April showers pour down on Stone Mountain’s Easter service
Inclement weather did not deter a congregation of people from hiking — or riding — to the top of Stone Mountain on Sunday morning.
Instead, folks stood in rain-resistant ponchos and under umbrellas to mark the park’s 80th annual Easter sunrise service.
Typically pulling in thousands of people for the worship service, instead several hundred worshipped Sunday as music played and a sermon was delivered for the Christian holiday.
Dense fog hung in the air, making visibility beyond the summit nearly impossible. The Confederate memorial featuring Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson carved into the side of the mountain was a misty blur towering over the reflecting pool below.
According to the Atlanta History Center, the entirety of Stone Mountain Park was dedicated as a Confederate memorial site in the early 20th century. During the revival of the Ku Klux Klan in 1915, the mountain’s summit served as the official resurrection marker, including a cross burning. Other rallies continued to be held over the years, and the carving on the side of the mountain was not completed until 1972.
The scene Sunday featured a diverse group of worshippers gathered to hear the sermon and take photos near a cross planted at the top of the mountain. Easter services began on Stone Mountain in 1944.
In Vatican City on Sunday, Pope Leo XIV spoke about world peace in the midst of ongoing global conflicts, reminding his followers to not become desensitized to the number of deaths as a result of current wars.
Unlike the pope, the series of pastors who preached and led prayer at Stone Mountain stuck to a traditional and abbreviated version of the biblical telling of the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth.
“Let’s go tell it on this mountain, and let’s tell it when we get down from the mountain,” pastor Bryant Wright said.
After the service, uplifted visitors took photos with the cross as an all-Black group joyously sang gospel songs on the mountain and on the lift ride down, switching to “Amazing Grace” as the Confederate monument came into view.
Richard Hembree trekked up the mountain with his family and the friends of his children. As a member of Trail Life USA, he felt hiking Stone Mountain was a great excuse to carry his larger backpack in preparation for a later hike on the Appalachian Trail.
“I came up here last year, and I had a lot of fun,” said Hembree’s daughter, Sarah Beth. “I didn’t come with any friends, though, so it wasn’t quite as fun. But I enjoyed the fellowship of all these Christians being here, everyone worshipping God together. So, I was, like, ‘I want to drag friends here this year!’”
Jonathan James of Alto, said this was his fifth time attending the Easter service on Stone Mountain and making the drive was “worth it.”
“Up here, I just like we’re a lot closer to God,” he said, adding that the worship service gave him the opportunity to be around a variety of religious groups.
There were other worshippers who had their first Easter service experience on the mountain.
Alice Conerly had only been in Georgia for six months from the Philippines, and Stone Mountain was a checkmark on her list.
“When I was in the Philippines, my husband shared with me (about) Stone Mountain,” said Conerly, adding how she was inspired by the sunrise service. “So many come (here); I want to experience it.”
About the Author
Brooke Leigh Howard is a reporter for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution's Black culture team, UATL.
