Cecil Williams

Featured in The Pursuit of Happyness, Glide Memorial UMC in San Francisco has been served by Rev. Williams for almost 50 years, first as pastor and now as Minister of Liberation since his denominational retirement in 2000.

Rev. Williams was born in San Angelo on September 22, 1929, the same year that construction on Glide Memorial began. He graduated from Huston-Tillotson University with a degree in sociology and from Perkins School of Theology at SMU where he was one of the first five African American graduates.

"The true church stays on the edge of life, where the real moans and groans are. Most church folks settle in, get comfortable and build doctrinal walls to protect themselves from anyone who thinks or looks differently than they do." ~ Rev. Cecil Williams, quoted in PBS series This Far By Faith [a great read about Rev. Williams' call to ministry and his outreach in San Francisco]