Karma Yoga – Happy Birthday Rev. Cecil Williams

Last night, while drinking a Fat Tire Beer, a reliable source informed me that the CEO & Minister of Glide’s National and International Ministries, Rev. Cecil Williams will turn 77 on Friday, 22 September, 2006.

“Cecil Williams was born in San Angelo, TX in 1929, the same year that Methodist philanthropist Lizzie Glide broke ground for the construction of Glide Memorial United Methodist Church in San Francisco, CA. Born the fifth of six children, Cecil was raised in the segregated South. Buses, drinking fountains, theaters, trains, rest rooms and every other shared public facility were labeled “men,” “women,” and “colored.” Williams grew up feeling like an outsider – rejected, and unacceptable.

However, this damaging message was mitigated by the nurturing love of Williams’ immediate community. His mother, a strong black woman who commanded respect, told her son again and again, “You are going to be somebody.” As a boy, Williams was nicknamed “Rev” – short for “reverend” – the highest praise and heaviest pressure that a family could place on a son. In his community, he was somebody; simultaneously, the white community said that he and everyone he cared for was nobody. This dichotomy was too much for young Williams to take. At the age of ten, he was diagnosed with a nervous breakdown. For several months, he felt depressed and engulfed in blackness. Williams finally lifted the fog of pain and rejection after a dream he had: a young white boy and an old white man were at the foot of his bed. They wanted him to accept his station in life and go along with the system. Young Williams resisted, and reversed their control over him.

He woke up the next morning feeling like a new person, vowing never to accept anyone else’s definition of his being. Back in church, he felt a certain relief, but Williams imagined himself a minister before hundreds of people of all colors, ages, and descriptions. Williams held on to this vision through college, then seminary.

Today, his church is San Francisco’s largest social service provider. Glide feeds 3500 people a day. It sponsors computer training for adults, runs programs for HIV and Domestic Violence, and treats substance abusers. More than 17,000 people volunteer in its programs.”
– – People of Faith – Cecil Williams

“In his 37 years as Pastor of Glide Memorial United Methodist Church, Reverend Cecil Williams has created a church that practices diversity, spirituality, and compassion. As a minister, community leader, author, lecturer, and spokesperson for the poor and marginalized, he is respected and recognized as a national leader on the forefront of social change. His vision for a truly inclusive church has attracted a 10,000 member congregation, an extended family, who reflect the diversity of the world- all races, ages, genders, ethnicities, sexual orientations and religions. What brings this community of people together is the common search for acceptance, spiritual growth, and social justice. Cecil’s spirituality demands action through good works, as staff and thousands of volunteers feed over 1 million meals a year to the hungry, and offer the hope of recovery and healing in the lives of the city’s most marginalized. His tireless work over the last 37 years has made Glide one of the most active, dynamic churches in the world, receiving national and international acclaim. Reverend Williams is married to Janice Mirikitani. He has a son, daughter, and 2 grandchildren.”
– Glide Memorial Church – Rev. Cecil Williams

My reliable source also informed me that this Sunday’s Celebration will be in honor of Reverend Cecil Williams. And perhaps, maybe if were lucky, Maya Angelou will be present. I’ll see ya on Sunday.

Happy Birthday, Cecil Williams.

Wishing the best of all possible worlds,

Iyengar Yoga teacher,
tony

Ps.
A message from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.