The Rev. Marlin Lavanhar, senior minister of All Souls Unitarian, said the various Tulsa services reflect a concerted effort by leaders of a community in mourning, some of whom wanted to hold solely Christian services and others who supported Pearson’s respect for many faiths and perspectives.
The Rev. Marlin Lavanhar, left, and Bishop Carlton Pearson in a pamphlet for All Souls Unitarian Church in Tulsa. (Courtesy image)
All Souls is where Pearson’s body is to lie in repose through Thursday, before and after the interfaith service there. Tentative plans for the service, where Lavanhar is set to be the eulogist, include readings from Christian, Jewish and Islamic scriptures and remarks from a minister in the New Thought movement, a positive-thinking tradition that Pearson embraced as his theology changed.
“Many people imagined that we would have one big service to celebrate Bishop Pearson’s life,” Lavanhar said in an interview. “However, when the family came together after he died, there was a realization that there were multiple communities and constituencies that he served and that loved him and that there was no way to make it all fit into one service.”
Lavanhar added that he suspects Pearson would not be surprised by the range of services in his honor.
“I know he is smiling down on all of these services for what they mean to those people and how they are a celebration of a part of who he was to people he loved.”
This article originally appeared here.
