UMC minister, civil rights activist is guest preacher at COH’s service honoring MLK
The Rev. Zan Holmes
The Rev. Zan Holmes, pastor emeritus of St. Luke Community United Methodist Church in Dallas, will be the special guest preacher at services on Sunday, April 6 at the Cathedral of Hope commemorating the 40th anniversary of the assassination of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.
Holmes will speak at the 9 a.m. and 11 a.m. services on the topic of "The Continuing Challenge of the Beloved Community," in honor of King’s vision of what America could be if "love among human beings replaced market relations, racism, exploitation, oppression and indifference," according to a statement released this week by the Cathedral.
Holmes, who served as senior pastor of St. Luke’s for 28 years, was an adjunct professor of preaching at Perkins School of Theology at Southern Methodist University for 24 years. The minister is as well known as a community activist as he is as a preacher.
Holmes was elected to the Texas House of Representatives in 1968 and served for years, at the same time serving as a district superintendent for the United Methodist Church. He is also widely known for his role as narrator and host of the "Disciple Bible Study" video series produced by Abingdon Press. Holmes graduated from Huston-Tillotson University in Austin and has two graduate degrees from Perkins School of Theology. In 2001, he was recognized as one of the civil rights movement’s "Invisible Giants" at the National Voting Rights Museum and Institute in Selma, Ala.
This article appeared in the Dallas Voice print edition April 4, 2008.