Remarks by Vice President Harris at a Church Service | Stonecrest, GA

New Birth Baptist Church
Stonecrest, Georgia

10:46 A.M. EDT

THE VICE PRESIDENT:  Thank you.  Thank you.  (Applause.)  Good morning, church.  (Applause.)  Good morning, New Birth.  Good morning.  (Applause.)

Please — please have a seat.  Good morning.  Good morning, church.  (Applause.)

I’m so honored to be with you.  Thank you.  Thank you all.  (Applause.)  And everyone, good Sunday morning. 

Pastor —

AUDIENCE:  Happy birthday!  (Applause.)

THE VICE PRESIDENT:  (Laughs.)  Thank you, thank you, thank you.  Okay, it’s Sunday morning.  It’s Sunday morning. 

And — and I — first of all, Pastor Bryant, I want to thank you.  You and I were reminiscing —

(The audience sings Stevie Wonder’s “Happy Birthday”)

THE VICE PRESIDENT:  Thank you.  Thank you, thank you.  (Applause.)  (Laughs.)

     (The crowd continues singing.)

Oh, my goodness.  Thank you.  Thank you, thank you, thank you.  Thank you.  (Applause.)  Oh, I’m so touched. 

Well, it is my great joy to celebrate my birthday with all of you here, and thank you for those warm and beautiful wishes.

Pastor Bryant, I thank you for your leadership.  You and I have discussed — we first met almost 20 years ago when there was a convening of rising stars in — in the country, and we had conversations back then about how we thought of our role and responsibility to our country and our responsibility and duty as leaders.  And it is so good to be with you this morning to celebrate what you have accomplished with this extraordinary congregation. 

And so, I’m honored to be here with everyone — (applause) — and thank you.  Thank you all, and please have a seat.  Please have a seat.  Thank you. 

So, before I begin, I will address the tragic incident that happened yesterday at Sapelo Island when a dock collapsed during what was to be a joyful celebration of history and culture.  And while we are still gathering information, we know that lives were lost and many were injured. 

And so, my heart, as I know for all of us, goes out to those who were impacted, and I thank all the first responders who acted so quickly.  And, of course, our administration has been in touch with state and local officials to offer any needed support.  And I know, on behalf of all of us here, that we pray for all of those who are affected.  (Applause.)

So, in times like this, we are reminded of the ties that bind us to each other and the importance of community — the importance of community.  And that is what I know New Birth church provides to so many people across Atlanta and beyond.

And so, Pastor Bryant, I thank you for your words and for your vision.  And in this election season, I also thank you for the time you have spent traveling our country to encourage people to register and to vote.  Because you know and we all know your parents, who gave so much and led such an honorable life, and — including, of course, among the leaders upon whose broad shoulders we stand — Congressman John Lewis — they — (applause) — they all knew, and by their example, they taught us that faith and good works go hand in hand. 

And that is especially true when it comes to protecting our sacred right to vote and getting souls to the polls, and I thank everyone for all you are doing in that regard. 

And I am truly honored to be in the presence of so many extraordinary leaders, including my pastor, Reverend Dr. Amos C. Brown of Third Baptist Church of San Francisco — (applause) — who you heard from earlier this morning — there he is, there he is — and whose wisdom, Dr. Brown, has guided me and just been a source of comfort and solace for me for so many years.

And I’m especially glad to be here on Pink Sunday.  (Applause.)  As some of you may know, my mother was a breast cancer researcher.  She was one of the very few women — and fewer even women of color — who was engaged in studying breast cancer.  And she had two goals in her life: to raise her two daughters — my sister Maya and me — and to end breast cancer.  It was her life’s work.  And so, today, of course, then has personal significance for me, just as I know it does for Pastor Bryant and — and so many of you here. 

And so, to everyone here today who knows what it means to support a loved one through a cancer diagnosis and treatment, and to those of you fighting your own battles, I am holding you close in my heart and in my prayers, and I thank you for your courage and your strength. 

So, all of this is to say it is so good to be here with everyone today and to worship with you.  And on this day, then, I am reminded, with everything that we reflect on, on the parable from the Gospel of Luke.

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  Preach!  (Applause.)

THE VICE PRESIDENT:  So, in the gospel, we are told of a man who traveled from the road from Jerusalem to Jericho.  And while traveling, he was attacked by robbers.  We remember he was beaten.  He was bloodied.  They left him for dead.  He was someone that should just be passed on by, maybe with a glance of pity but not more.

So, one person passed by, sees the man lying in his path, and walks around him, not wanting to be bothered or obstructed on the path that he decided to walk. 

A second man does the same. 

But then a Samaritan walks by.  He sees the man, and he stops.  The Samaritan bandages the stranger’s wounds, he brings him to an inn, gives him shelter and a hot meal, and he saves the man’s life. 

This parable, the parable of the Good Samaritan, teaches us to love thy neighbor as thyself.  (Applause.)

These words are simple.  We know them well.  It is an essential tenet and a pillar of our faith and that of so many others.  However, one must ask: Are all people of faith living those words?  Are all people of faith expressing those words in their actions?  Do we have leaders in place who understand that in the face of a stranger, one should see a neighbor?  (Applause.)

And I’ll tell you, I grew up in a church that took those words to heart.  As a little girl on Sundays, my sister Maya and I would go to 23rd Avenue Church of God in Oakland, California, where we sang in the children’s choir, we attended Sunday school, and where after church we would go to the basement and eat food prepared by loving hands — and where I first learned the teachings of the Bible. 

And my earliest memories of those teachings are about a loving God — a loving God — (applause) — a God who asks us to speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves and to defend the rights of the poor and the needy.

And for me, like for so many of us, church is then a place of growth and belonging and community, a place where we are reminded of the incredible power of faith and followship — and fellowship.  And in moments of difficulty and uncertainty, when the way is not clear, it is our faith that then guides us forward — faith in what we often cannot see but we know to be true.  Faith in what we cannot see but know to be true. 

And I say that because in this moment, across our nation, what we do see are some who try to deepen division among us, spread hate, sow fear, and cause chaos.  There are those who suggest that the measure of the strength of a leader is based on who you beat down instead of what we know, which is the true measure of the strength of a leader is based on who you lift up.  (Applause.)

And this moment in our nation must be about so much more than partisan politics.  It must be about looking inward and being guided by our faith to know what brings hope and what is truly the best expression of our strength in the way that we reach out to each other with kindness and with love and with sincerity in that approach. 

This is a moment that is challenging us of faith to reflect on this moment in the context of our future.  We just applauded the young leaders who are here this morning, and I think so much of this moment in the context of them, our young leaders, and what they have a right to expect and what their faith teaches them, that gives them, rightly, a sense of hope about where they belong, who they are, and what they can be. 

And so, this is a moment that is challenging, I think, our fundamental values and challenging us as Americans and as people of faith.  And as the Good Samaritan reminds us, it is not enough to preach the values of compassion and respect.  We must live them.  (Applause.)

Faith is a verb.  Faith is a verb.  We show it in action, in our deeds and in our service.  Here in Georgia, we’ve seen it playing out in real time in just the last many weeks, where communities have come together in the wake of Hurricane Helene. 

Right here in the Atlanta area, I saw the story of a reporter who was outside covering the storm live on television when he heard some screams, he dropped everything and waded into chest-deep water to rescue a woman trapped in her car, carrying her on his back to safety. 

In a town a few hours from here, one mother and her children lost power for days.  And as soon as it was restored, they started a relief drive, distributing food, water, and supplies, and opened their home to neighbors in need of laundry or a hot shower. 

On a visit recently to Augusta, I met people who themselves had experienced extraordinary loss and devastation, many who did not have electricity or running water.  Yet, every day, they left their homes to go to relief centers to help perfect strangers. 

So, what we have seen here in Georgia and in other states is faith in action, individuals who know their power to shed light in a moment of darkness.

We have seen the Good Samaritans walking among us.  And for that reason, I say, as the scripture tells us, we then must remember that and not be weary.  Let us not be weary in moments like this.  Let us focus on what God shows us about the Good Samaritans walking among us to remind us of the power, the agency, the ability, and, dare I say, the duty that we have to come to another’s aid in moments of need, to love thy neighbor. 

 And what God is showing us is that any of us can do that, no matter who we are.  And I know — and I — and I learned this at a young age.  (Applause.)  And actually, I’ll share with you a quick story. 

So, during my final year of — of law school, I was a summer intern in the DA’s office in Oakland, California, and I was working in the superior courthouse.  And there was this one case that I got, and it was — it involved a drug bust.  And the police had arrested a number of people, including an innocent bystander — a woman who had been in the wrong place at the wrong time. 

And when I got the case, it was a late Friday afternoon, and most folks had gone home for the weekend, and I knew, in all likelihood, the judge would probably not see her case until that following Monday, which would have meant that she would have had to spend the whole weekend in jail. 

Now, this woman had children.  She is a mother.  She had children at home, and I wondered if they even knew that their mother had been arrested, who would take care of them if she could not.  Would Child Protective Services come and take those children?  Everything was on the line for that woman.

So, I rushed to the clerk of the court and asked them to have the case called that day.  And then, when that did not work, I pleaded with them.  Remember, I was not vice president.  I was an intern.  (Laughter.)  So, yes, I pleaded.

And finally, the judge returned to the bench and reviewed her case and, with a pound of his gavel, she was free to go home, and she would go home to see her children and take care of them.  (Applause.) 

And I never did get the chance to meet that woman, but I will never forget that moment.  And I share that story to say that we have all in our lives, from the earliest stages of our lives, had those moments where it has been revealed to us our power.  And we should never let anyone take our power from us — (applause) — or in any way try to convince us we are powerless. 

And so, I say, as we move forward, let us look at where we are and understand the lesson of the Gospel of Luke, because right now, each of us has an opportunity to make a difference.  In this moment, our country is at a crossroads and where we go from here is up to us as Americans and as people of faith. 

And now we ask a question.  We face this question.  What kind of country do we want to live in — a country of chaos, fear, and hate or a country of freedom, compassion, and justice?  (Applause.)

And the great thing about living in a democracy is that we, the people, have the power to answer that question.  So, let us answer not just through our words but through our action and with our votes. 

When we come across our brothers and sisters in need, let us, as the Good Samaritan did, see in the face of a stranger a neighbor.  And let us recognize that when we shine the light in moments of darkness, it will guide our feet into the path of peace. 

And let us remember that while weeping may endure for a night — (applause) — joy cometh in the morning.

Thank you.  May God bless you.  And may God bless the United States of America.  Thank you all very much.  (Applause.) 

 Thank you.  Thank you.  (Applause.)

                             END                11:04 A.M. EDT