The Great Gathering honoring Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Citizens in Malvern came together on Monday for “The Great Gathering,” a worship service to honor the memory and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., that took place that afternoon at the First Presbyterian Church located at 707 MLK Blvd.
Rev. Courtney Bacon-latina, head of the Fist Presbyterian congregation, welcomed other church leaders, congregants, and members of the community to join in praise and celebration of our Holy Father, and to remember the noted religious leader and activist for whom the day was designated.
Martin Luther King, Jr., was a prominent American civil rights activist and Baptist minister whose articulate orations, nonviolent resistance, and tireless commitment to the cause helped bring more attention to the civil rights movement and more lawful gains in legislation therein.
King’s assassination in April 1968 led to a weeklong wave of riots that surged in over 100 cities around the nation, as people were left to deal with the pain, anger, hopelessness, and outrage associated with the loss of such an essential champion for civil rights in America.
King’s legacy lives on here, and in countries around the world. His influence can be seen in foundations, streets, schools, and a national holiday named after him. But more importantly, his Christian commitment to nonviolent protest and love for his enemies cemented his place in history as one of the most revered and effective leaders of the American civil rights movement.
Rev. Bacon-latina read poignant quotations from “Letter from the Birmingham City Jail,” as included in a litany that was adapted and published in The United Methodist Book of Worship, and attendees responded as prompted from the leaflet passed out prior to the start of the service.
Special music was provided by the very gifted Kenneth Newburn, who performed solo at last year’s MLK Day event but was joined this time by the remarkable Community Choir.
The guest speaker was the Rev. Jimmy O.T. Lea, pastor of Greater New Hope Baptist Church, the second-oldest Black church west of the Mississippi. Lea is a 1972 graduate of Carthage High School and was ordained as a Baptist minister in 1974, faithfully serving flocks of various churches since that time.
“I thank God for this opportunity today,” Lea began. “I really appreciate you, Pastor Latina, and I appreciate the members of the committee for choosing me to do this message today.”
Rev. Lea’s presentation focused on reminding all of us to remember King’s legacy, and act accordingly in the coming year.
“The time is always right to do what is right. Remember, celebrate, and act—that is our theme for this year,” he said, pointing to 1 John 4:8, which states, “He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love.”
King’s constant, unwavering commitment to love even in the face of hate, was a devout philosophy and a righteous example for others to emulate.
Lea recalled his younger days growing up in a rural area southeast of Malvern situated in the Lea’s Ridge community. His words painted a pretty picture of a time that, even in the height of racial tensions in the South, his family and others would still meet the day with love and Christian charity in their hearts.
“We had a family that was close-knit, and we had parents that believed in doing right,” he said. We would have parents that believed in loving everybody, no matter who they are or what they are.”
Lea fondly remembered the many times his mother would feed a homeless person who had stopped by the house on their way to parts unknown. These people, whom he said the community referred to as “hobo’s,” would stumble up the steps of the family’s porch and be met at the front door by his mother, who always welcomed them with a hot meal or sandwich and without any fear or reservations, because that’s just how people were back then.
Lea remarked on other civic leaders of King’s time that also made a national impact. Families would gather around the television to listen to these leaders plead the common case for equality and acceptance, but in Lea’s view, Dr. King was the most inspiring, and the impressive lasting nature of his legacy implies that many people feel the same.
“Dr. King certainly was one who was hated by many people on both sides of the track,” Lea noted. Some said that his message of love would not work, others called him the Antichrist, and so on, and so on.
“Those messages from the outside didn’t impede him,” Lea said. “They didn’t slow him down. He kept on, or he continued to teach and to preach his message of love, of love. Dr. King once said ‘We must use this time creatively, in the knowledge that the time is always right to do right.’ ”
King’s speeches were not only moving in the moment, but his words have lived on in perpetuity as a universal message of love and acceptance across all boundaries of color or other superficial differences.
“Dr. King said this, and it really resonated with me. He said people fail to get along because they don’t talk to each other, they fear each other because they don’t know each other, they don’t know each other because they have not communicated with each other,” he said.
“It’s time to do what’s right. Let’s talk. Let’s communicate with each other. You may be surprised,” he said, “That the person that you ignored, the person that you have just been passing by, they may be a blessing in your life.”
Lea touched on how people in a community often mirror each other’s behavior and how important it is for each of us to be good examples, both for our kids and for our fellow citizens.
“I choose not a copycat,” Lea said of other people’s hateful behavior. “I don’t want to be responsible for people hating anyone. That’s why I try to love everyone, because I don’t want to be responsible for hate. I am a child of God, I am a Christian, and the word says that God is Love.”
Lea’s words centered on that universal message of love that King embraced, and the philosophy he lived by. The weight of that passionate sentiment can still be felt over 50 years after King’s death, in the changes he helped bring about in legislation, and in the hearts of man.
Monday’s MLK Day celebration was capped off with a parade through downtown Malvern that afternoon, as dozens of elected officials, civic groups, healthcare organizations, schools, churches and individuals were led on a grand procession along Main Street, flanked by American flags put out by the Malvern High School JROTC and Malvern Lions Club, and ushered by the MLK Parade’s Grand Marshall, Dr. James Nathaniel Mccollum.
Mccollum was pastor of First Missionary Baptist Church Rockport for 47 years and previously served as President of the Malvern Ministers Conference. He is also a co-founder of the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Association in Malvern and has been an integral part of its leadership from the beginning.
“As a Prolific man of God with a passion for ministry, Dr. James N. Mccollum is part of the driving force to our church ministry,” according to a statement from the church. “Dr. Mccollum is an influential leader in our community and is highly regarded throughout the religious and business community. He is a lover of people, a Christian man, a man of God and a man sent by God for the battlefields of life.”
Malvern’s annual effort to honor the memory of Dr. King will is made possible through the Dr. Martin Luther King., Jr. Association, numerous local churches and other civic leaders throughout the community. For more in