Vice President Mike Pence told a Memphis church congregation Sunday it’s important to remember that civil rights icon Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was a Christian leader.

“He was first and foremost a man of faith,” Pence told those at the Founders Day service at Holy City Church of God In Christ in Raleigh.

The Memphis visit also included a tour of the National Civil Rights Museum Sunday in advance of Monday’s federal holiday honoring Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

“I want to assure you that under this administration we’ve made every effort to open pathways to the American dream for every American,” Pence said at the church stop. 

“We have stood without apology for the sanctity of human life. We’ve made great progress as a nation but there is much work to be done,” he said. “This president and this administration will always stand for the values we share and the right of every American to live the American dream.”

The speech included numerous quotes from King speeches including King’s “mountaintop” speech at Mason Temple the night before his assassination. Pence specifically referring to King’s final words saying that one day African Americans and America would reach “the promised land.”

“And so we did,” Pence said. “Dr. King could see all of that ahead because he had hope and that hope came from his faith in God.”

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Before the service, Pence toured the museum built on the site of King’s assassination. He made no speeches and asked a lot of questions according to NCRM chief marketing and external affairs officer Faith Morris.

“Politics aside, this seemed to be a man that was interested in genuinely getting close to what he knew was a difficult story,” she said. “That’s all you can hope from somebody.”

The museum has welcomed Democratic and Republican elected officials with very different political beliefs over its 29 years. Morris said museum officials contacted by Pence’s staff wanted to know the purpose of the visit.

“ 'We are not campaigning’,” she said. “Indeed to be sure the intention was what we do here and it clearly was. I didn’t get that there was any other agenda than to be part of the celebration of Dr. King’s life.”

That changed at Holy City. 

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Bishop Jerry W. Taylor, pastor of Holy City, in a sermon that followed Pence’s remarks, condemned homosexuality — calling it the product of a “demonic spirit.”

“God didn’t make us for that,” he said of homosexuality. “You never see two male animals coming together. They stay in their place. We’ve got to expose what the devil is doing.”

Before Pence spoke, Bishop Vincent Matthews of West Angeles Church of God in Christ in Los Angeles, said, “I believe some of the Secret Service are going to get saved today.”

Matthews acknowledged that some critics had questioned why the church allowed Pence to speak.

“People want to make it a political day. It’s a prophetic day,” he said. 

Matthews also defended Pence’s practice of refusing to meet one on one with women other than his wife.

“He honors his own marriage,” Matthews said.

A group of about two dozen people protesting Pence’s visit gathered near the church with signs at the edge of an area closed to access by the public.

Republican U.S. Rep. David Kustoff joined Pence for the museum tour.

“I think it shows that we can all unite and certainly this museum is representative of unification,” Kustoff said. “I’m glad the vice president wanted to come here.”