Memories: The” Sacred Heart attack”

In the 1970s, our rector, the Rev. Jim Lewis, became friends with the clergy at Sacred Heart Roman Catholic Church, across Broad Street from St. John’s, and Jim was invited to preach before the congregation at a Sunday Mass.

One of the parishioners at the host church was Harry Zain, a zealous opponent of reproductive rights who had gained quite a reputation in the community. He was known to be passionate about being anti-abortion.

Harry wasn’t bashful or secretive about his plan to remove Jim from the pulpit before he could address the congregation, so a confrontation was expected. But Sacred Heart authorities had notified the Charleston Police Department that this man was planning to break the law by interfering with a religious service.

Jim rose to the pulpit and stood calmly as Harry tried to wrestle with him, but police officers were standing “in the wings” nearby, and Harry was quickly escorted out of the building.

I don’t recall what happened to Harry Zain, but Jim’s sermon was not further interrupted, and the congregation, as I recall (I was in attendance), was politely and quietly receptive to Jim’s presence and his message.

I wrote about this at the time, and Jim was amused by my referring to the incident as the “Sacred Heart attack.”