Cecelia Williams, mother of Pastor Jamal Bryant, dies

The Dr. Rev. Cecelia Williams Bryant, mother of prominent Pastor Jamal Bryant, has died, at age 77.

Pastor Jamal Bryant, who led Baltimore's Empowerment Temple until 2018 , said in a statement:

We were blessed to share life with this anointed and dedicated wife, mother, grandmother and liberated global citizen. Of all her immense talents and gifts, Rev. C was a powerful and committed intercessor on behalf of the poor and vulnerable. I am not the person I am today without her prayers and her love, which have been my north star throughout my life. If love alone were enough to sustain life, she would have lived forever but we trust God for His wisdom and praise Him for her life and her witness.

The Bryant famly released an announcement honoring Cecelia Williams Bryant, who was "affectionately known as 'Rev. C.'"

She was in ministry for more than 40 years, established centers for women in the U.S. and Africa, and founded primary schools in Massachusetts, Texas, and Liberia. She also founded an orphanage in Lesotho (an enclave of South Africa). An early childhood center in Seattle was named in her honor, the Cecelia Williams Bryant Center.

Besides serving as a Senior Episcopal Supervisor in the A.M.E. Church, she was married to Bishop John R. Bryant, who helped lead Baltimore's Bethel A.M.E. Church, on Druid Hill Avenue, from 1975 to 1988.

As a press release notes, "over those years, Bethel grew to over several thousand members and an anchor in Baltimore’s faith community."

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Cecelia Williams Bryant's homegoing celebration is scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 5, at Bethel A.M.E. Church. The wake is scheduled for 10 a.m. and funeral at 11 a.m.