In the church he built in Chicago's Woodlawn neighborhood, political leaders, leaders in faith and parishioners joined together to say thank you and goodbye to Bishop Arthur Brazier.
Starting in 1960 with 120 members and $50 thousand in debt, Brazier built the Aposolic Church of God into an engine of transformation on Chicago's South side that now spreads across 30 acres and claims 20,000 members.
Brazier's friends included Presidents and pastors. Among those attending the three-hour funeral service were First Lady Michelle Obama, Mayor Richard Daley and the Rev. Jesse Jackson. Presidential advisor Valarie Jarrett was among those who remembered Brazier as someone who fought for justice and for the city's poor.
"He was a great man," Jarrett said, "but he was also a good man."
Brazier was one of the first Chicago pastors to embrace Dr. Martin Luther King. Today he was remembered in King's words as "helping bend the moral arc of the universe toward justice."
Church Deacon Cortez Trotter repeatedly fought back tears as he spoke about the Bishop and the times they shared.
"He saw something wrong and tried to right it," Trotter said.
Mayor Daley told the congregation that he cannot say goodbye to Bishop Brazier, who he considered a friend and close advisor. Pointing to his forehead, Daley said, "he is always in here."
