THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, February 4, 1996 TAG: 9601310044
SECTION: REAL LIFE PAGE: K3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY CALVIN SANDERS JR.
LENGTH: Medium: 73 lines
ON OCT. 30, 1966, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. visited New Calvary Baptist Church in Norfolk. It was to be Dr. King's second and last visit to Norfolk. He had previously been here 18 months earlier for a civil-rights rally which took place at the Norfolk Arena, now the Harrison Opera House.
By 1966, Dr. King had gained national prominence through the Montgomery bus boycott, the March to Selma, Ala., for Negro voting rights, and the 1963 March on Washington. His words and his actions were receiving more attention in the news media. On this fifth Sunday of October 1966, that seemed to be unimportant, Dr. King was in Norfolk for another reason. He was in Norfolk to give the installation sermon for Dr. Milton Reid to the congregation of New Calvary Baptist Church.
``Dr. King was a personal friend of mine,'' said Dr. Milton Reid. ``We had met through my being a member of the Board of Staff of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. We both had received our doctorates from Boston University.''
Dr. King had a very large audience on that Sunday. It was mostly African-Americans in attendance for their usual Sunday worship service.
``The church was very crowded. There were people everywhere,'' said Matty Jones, who served as an usher on that Sunday. ``We placed chairs in all the aisles for the many people, so we had to stand in the back of the church.''
It was a cool and sunny day. The weather was ideal fall weather. There was a great feeling of anticipation among the people. Many had come early so that they could be seated inside the church.
``Yes, there were many people within the church, but there were also some outside who could not get in. We had the news media here as well,'' said New Calvary trustee Matthew Townes. ``I remember Dr. King said that everyone thinks of him as a civil-rights leader and a great speaker but first of all, he said, `I am a pastor. A messenger for the Lord.' I remember his message on that Sunday was `A Knock at Midnight.' ''
``A Knock at Midnight'' is from Luke 11:5-11. It is a parable that Jesus taught his disciples:
``Which of you shall have a friend, and shall go unto him at midnight, and say unto him, Friend, lend me three loaves; I say unto you, Though he will not rise and give him, because he is his friend, yet because of his importunity he will rise and give him as many as he needeth.''
Dr. King spoke of how Christians must be willing to help and have compassion for their fellow man. He spoke of how ``A Knock At Midnight'' will come not when it is convenient for you but when your fellow man is in need. Dr. King spoke of how it does not matter whether he is a friend but that he is in need and the opportunity exists for you to show him love.
After the sermon, Dr. King changed from a messenger of the Lord to a messenger for civil rights.
It was reported that at a news conference after his sermon, Dr. King spoke of the white backlash against the Negro civil-rights movement, and said that ``latent hostilities are coming out in the open now.''
``Now we are dealing with the hard issues - the basic class issues - and we're in the most difficult period yet,'' Dr. King said.
Beulah Small, a deaconess at New Calvary Baptist Church, says, ``I'll always remember the day that Dr. King came to New Calvary because someone of such great importance took the time to visit our church. He was really the first of our own people to reach such status and visit our church.''
It was - and still is to everyone who was there - a day to remember. MEMO: Calvin Sanders, Jr., was 8 years old and part of the crowd standing
outside New Calvary Baptist Church that fall day Martin Luther King came
to Norfolk. He's now a journalism student at Old Dominion University.
February is Black History Month. ILLUSTRATION: Photo
FILE
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