Monday, September 27, 2010

Black Harry

Harry "Black Harry" Hosier was one of the most popular preachers--black or white-- in early Methodism. He was a faithful traveling companion to Bishops Coke and Asbury.

Bishop Coke said of Harry, " I have now had the pleasure of hearing Harry preach several times. I sometimes give notice that immediateley after preaching, that in a little time Harry will preach to the blacks; but the whites always stay to hear him... I really believe he is one of the best preachers in the world, there is such an amazing power attends his preaching, though he cannot read; and he is one of the humblest creatures I ever saw" (quoted in Norwood's The Story of American Methodism 168).

We don't know a lot about Harry Hosier. But we do know that from the beginning African Americans were part of the work and worship of Methodism in America. They met with varying degrees of acceptance, relating to the country's mood. In some places, they were able to worship with whites, but generally, segregation took root everywhere, and African American Methodists generally had to seek their own Methodist structure.

Some of those groups are well known-- The African Methodist Episcopal Church (AME), African Methodist Episcopal Church, Zion (AME Zion) and Christian Methodist Episcopal Church (CME).

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