Aug. 27-Christ Episcopal Church, Eureka invites the community to the summer's final "Sundays at 4" program at 4 p.m. this Sunday. (The church's current COVID-19 policy is that masks are optional for those who are fully vaccinated, and masks are expected for those who are unvaccinated.)
Three local musicians will offer the "Power of Song," a sermon written by the late Nathan Smith. "The Power of Song" highlights the importance of the African American spiritual in bringing hope and strength to African Americans, from slavery to today. Smith performed "The Power of Song" throughout Humboldt County with his friend and colleague, the late Valgene Phillips.
Elizabeth Smith, also a talented singer, joined her father in performances of "The Power of Song" when his health began to fail, and offered the program as a fundraising opportunity to support the family of a friend, colleague and former student of her father's.
According to Elizabeth Smith, her father "loved providing opportunities to unite people through music and gentle evangelism. He knew that 'faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead,' and he believed that as a professor of African American history and culture and as a Presbyterian elder, he had a responsibility to serve in creative ways and use his historical knowledge, loving personality, musical prowess and Christ consciousness, to bridge racial divides."
Christ Church is hosting Elizabeth Smith and her musical colleagues - tenor soloist Michael Gibbs and pianist Jeff Northern - as they continue to share this inspiring program of music and narration with a new Humboldt County audience.
Christ Church is located at 1428 H St. in Eureka. Off-street parking is available at the corner of 14th and G streets. An accessible ramp entrance is located on 15th Street, between G and H streets. For directions or more information, go to https://christchurcheureka.org/contact/.
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