Members of a Bronx church gathered Sunday to mourn the loss of their pastor, his wife, and four other members who were killed in a car crash Saturday on the New York State Thruway.

It was a mixture of tears and grief, sorrow and song on Sunday morning inside the Joy Fellowship Church in Baychester, as members of the small congregation tried to come to terms with the devastating loss.

Bishop Simon White and his wife Zelda were among the 14 church members traveling northbound on the New York State Thruway Saturday when their van's rear tire blew just north of Exit 16 in Orange County.

Police say the van flipped over three or four times.

"I'm telling you its really shocking, really shocking," said congregant Annemarie Flinch. "He was loved. They all were loved. Because we're like a family."

As they prayed Sunday, members of the 98-person congregation were joined in their grief by worshippers from other churches who shared memories of the bishop and his wife.

"He was just a happy person, a person of joy," said Pastor Jay Gooding of the Clergy Council. "He had an infectious smile. Whenever you saw him he had a permanent smile on."

"I love her to death," Claire Johnson said of Zelda White, with whom she worked. "May her soul rest in peace. I know she did."

Associate pastor Titus McGhee was also among the deceased. Several passengers remain in critical condition.

"Some questions we won't be able to answer," said the Rev. Recardo Millwood. "Only God understands."

Congregants say Bishop White was an active member not only of the Joy Fellowship Church but of the community as a whole. The Clergy Council is organizing a prayer vigil for the public to attend, at the Joy Fellowship Church on Monday from 6-7 p.m.