By GLENN RUTHERFORD Record Staff Writer (11/25/99 Louisville Record)

Though trembling like an olive branch in the wind, Muhammad Ali made his way to the front of the Cathedral of the Assumption with the same commanding presence he'd had in the boxing ring years ago.

Accompanied by his wife, Lonnie - a stately, dignified figure in her own right - Louisville's most world famous son came to help open the fourth annual Festival of Faiths on Nov. 17. It mattered not one bit that he didn't utter a single word. When he walked by, priests and pastors, Buddhists and Hindus all stood and watched him pass with smiles on their faces.

Following the opening ceremonies at the Cathedral, the crowd walked a half-block or so to The Gardens - appropriately enough at the corner of Armory Place and Muhammad Ali Blvd. - where the former World Heavyweight Champion was given the Cathedral Heritage Foundation's Lifetime Achievement Award.

Ali is receiving lots of honors these days as the millennium comes to an end. There are those who say he will be named the ESPN-TV network's "Athlete of the Century" at year's end. But on this night Lonnie Ali was quick to note that for all his remarkable accomplishments in the ring, Ali views his real life's work as something far removed from the violence of the "sweet science", as boxing is sometimes called.

All the great fights against the likes of Joe Frazier and George Foreman, the "Thrilla' in Manila," or the "Rumble in the Jungle," were "mere vehicles," his wife said.

"My husband has always believed that his true life mission is to help people to know and love each other," she said, "regardless of their differences."

Lonnie Ali said she and Muhammed were especially pleased that the award was presented by the Cardinal Heritage Foundation in his hometown, "where his values and beliefs were shaped."

'And take great comfort in knowing that the foundation is in the same city as the Muhammad Ali Center," she said. That center is scheduled to open in 2001 and will, Lonnie Ali said, "focus on Muhammed's message of tolerance. Hope and understanding to the adults and children everywhere."

The Festival of Faith's opening ceremonies were also attended by Kentucky Gov. Paul Patton, Jefferson County Judge Executive Rebecca Jackson and Louisville Mayor David Armstrong. All three offered prayers of petition at the Cathedral, where a Thanksgiving homily was presented by Dr. Bill Leonard, dean of the Wake Forest University School of Divinity.

Noting the presence of dozens of representatives of various faiths, Leonard said that the "God who, in our own ways we all serve," is present in cathedrals, mosques, temples and synagogues - "and even when we're not aware of him.

"God is present, even when we don' t feel him there," he said. And he cited an experience he'd had early in his ministerial career, when he was asked to present communion to an elderly couple who couldn't leave their home.

"We couldn't find the communion kit," he recalled, "so when the time came we took out paper cups and opened a package of crackers. But I clearly remember the eyes of that very ill woman, who looked up at me after communion and said, "Surely God is in this place."

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