Glenna GordonOPELOUSAS, Louisiana—Decked out in vibrant pink and yellow dresses and suits and elaborate hats, the all-black congregation of the Greater Union Baptist Church packed into a plain, windowless room in a private Masonic lodge with plastic folding chairs Sunday morning to hold their Easter
OPELOUSAS, Louisiana—Decked out in vibrant pink and yellow dresses and suits and elaborate hats, the all-black congregation of the Greater Union Baptist Church packed into a plain, windowless room in a private Masonic lodge with plastic folding chairs Sunday morning to hold their Easter service.
Story continuesReverend Harry Richard addressed the fire many times in his sermon. He praised the congregation for handling the tragedy so gracefully amid all the media attention, and for resisting angry reactions. He urged continued empathy and prayers for the suspect in police custody, a 21-year-old white man named Holden Matthews, and his family.
The loss of this church, more than 100 years old, felt like the death of a close family member to many of the people who grew up in it. Monica Guidry Harris, 56, said her mother and father renewed their vows inside those walls every single year for 73 years in a row until they both passed away in the fall, two months apart. They’re buried together in a grave behind the now-burned church.
The congregation is hesitant to talk about race or racism with regard to the fire, despite the long, painful history of white supremacists burning black churches in the Deep South. St. Landry Parish, the heart of Cajun country in Louisiana, is 41 percent black and 56 percent white. I grew up here, about five miles from Greater Union.
“It was almost a relief for the black community that it wasn't a black kid,” said Florence Guidry, another of the seven sisters. “We were scared, because we didn't know if it was one ours, one of our grandkids.” “A little,” he said, holding back tears. “I can’t say that I’m not. But it’s like the pastor said: The church isn’t the building. The church is us.”
इंडिया ताज़ा खबर, इंडिया मुख्य बातें
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