c. 2005 Religion News Service
WASHINGTON _ Pastors, politicians and ordinary admirers gathered at an African Methodist Episcopal church Monday (Oct. 31) to join in the parade of memorial tributes to civil rights activist Rosa Parks.
Parks, whose casket laid in honor beneath the U.S. Capitol rotunda Sunday and Monday, died Oct. 24 at the age of 92 in Detroit. Her quiet protest of segregation almost 50 years ago, in which she refused to give her bus seat to a white man, was recalled as an act that opened doors for American blacks and inspired people worldwide.
“We are here not because Rosa Parks died,” said African Methodist Episcopal Church Bishop Adam Jefferson Richardson, the chief liturgist at the crowded service at Metropolitan AME Church, a few blocks from the White House. “But because she lives graciously, effectively and purposefully, touching the lives of billions.”
Dorothy Height, president of the National Council of Negro Women, said her friend and colleague in the civil rights movement lived out the message “You are a child of God. You can make a difference.”
Julian Bond, chairman of the NAACP, a civil rights organization in which Parks was actively involved, recalled how her simple act transcended the globe.
“Mrs. Parks was much, much more than the bus woman,” he said. “Rosa Parks shifted the gears of the universe all her life. Now she belongs to the universe. Thank you, Sister Rosa. Thank you, Rosa Parks.”
Politicians, representing both major parties, and personalities joined in praising Parks for her years of service to the country. Standing behind Parks’ closed, wooden casket was a portrait of her that melded her image from more recent times with one at the time of her bus protest.
“Rosa Parks, you have overcome,” said Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kansas. “Now may you rest in the loving arms of God. Praise God for you.”
Said television personality Oprah Winfrey, “After our first meeting, I realized that God uses good people to do great things.”
Tributes in Montgomery, Ala., and on Capitol Hill preceded the memorial church service in Washington. Her funeral is scheduled for Wednesday in Detroit.
Inside the Capitol rotunda, a brief Sunday ceremony included House and Senate leaders from both parties, President Bush, first lady Laura Bush and Parks’ extended family. She was the first woman to be so honored.
Three wreaths were placed in front of the closed casket, chaplains and preachers offered prayers and the Morgan State University choir gave it all the feel of a black church service.
“When her moment came, she would not be moved,” said the Rev. Harold Carter of New Shiloh Baptist Church in Baltimore. “The entire community of Montgomery became a vehicle to drive through racial segregation and make democracy work for all Americans.”
Hundreds of people bid farewell to Parks at her former church in a service Sunday in Montgomery.
“I think I can quite honestly say that without Mrs. Parks, I would probably not be standing here today as secretary of state,” said Condoleezza Rice, the second black to hold that position, at the Alabama service.
“Take your rest,” said the Rev. Jesse Jackson, a civil rights activist and former Democratic presidential candidate, to Parks. “Take your heavenly flight. You’ve made your reservation. You prepaid your ticket. Now you can sit where you want to sit.”
(Mary Orndorff of the Birmingham (Ala.) News contributed to this report.)
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Editors: To obtain a file photo of Rosa Parks for this story, go to the RNS Web site at https://religionnews.com. On the lower right, click on “photos,” then search by subject. Use “exact phrase” for best results.
Editors: `lives’ in 3rd graf is CQ
