John Thomas was never allowed to worship within Broadway Baptist Church’s segregated pews during his lifetime. A new portrait envisions a scene that did not take place in the Jim Crow era — the father, World War I veteran and longtime Broadway Baptist custodian walking toward the front of the church, Bible in hand.

The painting, “Mr. Thomas, Please Come Up Higher to Sit,” illustrates Thomas making his way to the front of the sanctuary, sporting a navy blue suit, white collared shirt and striped red tie in layers of oil paint. Behind him sits a diverse group of worshippers in Broadway’s chapel. 

“What’s so striking about this is that for generations to come, this picture will hang here in this narthex, so that everybody that comes, whatever race, whatever creed, whatever color, whatever their age, they will see my grandfather,” said the Rev. Dr. Nelda Barrett Murraine, Thomas’ granddaughter and a Methodist pastor. 

The portrait, now on display near Broadway Baptist’s chapel following a Sept. 28 unveiling, was painted by renowned artist and Fort Worth native Sedrick Huckaby. The church commissioned the work as an act of reparation for participating in the sin of segregation. 

Thomas, who died in 1959, served as Broadway Baptist’s custodian for 34 years. Instead of joining congregants in the pews, he would listen to the sermons in the baptistry Sunday mornings. He belonged to Mount Olive Missionary Baptist Church, a Black congregation which honored his passing in a rare, partially integrated funeral at Broadway Baptist Church. Pastors from both churches celebrated his faithfulness.

One hundred years after his hiring and 65 after his death, Thomas now holds a permanent place of honor inside the Near Southside church. 

Acknowledge, confess, transform

The journey to Thomas’ commemoration began with Senior Pastor Ryon Price, who was reading through the church’s centennial history when he first learned of Thomas.

Thomas’ story — and the reverence that church members had for him — was so striking to Price that he incorporated it into a sermon. Congregants then shared their own memories and connections to Thomas.

Price considered adding a placard in Thomas’ honor to the baptistry, but the church’s ACT Council had bigger plans.

The ACT Council, formed following the 2020 murder of George Floyd, spearheaded an effort to reach out to Thomas’ family and commission a memorial.

The acronym ACT stands for acknowledge, confess and transform. These actions and principles were included in a litany of confession and reconciliation during a Sept. 28 ceremony for the portrait’s unveiling and the subsequent Sunday service on Sept. 29.

“May this act of repentance, repair and reconciliation inspire us to live out our mission as we work to ‘create a church and world where all people are welcome and belong in the beloved community of God,’” the congregants recited in unison. 

The sin of segregation prevented the church from seeing Thomas’ full personhood, said Mattie Peterson Compton, co-chair of the congregation’s ACT Council. 

Peterson Compton took the the pulpit Saturday morning to share how members of the church were “deeply grateful for the opportunity” to apologize to Thomas’ family and make efforts to atone for the church’s past wrongdoings to Thomas and other people of color. 

“We seek to join hands with the Thomas family and all persons as we continue to work to achieve a world where every person is seen through the eyes of our maker and treated as an equal. This is our effort to make a bridge over troubled waters,” Peterson Compton said. 

‘More than just an image’

Throughout the weekend, congregants heard and sang “I Need Thee Every Hour” and “What a Friend We Have in Jesus” — some of the Thomas family’s favorite hymns.

From the pulpit, Barrett Murraine described her grandfather’s living legacy: four grandchildren, seven great-grandchildren, six great-great-grandchildren and two great-great-great- grandchildren. Many of his descendants were in attendance. 

“The portrait is more than just an image,” Thomas’ grandson, Johnnie Griffin, said from the pulpit Saturday morning. “It captures the spirit of a man who profoundly shaped my life and my family’s lives.” 

Barrett Murraine, who is also a Methodist pastor based in Kennedale, took to the pulpit Sunday morning to give the sermon in her grandfather’s honor. 

She recounted memories of her grandfather’s love of his family, playing with his grandkids at lunch, bouncing them on his legs and opening the family home to whoever might be in need of a meal or a place to sleep.

Her granddad also had an unwavering belief in God — and the veracity of professional wrestling, she said with a smile.

“If he gave his word, he would keep his word,” Barrett Murraine said in her sermon. “He exhibited loyalty and wisdom and quiet determination in the face of tremendous depression. He was a man of compassion. … He loved the Lord. He loved the church.”

Though some mistreated him, she said, many people loved, supported and encouraged him. 

“He continued to plant shade trees at which he would never sit,” Barrett Murraine said.

‘First act of reparation’

More reparation work will follow at Broadway Baptist, Price told ceremony attendees Saturday. 

“To be clear, the dedication of John Thomas’ portrait this morning is intended as an act of reparation, but this is only our first act of reparation here at Broadway,” Price said.

In addition to the portrait, the church has already conducted an audit of its priorities and updated its mission statement to reflect its desire to be welcoming to all.

Looking ahead, some ideas include creating scholarships focused on African American ministry and expanding the historical perspectives included in the church library. 

While those ideas are still in the works, civil rights icon Opal Lee was in attendance for the church’s first act of reparation.

“The service, the sermon, all of it, oooh can I use this expression? It was off the chain,” Lee, known as the “Grandmother of Juneteenth,” said. “It was wonderful and everybody so enjoyed it. You could see how attentive they were, and I’m so glad I was a part of it.”

Telling the truth of our history — the good, bad and the ugly — is important, Lee said.

“We must learn so that others don’t have to endure the things we did,” Lee, whose childhood home in Fort Worth was torched by a white mob in 1939, continued. “So I’m hoping that she can see that working together we can get so much further along.”

Barrett Murraine said in her sermon that Christians have three options: to be complicit, complacent or courageous.

Broadway Baptist’s memorial to her grandfather serves as an example of how a church can take the courageous step to transform, she said. 

“Transformation means we want to go forward. We want to be different,” Barrett Murraine said. “We want to be more loving. We want to be accepting. We really want to be the community and the church that God has … called us to be. And that’s how I felt about this weekend.” 

Marcheta Fornoff covers arts and culture for the Fort Worth Report.

Marissa Greene is a Report for America corps member, covering faith for the Fort Worth Report. 

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