[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 136 (Friday, October 3, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Page S10333]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 HONORING DR. HENRY BEECHER HICKS, JR.

 Ms. MOSELEY-BRAUN. Mr. President, the times in which we live, 
and the challenges we face, require a special type of courage and 
vision to capture the attention of those we would lead into the next 
millennium. As never before, leadership is being tested in the crucible 
of social and family crises. We have witnessed the virtual implosion of 
the family unit. Violence encroaches on front yards and in school-
yards. The most vulnerable among us--the aged, the infant, the ill--are 
all impotent in the battle to survive downsizing, right-sizing, and the 
budget ax. Yet, the bull rush is on.
  To be sure, enormous problems demand imaginative, visionary, and 
courageous answers. Where do these answers come from? In the case of 
the Nation's Capital--from behind the pulpit has stepped a champion for 
the people--Henry Beecher Hicks, Jr. The citizens of the District of 
Columbia, and surrounding environs, are fortunate to have among them an 
extraordinary man whose vision is focused, and whose commitment to the 
uplifting of America is unequivocal.
  By title, Dr. H. Beecher Hicks, Jr., is the senior minister of the 
Metropolitan Baptist Church. By practice, he is a relentless advocate 
for the poor, consistent proponent of self-determination for the 
District of Columbia, champion for children and quality education, 
haven for the homeless, Samaritan for the sick, and a preacher's 
preacher who stands behind a pulpit adorned with a dove.
  As an author and a teacher, he is respected in academic circles 
across the Nation. Never compromising excellence, he demands rigorous 
study and mental acuity from his students. He is at home wherever he 
places his bible--from the ivy covered walls of a New England cathedral 
to a revival tent pitched on the muddy shores of the Mississippi. Dr. 
Hicks is revered by those in front and behind the pulpit. Academically 
grounded and oratorically gifted he is one of the Nation's foremost 
preachers.
  On October 18, individuals from around the Nation, as well as those 
he mentors and pastors, will gather in Washington, DC, to pay tribute 
to his 20 years of service as senior minister of the Metropolitan 
Baptist Church. I take this opportunity to join them in saluting this 
outstanding pastor and preacher.

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