4 years ago
334 
Lewis "insisted on the truth in the Congress of the United States," Nancy Pelosi says
Pool/CNNSpeaker of the House Nancy Pelosi recalled the late John Lewis' presence in Congress as she spoke at his funeral. He served as the US representative for Georgia's 5th Congressional District for more than three decades.
"He insisted on the truth in the Congress of the United States," Pelosi said.
Pelosi said Lewis brought his experience fighting for civil rights to Washington.
"When John Lewis served with us, he wanted us to see the civil rights movement and the rest through his eyes," she said.
George W. Bush: "We live in a better and nobler country today because of John Lewis"
From CNN's Adrienne Vogt
Alyssa Pointer/Atlanta Journal-Constitution/Pool/APFormer President George W. Bush honored John Lewis in a speech at his funeral, saying that Lewis' "lesson for us it is that we must all keep ourselves ... open to hearing the call of love, the call of service and a call to sacrifice for others.”
Bush acknowledged that while they may have disagreed at times, Lewis upheld democracy as one of the most important tenets of America.
“We live in a better and nobler country today because of John Lewis and his abiding faith in the power of God, in the power of democracy and in the power of love to lift us all to a higher ground. The story that began in Troy isn't ending here today, nor is the work,” he added.
George W. Bush: Lewis believed "hate and fear had to be answered with love and hope"
Pool/CNNFormer President George W. Bush started his tribute to the late Rep. John Lewis by recalling the civil rights icon's childhood, on a farm in Alabama.
Bush described how Lewis preached to the chickens, and tended to their every need. The young Lewis once refused to eat one of the flock.
"Going hungry was his first act of non-violent protest," Bush joked.
Bush went on to describe Lewis' character.
"He always thought of others. He always believed in preaching the gospel, in word and in deed, insisting that hate and fear had to be answered with love and hope," he said.
Watch:
Rev. Bernice King: "Grant us, dear God, a double portion to get into good trouble"
From CNN's Chris Boyette
Pool/CNNRev. Dr. Bernice King, CEO of The King Center and daughter of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., delivered a prayer at the funeral service of Congressman John Lewis.
Lewis' funeral service is taking place at Ebenezer Baptist Church, the historic church where MLK served as a co-pastor.
Read her prayer:
Watch:
John Lewis' 12-year-old friend pays tribute to the late congressman
Pool/CNNA 12-year-old boy John Lewis befriended two years ago read the late congressman's favorite poem at his service today.
"This is John Lewis' favorite poem," Tybre Faw said before reading "Invictus."
"John Lewis was my hero and my friend. Let's honor him by getting into good trouble," Faw said after he read the poem.
Faw and Lewis met in Selma, Alabama, in March of 2018. CNN was there covering the annual civil rights pilgrimage that Lewis led when reporters saw Tybre standing outside a church where Lewis was attending a service.
He held a sign that read, "Thank you Rep. John Lewis. You have shown me how to have courage."
Read more about their friendship here.
Watch:
Pastor: Lewis was "wounded for America's transgressions"
Pool/CNNRev. Dr. Raphael G. Warnock, senior pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church, evoked Rep. John Lewis' legacy as he opened the late congressman's funeral in Atlanta.
“We're summoned here because in a moment when there are some in high office who are much better at division than vision, who cannot lead us so they speak to divide us, in a moment when there is so much political cynicism and narcissism that masquerades as pate time here lies a true American patriot who risked his life and limb for the hope and the promise of democracy," the pastor said.
Warnock urged attendees and the country to keep "fighting together" and "voting together."
"Let's save the soul of our democracy together, and let's worship the lord," he added.
Civil rights titan: At age 25, Lewis helped lead a march for voting rights on the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama, where he and other marchers were met by heavily armed state and local police who attacked them with clubs, fracturing Lewis' skull.
Images from that "Bloody Sunday" shocked the nation and galvanized support for the Voting Rights Act of 1965, signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson.
Watch:
John Lewis' funeral service has begun
From CNN's Chris Boyette
Pool/CNNThe funeral service for civil rights icon Rep. John Lewis has begun at Ebenezer Baptist Church Horizon Sanctuary in Atlanta.
Rev. Dr. Raphael G. Warnock, Senior Pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church, delivered a “Call to Celebration” and welcome remarks.
"We praise God for John Lewis," Warnock said.
Others expected to speak at the service are Lewis’ nieces, Rev. Dr. Bernice King, former President George W. Bush, former President Bill Clinton, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, former Atlanta mayor William Craig Campbell and former President Barack Obama who will deliver the eulogy.
Funeral attendees began arriving around 10 a.m. ET. Many approached the casket and paid their respects.
The morning began with an honor guard transferring the body of the congressman from the Georgia State Capitol where he was lying in state to a hearse. As the vehicle left the capitol, family and friends walked slowly behind waving and a motorcade brought Lewis to the church.
The service will be followed by Lewis' interment at South-View Cemetery just south of downtown Atlanta.
Church bells across the county ring out to honor John Lewis
Ahead of John Lewis' funeral, church bells across the country rang their bells at 11 a.m. ET to pay tribute to the civil rights icon.
The churches rang their bells for 80 seconds, in honor of the 80 years of Lewis’ life.
More than 500 churches around the country were expected to be ringing their bells, according to a family spokesperson, including St. John’s Episcopal Church in Washington, DC.
Ebenezer Baptist Church, the Atlanta church where Lewis' funeral is being held, does not have a bell. Instead, the church observed an 80-second moment of silence
Watch the moment:
John Lewis’ family is entering the church
From CNN's Chris Boyette
PoolThe family of congressman John Lewis is now entering Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta.
The “celebration of life” funeral service for the civil rights icon will begin at 11 a.m. ET.
Lewis’ funeral will be held this morning at the historic church where the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. served as a co-pastor from 1960 until his assassination in 1968.
Here's a look inside the church:
