Minister urges forgiveness for cross burners

By Leslie Fulbright
Seattle Times Eastside bureau

	Jason Martin
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"If you love only who loves you, what good is that?" Martin asked the cheering crowd, many of whom were attending the Jesus Is Lord Life Tabernacle in Marysville for the first time, swelling the congregation to more than twice its normal size.

Susanne Howard was drawn to the service because she said her biracial daughter has experienced harassment at her middle school in Marysville. Bruce Durham said he came as a way to ease his 9-year-old son into a discussion about race and hatred. And Lizette Johnson said she came because she didn't know what else to do.

"I felt like I needed to be here, to give the pastor a hug and tell him how sorry I am," Smith said as she left the church nestled in a strip mall on State Avenue.

All three families said the cross burning showed signs of racial division in the small town. But Martin thinks otherwise.

"This is not a race issue, but a sin issue," Martin told his congregation. "We want to put water on this fire, not gasoline."

Martin, 38, awoke Wednesday morning as firefighters extinguished the flames on a 5-by-3-foot wooden cross on his front lawn. Police arrested two 16-year-old Arlington High School dropouts Saturday on suspicion of felony harassment, the state's hate-crime law, after the teens turned themselves in hours before a community rally for the Martins.

The teens, who were among a group of initial suspects, remained in custody yesterday at the Denney Juvenile Justice Center in Everett. Martin said he was told the teens would have a bail hearing today.

The Seattle Times generally does not name criminal suspects until they are charged and doesn't generally name juvenile defendants unless they are charged as adults.

The pastor said he was pleased the teens surrendered.

"It is wonderful that they felt convicted enough to go to police," he said.
 
He said he hopes to talk to the boys and wants to offer them spiritual support.

"They may feel they've done something that can't be forgiven," Martin said. "They can be forgiven."

Six years ago, when Martin was thinking about coming to the Marysville church, he said, people told him he might fare better in urban areas such as Seattle or Tacoma, places where African Americans are not as likely to stand out.

Instead, the New York native chose to work to diversify the congregation at the Marysville church. Parishioners say a mural on the wall that says "Jesus Died for All Colors of People" represents Martin's desire for a multicultural church.

Howard, who came with her daughter, said she feels Arlington has never been a tolerant town. She said the cross burning didn't surprise her, but she added that racism in the community is usually more subtle. Yesterday's service helped her heal, she said. And she said she planned to return.

"It is hard to find a church where you fit in," said Howard, who is white. "Here, we feel welcome."

Martin invited everyone to his home in Arlington after the service for hot dogs and an afternoon prayer on the front lawn, where the cross burned.

"Anyone is welcome at my house anytime," he said.

Leslie Fulbright: 206-515-5637

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