By Susan Logan
GLENDORA, California--The Jan. 18 worship service here commemorated the birthday of the late civil rights leader, Martin Luther King Jr. Visitors from the community and other congregations swelled Glendora's usual attendance from 160 to 262.
"We were expecting about 200," said pastor Neil Earle, "so we were deliriously surprised."
The service opened with a brass ensemble led by Russ Edwards playing the Negro spirituals "Go Down Moses," "My Lord, What a Morning," and "Joshua Fit the Battle of Jericho."
Next was a presentation on the history and spiritual journey of African Americans, depicted by narrations and musical numbers.
Members Lana and Robert Kreivis, Bill and Barbara Edwards, Walton Brown and Marietta Grundy read from figures as diverse as black poet Phyllis Wheatley and writer Frederick Douglass. Member Durrell Brown capped the presentation with a reading from Dr. King's I Have a Dream speech.
The audience heard that the first African immigrants in 1619 arrived as free indentured servants. It wasn't until the 1660s that laws were passed to legalize slavery, beginning a 200-year experience that paralleled that of the ancient Israelites.
African Americans identified with the plight of the Hebrew slaves of ancient Egypt. "In the South of the 1700s everyone knew who Pharaoh was," Mrs. Grundy commented in her reading of The Underground Church.
The Glendora Choir, directed by Joe Wright and accompanied by Carol Stirk, sang William L. Dawson's "There Is a Balm in Gilead." Beth Meisner sang the 1960s version of "Go Tell It on the Mountain."
In a sermon titled Perspectives on Racial Healing, Herman Hoeh said: "We need to understand the behavior and cultural differences of others. We need to try to do whatever we can to reach out to other groups."
Patricia Farmer, a Glendora member, said of the service, "It inspired me to continue to reach out to others, and to appreciate other people's differences."
"I was glad to see this day come," said Bobbi Hooks, from the Long Beach congregation. "It is a remarkable day for the Worldwide Church of God. What is remarkable about it is that all cultures participated in the event."
The event was advertised on radio and in a newspaper. Two families responded to an ad on the Glendora church's Internet web site. Cable 17 Community Access cable television taped the event for a later showing.
Susan Logan attends the Glendora church.
Feb. 18, 1997, WN, page 8
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