Kamala Harris Honored as ‘Phenomenal Servant of God’ at NC Megachurch
- Milton Quintanilla Crosswalk Headlines Contributor
- Updated Oct 15, 2024
During a guest appearance at a church service on Sunday at Koinonia Christian Center in Greenville, North Carolina, Vice President Kamala Harris was hailed as a "phenomenal servant of God" by Bishop Rosie O'Neal. Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, addressed how challenging it is to have faith in times of crisis. As an example, she spoke about the recent disasters of hurricanes Helene and Milton, which caused billions of dollars in damages and killed scores of Americans.
"It is easy in these moments of crisis to question our faith, to sometimes lose our faith for a moment because [of] what we see," Harris said before thanking the church for allowing her to worship with them.
"It does my heart and soul good," she said of the worship.
According to The Christian Post, Harris spoke about growing up learning about the faith and singing in the children's choir at the 23rd Avenue Church of God in Oakland, California.
"Scripture teaches us, let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time, we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. I first encountered the words of Galatians as a young girl at 23rd Avenue Church of God in Oakland, California, which is where I sang in the children's choir and first learned the teachings of the Bible," Harris recalled.
"My earliest memories of those teachings are about a loving God, a God who asks us to speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, to defend the rights of the poor and the needy. And so, at an early age, I learned that faith is a verb," she continued. "It is something we show in action."
She also quoted from the Rev. Amos C. Brown, who leads Third Baptist Church of San Francisco to "do justice, love mercy and walk humbly with our God."
"That truth is important at all times, and especially in moments of difficulty and disaster. Especially in moments like this, as we navigate storms that have inflicted so much harm across our country. And to all those who have loved ones who have been affected by Hurricane Milton and Hurricane Helene, Doug and I, my husband, are holding all of you close in our hearts and in our prayers, and we are thinking of everyone who has been affected by these storms," Harris said.
During her message, Harris highlighted acts of heroism and community during the hurricane, particularly Eddie Hunnell, who rescued a woman caught up in flood waters from Hurricane Helene.
"Now is the time to live up to the fundamental values that reflect our nation at its best, the values of compassion, community, honesty, and decency, the values that define the people of Greenville, the people of North Carolina, and the people like a fellow who I met recently. His name is Eddie Hunnell," Harris said.
"When I talked with Eddie about his act of courage, here's what he said to me. He said, 'Well, I didn't feel I had a choice.' But, of course, he had a choice. …But his choice was to take a risk for the sake of another. Didn't even reflect on the risk he might have been taking. Right? His choice was to follow his conscience. His choice was, in the words of Isaiah, to be a refuge for the needy in their distress. He chose to remember that we are all in this together," Harris said.
"If that is true during a terrible storm, it is also true when the storm passes. It is true in our everyday lives. When Paul wrote his letter to the church in Galatia, he knew folks might feel the weight of the burden of doing good that they may feel a temptation to turn away from others in their time of need to believe," she said.
"But Paul reminded them and us that God calls us not to become weary of doing good because we each have the power. God tells us this: the power each one of us [has] to make a difference. And that tells us that the measure of our strength will be clear when we see what we can do to lift other people up."
Photo Credit: ©Getty Images/Justin Sullivan/Staff
