. The new word, now part of my professional lexicon, is Creasters. Like a celebrity mash-up, it is a morphing of two words: Christmas and Easter.
Michael Brown: Faith Requires Us To Look After Vulnerable Children
Tuesday March 22, 2016
It's time for those of us who vote to make the needs of vulnerable children a clear national priority. In addition to what is being done in religious institutions and various advocacy groups, a united public voice on this issue needs to be heard. The children look to us.