Black History Month--Church History from the Voice of a Former Slave

For the last several years, February has been designated Black History Month.  One very negative aspect of American history that still evokes strong emotions was the era of slavery.  In relation to many segments of society, the memories of slaves are fairly rare.  Slave narratives nevertheless provide a window into the past from the viewpoint of those who were held in bondage against their will with little hope of obtaining freedom.

Some people want to forget this era in American history.  I personally don't think that would be a good idea.  I think it's important to use history as a tool to educate people regarding themselves.  In my opinion, human nature seems to be very static.  People will exploit others for their own material benefit, regardless of the moral ramifications.  Slavery still exists today, although it's not based upon race.  The reason?  Money and greed.  Racism definitely played an important role in the slavery of African Americans in the American South.  I would ask the question if it would've been prevalent if people had not thought the institution would materially enrich them.  I seriously doubt it.  As George Santayana once stated, "Those who cannot remember the past are doomed to repeat it."

That brings me to the point of this post.  My next lecture is on slavery in America.  That may not seem to have much to do with American church history, but in one way it does.  One of the really cool things about modern technology is the ability to record things that were impossible to save in earlier years.  Beginning in 1932, twenty-three former slaves contributed oral interviews that recounted their reminiscences of their time in slavery.  This oral history is interesting to say the least.  I am planning to utilize a video of one of these interviews in class to give students the opportunity to hear first-hand what former slaves thought of the institution.  One of the more famous of the interviewees was 101-year-old Fountain Hughes.  One of the topics, near the middle of the clip below, that Hughes discussed was the worship of the slaves.  This is an abridged version of the interview, but I would encourage any readers to check out these very interesting interviews that provide a look into the lives of former slaves many years after their emancipation.  Unsurprisingly, they did not view slavery in a positive light.  Hughes' comment at the end of the clip gives a good example of his opinion of slavery.  Here is a link to the video:

Historic West Virginia Church

The weather definitely has a bit of a chill this evening.  The North Dakota winter is on its way, and the days are getting much shorter.  The semester is quite busy, and I have several assignments due in the next week.  As I was going through some photos from the summer, I reviewed a few that I took of a historic church in my home state of West Virginia while visiting in early August.

The Virginia's Chapel Church is historic because of the date of its erection--1853--and because of the fact that both Union and Confederate forces used the building for services during the Civil War in the Kanawha Valley, among other things.  A website kept up by a chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution includes some information on the building, as does the following picture of one of those road signs that designate historical sites:

Many weddings and funerals occurred in this church building over the years. How many people worshiped in this old building and are now forgotten--a name on one of the tombstones in the churchyard?  What types of people worshiped here?  At least the builder of the building was a wealthy man.  Did his workers attend?  How were they cared for otherwise?  These are the types of questions arise when thinking about the past.

The church that I'm currently researching in Grand Forks comes to mind, as well.  What causes some buildings to be deemed worthy of restoration, while others are plowed under with a bulldozer?  How many have been razed for the erection of a newer, shinier, flashier building?  What is lost when this happens?  Hopefully, some of the memories of times past are preserved when this happens.  Some of the memories are significant, others, not so much.  However, a remembrance of the people and activities of the past inform us as to who we are today (and why we are the way we are, in many instances).

The Civil War and Baptists

I'm sure that among those who have an interest in American church history, there are many who are also interested in the American Civil War.  Special collections exist that are dedicated entirely to this conflict.  There are several accounts of a revival that broke out on both sides of the conflict.  A minister, J. William Jones, penned a well-known account of this revival in his work titled Christ in the Camp.  Jones tells of baptizing hundreds of new converts.  The Civil War saw foxhole religion at its finest.

Upon perusing the web a couple of days ago, I found a website that is dedicated to Baptist activity during the Civil War.  Baptists and the American Civil War is a site that includes documentary evidence that corresponds to each day of the war, beginning with a commemoration of the 150th anniversary of the firing on Fort Sumter.  Baptists and the American Civil War is a digital project conceived by Bruce Gourley of the Baptist History and Heritage Society, although it appears that the site has multiple contributors.   A new entry appears each day, so those with an interest in the Civil War will find much to occupy their time.  In addition to those with a general interest in Civil War history, those with curiosity geared toward Baptist history may find even more of interest.