Charles Richard Stith (born August 29, 1949) is an American businessman, diplomat, author, former educator, and United Methodist minister. Born and raised in St. Louis, Missouri, during racial segregation, he graduated from Charles Sumner High School in 1966. He earned a Bachelor of Arts in liberal arts from Baker University (1973), a Master of Divinity from the Interdenominational Theological Center/Gammon Theological Seminary (1975), and a Th.M. in theology from Harvard University Divinity School (1977). He has received honorary doctorates from the University of South Carolina, Elizabeth City State University, Clark Atlanta University, and Baker University.

Stith began his ministry career as a junior minister at Boston's Union United Methodist Church from 1977 to 1979 while attending Harvard. In 1979, at age 30, he became the youngest senior minister there, leading efforts to attract youth and diverse members, and participating in Boston protests against apartheid in South Africa. In 1983, he negotiated a minority hiring pact with the Boston Globe, the first such agreement for a major newspaper. He served as an adjunct faculty member at Boston College, Harvard Divinity School, and Boston University (International Relations, retired 2015).

In 1987, Stith founded and served as National President of the Organization for a New Equality (ONE) until around 2000, securing $500 million in community reinvestment through the nation's first comprehensive agreement in 1995 and contributing to the restructuring of the Community Reinvestment Act (with approximately $2 trillion impact). Other roles include U.S. delegation to the South Africa elections (1994), U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (2001-2003), and board positions with Fannie Mae, Fleet InCity, West Insurance, and the Wang Center, as well as serving on the editorial board of WCVB-TV and the CRA Working Group.

Appointed U.S. Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Tanzania (1998-2001) under President Clinton, he presented credentials on September 17, 1998, and played a key role in stabilizing U.S.-Tanzania relations following the 1998 Al Qaeda bombing of the U.S. Embassy in Dar es Salaam, while promoting trade, investment, and debt relief through the HIPC Initiative. He is also the founding director of the African Presidential Archives & Research Center at Boston University (c. 2001-2015), producing the annual African Leaders State of Africa Report.

Currently, Stith serves as Chairman of The Pula Group, LLC (investing in African opportunities, with offices in Los Angeles, Johannesburg, and Dar es Salaam); Non-executive Chairman of the African Presidential Leadership Center (Johannesburg NGO); Member of the Advisory Committee for the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative; and Member of the Council on Foreign Relations and Council of American Ambassadors.

His publications include For Such a Time as This: African Leadership Challenges (APARC Press, 2008), Political Religion (Abingdon Press, 1995), and serving as Senior Editor of the African Leaders State of Africa Report (2002-2012). He has contributed to outlets including the Boston Globe, New York Times, and Wall Street Journal.

Stith has been married to Deborah Prothrow-Stith, a scholar of urban health at Harvard School of Public Health, since 1975; they have two children, Percy Stith and Mary Stith. He is an avid collector of African and African American art and an authority on African trends.

In 2017, he was named as a defendant in a small claims case Lisa Turner vs. Charles Richard Stith, et al. in Los Angeles County Superior Court; outcome unknown.