This path was created by Craig Dietrich. The last update was by Will Luers.
Father Divine
Father Divine founded the Peace Mission, an interracial and
celibate community, in Harlem in the 1919 as a response to the racism, as well
as spiritual and economic poverty, that had followed African Americans since
the Civil War.
Central to Father Divines popularity and his growing community
of followers was his economic success during the era of the Great Depression.
The weekly Holy Communion Banquet Service, a ritual feast with lavish
multi-course meals, singing, dancing, and spirited sermons, must have appeared
miraculous in contrast to the surrounding poverty. Through a communal economic
plan, Father Divine and his followers had amassed great wealth by the 1940s.
They owned income-producing real estate and businesses in cities such as New
York, Los Angeles, and Philadelphia, as well as in rural communities along the
Hudson River. This economic power enabled the Peace Mission to confront racism.
Peace Mission co-workers were employed in collectively owned hotels, shops,
garages, domestic services, farms and cafeterias. These businesses served
members of all races and religions without question, offering African Americans
quality accommodations and services several decades before the American Civil
Rights Movement.