[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 198 (Wednesday, December 11, 2019)]
[House]
[Pages H10028-H10029]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               COMMEMORATING LIFE OF REVEREND CLAY EVANS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Ms. Kaptur). The Chair recognizes the 
gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Rush) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. RUSH. Madam Speaker, I rise today to celebrate and commemorate 
the life of the prescient priest and prophetic pastor that was the 
Reverend Clay Evans.

[[Page H10029]]

  Reverend Evans was the inspirational icon and tireless servant to his 
church, to his community, and to the people of Chicago and borders 
beyond. His untimely passing has left us all with yet another stunning 
and unimaginable loss.
  Born in Brownsville, Tennessee, Reverend Evans founded the Fellowship 
Missionary Baptist Church in 1950. For the next 70 years, he would 
nourish and strengthen the souls of his flock with his unwavering 
wisdom, his incorruptible courage, and his unyielding devotion to the 
Word of the Lord, the Good News, the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The Bible, 
Madam Speaker, says at Psalms 119:105: ``Your word is a lamp to my feet 
and a light to my path.''
  Reverend Evans lived his faith humbly. He was a prophet to both 
parishioners and pastors alike. When the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther 
King brought his movement to Chicago, Reverend Evans had the courage to 
welcome Dr. King into his church against the objections and the 
retribution of then-Mayor Richard J. Daley and many others.
  Reverend Evans was instrumental in founding the Rainbow/PUSH 
Coalition alongside the Reverend Jesse Louis Jackson, Sr. As chairman 
of the board of PUSH from 1970 to 1976, Reverend Evans worked 
diligently to establish Rainbow/PUSH as a national powerhouse in the 
fight for civil rights.
  Madam Speaker, Reverend Evans leaves behind a long legacy of pastors 
who greatly benefited from his teachings, including Reverend Jesse 
Jackson, Sr. and Mother Consuella York, the first Chicago woman to be 
ordained in the Baptist denomination. In total, Reverend Evans ordained 
93 preachers and pastors, inspiring them to go forward and spread the 
good news of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
  No celebration of Reverend Evans' life would be complete without 
mentioning the innovative role music played in his ministry. His radio 
broadcast reached far and wide into our Nation, into the homes of 
millions of Americans. Reverend Evans recorded 11 gospel albums and 
creatively infused gospel music into his sermons, evoking even more 
truth and life into the Scriptures from which he was preaching.

  In October 2007, Reverend Evans graced this very Chamber with his 
powerful presence, serving as a guest chaplain. It was my deep honor to 
sponsor Reverend Evans. Even today, I can still feel his presence in 
the same way that I felt it all those years ago when he took us to 
church here in this very Chamber.
  Madam Speaker, although we all feel deep pain with the passing of 
Reverend Evans, I am comforted in knowing that he is now with our Lord 
and Savior Jesus Christ and with our Father in Heaven.
  Reverend Evans' wife, Lutha Mae; his daughters, Gail Claudette Pye 
and Faith Evans; his sons, Michael and Ralph; and all who loved him are 
in my deepest prayers and have my greatest sympathies as they mourn the 
loss of this truly great religious giant, Reverend Clay Evans.

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