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Edgar Sanchez Father Divine was a great black Church leader during the Depression. Known as a God by this time, his early life remains a mystery amongst many historians, his birthplace listed in various states, the Carolinas, Georgia, and islands off the southeastern United States. His teachings included encouragement of his followers to eat freely and abundantly, and more importantly, equal rights. This was timely especially since the times included Jim Crow laws, which focused on the denunciation of blacks. In his twenties, Divine first started teaching in Sunday school in the black Baptist Church on Eden Street. By 1926, he had moved to Sayville and began attracting white members to his church. In 1929, with the onset of the Great Depression, Divine’s religion spread and his evangelistic approach became even more popular. Father Divine included interesting approaches to his early preachings. He refused to associate himself as a healer, and disregarded any claims that touching him would cure any ailments. He donned only a plain business suit and avoided any publicity, for he loathed any advertisement. He received his greatest fame when he broke away from the Negro Church at his time. During the early 1930s, black ministers ignored the Depression while Divine emphasized on catering the needs of the masses. Negro youth at the time were increasingly oriented towards "a practical religion which might be applied to one’s daily needs." In 1931, he encountered the first conflicts from his hostile Sayville neighbors, when they complained his followers were disturbing the peace with their shouts. This conflict was ensued by many more, which culminated in his arrest and a subsequent delayed trial for disturbing the peace. He did receive a year jail sentence and a $500 fine. After this trial, many more people converted to Divine’s church. They devoted themselves to Divine’s will, and collectively were known as the "Peace Mission", which included membership from every social background, economic level, and racial group. He became a role model for the poor and discouraged. Educated blacks showed an interest in his church, in part, due to his insistence on civil rights. Father Divine became an outstanding speaker and managed to captivate audiences at every meal he attended. He taught independence in both spirit and economic means, disregarding any state or private aid. He also taught honesty and self-discipline, and contributed to a lowered crime rate at the home cities of his "Peace Mission." His concerns extended to groups besides mistreated blacks, including the physically handicapped. Members were able, through the Mission's assistance, to have cheap food, shelter, a job, and a reformed life. New members were instructed to pay off their debts, cancel insurance, return any funds they might have stolen, and in the future to pay their own way in cash. After the events at Sayville, he moved to Harlem. In 1946, he married his second wife, Edna Rose Ritchings, a white Canadian, in 1946. About this time, he also moved his headquarters to Philadelphia, where he was given a suburban estate in 1954. It served as his country home until his death in 1965, when his body was enshrined there. After his death, Mother Divine, his wife, succeeded to leadership of the Movement and continues to administer its worldwide affairs.
Links http://www.americanreligion.org/cultwtch/frdivine.html
http://www.libertynet.org/fdipmm/
http://www.arigonstarr.com/Diva/dox/lyrics/frdivine.html
Works Consulted Burnham, Kenneth E. Father Divine and the Peace Mission Movement. Boston: Lambeth Press. 1979. Harris, Sara. Father Divine. NY: Colliers Brooks. 1953. Weisbrot, Robert. Father Divine and the Struggle for Racial Equality. Urbana: University of Illinois Press. 1983.
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