July 29: Mother Bethel A.M.E. Church Dedicated
Prayer Idea
Pray that Christians would recognize that ethnic and cultural differences can be something to celebrate instead of fear.
History Note
Richard Allen was born into slavery in 1760 in Pennsylvania. As a teenager, the preaching of a Methodist minister led him to faith in Christ. His master, Stokley Sturgis, also became a believer and decided that slavery was not compatible with his faith. Sturgis allowed Allen and his brother to work for wages to purchase their freedom. One of Allen’s jobs was hauling salt for the Continental Army during the American Revolution.
After securing his freedom in 1780, Richard Allen became an itinerant preacher in Delaware, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Maryland. He attended the 1784 conference of Methodists in Baltimore where they established the Methodist Episcopal Church as a separate denomination.
At the invitation of a white minister, Allen started preaching at a 5 a.m. service for St. George’s Methodist Episcopal Church in Philadelphia. Allen’s preaching helped the church grow, particularly by attracting black Methodists. Though the church was integrated, some white members did not like so many black members joining. As the congregation expanded, they built new segregated seating.
Richard Allen and other black members decided to leave St. George’s and establish a new congregation. They turned an old blacksmith shop into a meeting place. Allen invited Methodist bishop Francis Asbury to preach at the dedication services for the new Bethel Church on July 29, 1794.
In 1816 Richard Allen and other black Methodists, after facing continued hostility from some white Methodists, formed the African Methodist Episcopal Church as a separate denomination. The original congregation, now known as Mother Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church, continues to serve its community in Philadelphia.
Portrait of Richard Allen (1760-1831)
Learn More
Learn more about Richard Allen in this video.
Find more resources at Homeschool History.
