Featuring live performances, soul food, and some spiritual rejuvenation, a sold-out crowd of more than 200 gathered at Covenant Baptist United Church of Christ (UCC) in Southwest D.C., for the Eighth Annual Prayer Breakfast on Saturday, Jan. 17.
A tradition of MLK Holiday DC, the event nodded to the enduring legacy of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (MLK) by bringing local officials, residents, and leaders of various faiths and backgrounds to celebrate a generational legacy of faith resistance and stewardship.
“We gather this morning from many traditions and walks of life, yet united by a longing for justice, safety, and healing in our communities,” said the Rev. Dr. Lloyd D. Gaines, pastor of Peace Lutheran Church in Ward 7. “We honor the life and legacy of [MLK] – whose courage challenged complacency, whose vision stretched beyond division, whose dreams still cause us to build a world where every person can live free from fear and violence.”
Event highlights included the Rt. Rev. Mariann Edgar Budde, bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington, serving as the keynote speaker, and the announcement of the winners of the 12th Annual D.C. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Student Essay Contest.
Amid the continued fight for justice and celebration of King’s legacy, Budde left the crowd with a call to action.
“[The question is] not what will happen to us when we step up in a time when violence is – once again – state-sanctioned, but what will happen to those in the greatest danger if we do not?” the bishop declared. “For all that King endured, he never lost that infinite hope. And…with God as our strength in the midst of circumstances we would never have chosen but find ourselves in, it is our task now to do the same.”
