Religion

By PATRICK BUTLER
Religion Editor

What happens when a “poor” black itinerant preacher/pastor who sells sermons from the trunk of his car shares the pulpit with the pastor of a mostly white church with a million dollar-plus budget in East Texas? That’s what a PBS Religion & Ethics Newsweekly camera crew will find out in Tyler.

The Rev. David Brown, a Louisiana traveling preacher spotlighted on the PBS Network in August, will speak at Marvin United Methodist Church, 300 W. Erwin St., at 6 p.m. tonight. The invitation was extended by the Rev. Dr. John Robbins, the church’s senior pastor, and will be held in the main sanctuary.

“I couldn’t believe it when I saw David Brown on the (Religion & Ethics) show,” Robbins said last week. “Here’s a man who climbs into his car and travels hundreds of miles to preach at seven churches. The amount of time and effort he spends for the sake of the Gospel with so little material support is inspiring, to say the least.”

Brown has no health insurance, he’s paid by offerings — which sometimes isn’t much in the small churches — and his operating budget is next to nothing, Robbins said.

“He sells sermons out of the trunk of his car. He’s always away from home but it doesn’t seem to matter to him. He’s like the Energizer preacher. He just keeps going and going. A 12-hour day and hundreds of miles is normal. But without him, these remote congregations would have no one at all to pastor them. That’s commitment.”

“It’s not about the money,” Brown said in a sermon at Pleasant Grove Baptist Church No. 2 in Tallulah, La. “I come to tell you this afternoon the world’s greatest need is God. Not Gold, but God. Not silver, but salvation. Not lumber, but love. Not gas, but grace. I come to tell you this afternoon, without God, we just can’t do anything.”

Brown’s perseverance through financial and physical obstacles impressed Robbins. He hunted for clues to find Brown, finally locating him.

“I couldn’t stop thinking about him,” Robbins said. “It wasn’t easy to find him. These small churches don’t have weekday staff or even answering machines. But I heard him say at the end ‘Well, I’m headed back to Monroe.’”

Robbins got the numbers of everyone named Brown in Monroe, La., and began calling.

“When I finally found him, he was so humble and easy to talk to,” Robbins said, smiling broadly. “This is the kind of man I’d like to have as a best friend.”

The contrast in lifestyles between the two preachers couldn’t be more vivid and Robbins knows it. He sits back in his comfy swivel chair in the newly remodeled suite of offices on the second floor of the multi-story church. Marvin UMC, one of Tyler’s oldest congregations, is doing well. Attendance numbers are up, said Robbins. Giving is plentiful. The budget is past a million dollars.

And that’s what Religion&Ethics Newsweekly appears to be interested in. Why does a well-off white pastor reach out to a black itinerant preacher in another state in the Deep South?

“Things have gone very well for us this past year to say the least,” Robbins said, pensively regarding the fingernails of his folded hands on his desk. Looking up, he added, “And I’m doing well too. I have health insurance, a steady paycheck and a retirement plan. What (Brown) has is total dependence and commitment to God. We could all learn from that.”

And there’s more, Robbins said.

“It’s inconceivable that we do anything in Tyler separately anymore,” he said. “We wouldn’t stand for racial separation at the schools, civic or sporting events or even at the mall. But church is something else. Church can still be separated along racial lines in some places.”

That means Christians are missing something, he said.

“What someone like David Brown has to offer believers anywhere is his perspective of God, life and purpose,” said Robbins. “I hope to pack out the sanctuary the night he speaks. Everyone in town is welcome to come.”

In his PBS interview, Brown said, “I’ve got to believe that at the end of the day the Lord’s going to provide enough for me, for what I need next week. When we pray we say, ‘give us this day our daily bread.’ So I expect him to provide for me and my family what I’m going to need this week. And then next Sunday, he’ll provide again for the next week. And it’s always happened that way for 31 years.”

To see a transcript of the Religion&Ethics Newsweekly interview with Brown, and the video segment featuring Brown, visit the Web at www.marvin-umc.com.