International Peace Mission Movement - Father Divine, Doctrine of Father Divine, Edna Rose Ritchings, Woodmont (Gladwyne, Pennsylvania) (Paperback)

Chapters: Father Divine, Doctrine of Father Divine, Edna Rose Ritchings, Woodmont (Gladwyne, Pennsylvania). Source: Wikipedia. Pages: 36. Not illustrated. Free updates online. Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: Great MigrationCivil Rights Movements 18961954 and19551968Second Great MigrationAfrocentrism Father Divine (c. 1876 September 10, 1965), also known as Reverend M.J. Divine, was an African American spiritual leader from about 1907 until his death. His full self-given name was Reverend Major Jealous Divine, and he was also known as "the Messenger" and George Baker early in his life. He founded the International Peace Mission movement, formulated its doctrine, and oversaw its growth from a small and predominantly black congregation into a multiracial and international church. Controversially, Father Divine claimed to be God. Some contemporary critics also claimed he was a charlatan, and some suppose him to be one of the first modern cult leaders. However, Father Divine made numerous contributions toward his followers' economic independence and racial equality. Little is definitively known about Father Divine's early life, or even his real given name. Father Divine and the Peace Movement he started did not keep many records. Father Divine himself declined several offers to write his biography, saying that the history of God would not be useful in mortal terms. He also refused to acknowledge relationship to any family. Newspapers in the 1930s had to dig up his probable given name: George Baker. His childhood remains a contentious point. Some, especially earlier researchers, suppose that Father Divine was born in the Deep South, most likely in Georgia as the son of sharecroppers. Newer research by Jill Watts, based on census data, finds evidence for a George Baker Jr. of appropriate age born in an African America...More: http://booksllc.net/?id=647442