Black Itinerants of the Gospel The Narratives of John Jea and George White [Paperback]

John Jea (b. 1773) and George White (1764-c.1830) were two of the earliest African-American autobiographers, writing nearly a half-century before Frederick Douglass published his famous narrative chronicling his experiences as a slave, a freedman, and an ardent abolitionist. Jea and White represent an earlier generation of African-Americans that were born into slavery but granted their freedom shortly after American independence, in the 1780s. Both men chose to fight against slavery from the pulpit, as itinerant Methodist ministers in the North. Methodism's staunch anti-slavery stance, acceptance of African-American congregants, and widespread use of itinerant preachers enhanced black religious practices and services in the late eighteenth century and the nineteenth century. Graham Hodges' substantial introduction to the book places these two narratives into historical context, and highlights several key themes, including slavery in the North, the struggle for black freedom after the Revolution, and the rise of African-American Christianity.Introduction; Graham Russell Hodges A Brief Account of the Life, Experience, Travels and Gospel Labours of George White, An African (1810); G.White The Life, History, and Unparalleled Sufferings of John Jea, the African Preacher (c.1800) J. Jea Appendix 1 Hymns from A Collection of Hymns Compiled and Selected by John Jea, African Preacher of the Gospel Appendix 2 Membership by Race in the Methodist Episcopal Church, New York - New Jersey Area, 1788-1828

In this marvelous work of recovery and restoration, Graham Russell Hodges introduces readers to two African preachers whose autobiographies shed light upon the fascinating period in post-Revolutionary America when African American culture congealed in the fires of religious enthusiasm and political radicalism. - Professor Milton C. Sernett, Syracuse University

In Black Itinerants of the Gospel, Graham Russell Hodges has made available the long-out-of-pl��