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History of the African Methodist Episcopal Church

 

Our Beginning

 

The African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church has a unique and glorious history. It is unique in that it is the first major religious denomination in the Western world that had its origin over sociological rather than theological beliefs and differences.

In 1787, Rev. Richard Allen, the founder and first bishop of the AME Church, along with Absalom Jones, and a band of followers withdrew from the St. George’s Methodist Church in Philadelphia because of the unkind treatment and discrimination to worshipers of African descent. Allen and the others began worshipping in a blacksmith shop. They founded the Free African Society, which was the beginning of the AME Church.

Richard Allen learned that other groups were suffering under the same conditions. After study and consultation, five churches came together in a General Convention, which met in Philadelphia, PA, April 9-11, 1816, and formed the AME Church. The name African Methodist came naturally, as Negroes at that time were called Africans and they followed the teaching of the Methodist Church as founded by John Wesley. The young Church accepted the Methodist doctrine and Discipline almost in its entirety.

 

Bishop Richard Allen

 

Richard Allen was born on February 14, 1760 in Philadelphia, PA. He was born into slavery; his family was the property of a wealthy Philadelphia lawyer, Benjamin Chew. Later Richard and his family were sold to Stockley Sturgis in Delaware. Sturgis allowed Allen to learn to read and write and through his reading, he became interested in religion and attended local Methodist meetings until people objected. Sturgis then allowed Methodist meetings on his plantation and Allen soon found that preaching was his calling, and is said to have influenced Sturgis' own conversion to the Methodist religion. In 1783, Richard Allen purchased his freedom and moved back to Philadelphia.

He began preaching and regularly worshipped in the Methodist church. However, he and other black worshippers faced opposition from some of the white members of the church. Instead of forcing the issue, Allen left the Methodist congregation and in 1787, he began his own congregation where people could worship without restriction and harassment. As the free black population of Philadelphia grew, Allen continued to devote his efforts to bringing increasing numbers of black people into the Methodist religion.

Allen was an organizer of the Free African Society, a group that fostered self-help and self-dependence. He established day and night schools, and was co-organizer of the first Masonic lodge for colored men in Pennsylvania.

From 1797 to his death on March 26, 1831, Allen operated a station on the Underground Railway. This work was continued by Bethel Church until Emancipation. Bishop Allen was married to Sarah Bass Allen and was the father of six children - Richard Jr., James, John, Peter, Sarah and Ann.

 

Our Name

 

African means that the church was organized by people of African descent and heritage. It does not mean that the church was founded in Africa or that it is for persons of African descent only.  

Methodist The church's root is of the family of Methodist churches. Methodism provides an orderly system of rules and regulations and places emphasis on a plain and simple gospel. 

Episcopal refers to the form of government under which the church operates. The chief executive and administrative officers of the African Methodist Episcopal denomination are the Bishops of the church. 

 

Our Mission

 

The mission of the AME Church is to minister to the social, spiritual, and physical development of all people.

The Church engages in carrying out the spirit of the original Free African Society, out of which the AME Church evolved: that is, to seek out and save the lost, and serve the needy through a continuing program of (1) preaching the gospel, (2) feeding the hungry, (3) clothing the naked, (4) housing the homeless, (5) cheering the fallen, (6) providing jobs for the jobless, (7) administering to the needs of those in prisons, hospitals, nursing homes, asylums and mental institutions, senior citizens' homes; caring for the sick, the shut-in, the mentally and socially disturbed, and (8) encouraging thrift and economic advancement.

 

Our Objective

 

In order to meet the needs of every level of the Connection and in every local church, the AME Church shall implement strategies to train all members in: (1) Christian discipleship, (2) Christian leadership, (3) current teaching methods and materials, (4) the history and significance of the AME Church, (5) God’s biblical principles, and (6) social development to which all should be applied to daily living.

 

Our Emblem and Motto

 

The emblem displays characteristics that can be equated to a significant aspect of the African Methodist Episcopal doctrine and belief.

The shape of the emblem is in the form of a three-pointed shield. The three points being symbolic of the original Church motto, "God our Father, Christ our Redeemer, Man our Brother."

A new motto, “God Our Father, Christ Our Redeemer, the Holy Spirit Our Comforter, Humankind Our Family”, was adopted at the 2008 General Conference in St. Louis, MO.

An anvil and cross occupy the center of the Emblem. The anvil represents the blacksmith shop in Philadelphia where the first AME Church was established and the cross represents the Church.

 

 

"RememberJesus Loves You!"

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