Article By LaToya Parker // EEW Magazine // Faith

In 2011, when actress LisaRaye McCoy first began opening up publicly about her faith, she said she struggled to understand the Bible.

But the 52-year-old, who says she is a proud Christian, told talk show host Wendy Williams that Bishop Noel Jones “helped me tremendously with the Bible.”

During a Wednesday, Oct. 30 guest appearance on “The Wendy Williams Show” the gossip queen asked the newly crowned Queen Mother of the Central Region in Ghana if she was dating the Pentecostal pastor of the City of Refuge Church in Gardena, CA.

McCoy quickly shut down any speculation, calling the story of the pair making a love connection “an old rumor”—one the former “Single Ladies” star said never had any merit in the first place.

“I told you years ago, that was never true then, and it ain’t true now,” said the slightly agitated fashion designer whose new collection of stretchy jeans for curvaceous women hits retailers in February 2020.

Though McCoy is adamant that there is no chance of romance with the 69-year-old, she still shared kind words about the brother of iconic Jamaican-American model Grace Jones.

“He’s very handsome. He is a great preacher,” she said, adding that Jones’ ministry was impactful in her life “before I found my church home.”

McCoy told Williams that she is a member of One Church LA where Touré Roberts is pastor and Sarah Jakes Roberts, daughter of Bishop T.D. Jakes, is first lady.

“I’m there, and I teach there,” said the former first lady of Turks and Caicos. “I found my home [church]. I’m a Christian. I’ve been baptized now, so I’m trying to change my life for the better.”

In 2014, McCoy was baptized in her home by her current pastor, and at the moment, she seems more interested in loving Jesus than loving a man.

“But no, I’m not dating him,” McCoy restated her denial, while revealing, “He’s a good friend of mine.”

McCoy was enstooled as Queen Mother of Ghana in September 2019. The honor was conferred upon her by the Paramount Chief of Agona Kwanyako and the Kyidom Traditional Divisional Council in recognition of McCoy’s humanitarian efforts in Ghana over the years.

“That’s really big for what I’m doing now, using my platform for the better me, for creating peace and awareness over there,” explained McCoy. “I want to do a small school over there, so I’m doing a lot of educating and stuff now.”

In Ghana, each town and village has a royal family descended from the first family that settled there. Traditionally, Queen Mothers are selected from these families, reports The Telegraph.