Black History Month: John Henry Newton, Part III

I gave a presentation at my church where I portrayed John Henry Newton, the slave ship captain turned Anglican priest and abolitionist who wrote Amazing Grace. Here is Part 3.

I spent 16 years at my first call. Pastoral care and preaching were my specialties. The church had to add on to its structure in order to accommodate those who came to hear me preach.

From there I accepted a call to a parish in London. It was there where I met William Wilberforce. William was a young Member of Parliament and a recent convert to evangelical Christianity. Politics being what they are, William sensed a conflict between his newfound faith and his vocation. I encouraged him to remain in his vocation and serve God right where he was.

It was through William Wilberforce that I began to reconsider my attitude towards slavery and the slave trade industry. You see, I was 25 when I had my conversion experience, but it was not until I was 63 that I published a pamphlet that detailed the horrors of the slave trade industry and repented of my actions so many years ago. The Holy Spirit worked both an initial conversion as well as a continuing renewal throughout my life.

From that time on, I worked with my friend William Wilberforce to abolish slavery in England. Slavery wasn’t just a means to get cheap labor, it was an industry. And undoing an industry is challenging to say the least.

William and I persevered, though. Remember, he was a Member of Parliament. He used his influence there and forged partnerships with many people across England’s many political parties. In 1807 Parliament passed what it called, “An Act for the Abolition of the Slave Trade.” Today’s history books call it the Slave Trade Act of 1807. That was in March. I passed away in December of that year at the age of 82.

Black History Month: John Henry Newton, Part II

I gave a presentation at my church where I portrayed John Henry Newton, the slave ship captain turned Anglican priest who wrote Amazing Grace. Here is Part 2.

There on the ship back to England I called out to God during a violent storm as the ship filled with water. When the storm calmed I began to read the Bible. By the time the journey had ended the Holy Spirit began working saving faith in me. I gave up drinking, gambling, and profanity.

I still had things to learn, though. I continued to work the slave ships. It was during my next position on these ships that I professed my Christian faith and asked God to control my destiny. I was 25 at the time.

Of course, at such a young age I still thought I knew everything. I continued in the slave trading business until I had a stroke, and even after that I continued to invest in that industry, even though I could no longer sail.

At the age of 30 I became a tax collector at the port of Liverpool. I studied the biblical languages of Greek, Hebrew and Syriac. I was well-known as a lay-preacher, and sought ordination in the Church of England at the age of 32. They rejected me at first. So did the Methodists, Independents and Presbyterians. Finally, at the age of 39, a friend recommended me to a bishop, and the Church of England ordained me after a short vicarage.

Black History Month: John Henry Newton, Part I

I gave a presentation at my church where I portrayed John Henry Newton, the slave ship captain turned Anglican priest who wrote Amazing Grace. Here is Part 1.

John Henry Newton is my name. The details of my life are a little sketchy. Afterall, I am 275 years old! So bear with me, here, I am working with what I have. If it's on Wiki, it has to be true, right?

I was born in London in 1725. My mother was “non-conformist Christian,” meaning she was a practicing Christian but did not care for the excesses of the Church of England. She died of TB when I was six.

My father was a shipmaster in the Mediterranean, and he didn’t have much at all to do with religion.

At the age of 11, I went to sea with my father, and by 18 I had sailed six voyages with him.

My father planned for me to be a slave master on a sugar plantation in Jamaica. Instead I was pressed into serving the Royal Navy as captain of a slave ship. “Pressed into serving” really means I had no choice in the matter. Coercion was a common tactic for the Royal Navy to ensure they had enough men to meet their needs.

Of course, coercion doesn’t make loyalty, and I hated my job. I was bounced from ship to ship, demoted from captain all the way to the lowest level of seaman. At one point I was given over to an African duchess and treated like the slaves themselves. I was once an infidel, a rogue, and a servant of the slaves in Africa.
The difference between me and the slaves was that my father put the word out and a sea captain rescued me.

Amazing Grace, How Sweet the Sound
with
Amazing Grace Shall Always Be My Song of Praise

Black History Month: God Has Smiled on Me

Another song I had to learn pronto when I began playing for an urban congregation was "God Has Smiled on Me."

"Do you know this one, Iggy? We sing it here ALOT!"

"I am sorry, but I haven't heard it, so give me a week or two to work it out!"

To make matters a little more complicated, there are about as many arrangements of this song as there are congregations that sing it.

This recording is about as close as I could find to the way it is sung at my congregation. We take it a little faster, though.

I like this song as a Lutheran because it clearly places the Christian's conversion in God's power.

God has smiled on me;
He has set me free.
God has smiled on me;
He's been good to me.

Occasionally you find that someone picks up the refain and puts their own twist on the stanzas. Here's Mary Mary with their own take on this gospel classic.

Here's an a capella arrangement that works in "Amazing Grace" as the stanzas while the melody from the refrain is hummed underneath. Unfortunately the recording cuts out a bit early, but at least the creative aspect is captured.

And finally, this song was written by Rev. James Cleveland, and here is his arrangement.

Black History Month: Till Now We Stand At Last

Here's the African-American National Anthem, sung during the Divine Service in the rural Midwest. The note over on youtube states, "Angel and Cindi sing 'Lift Every Voice' in honor of Independence Day during the Offering."  After listening, please check out the website for St. Paul Lutheran Church in Hamel, Illinois.

See Hymn 964 in Lutheran Service Book for the music.

Lift every voice and sing,
'Til earth and heaven ring,
Ring with the harmonies of Liberty;
Let our rejoicing rise
High as the listening skies,
Let it resound loud as the rolling sea.
Sing a song full of the faith
that the dark past has taught us,
Sing a song full of the hope
that the present has brought us;
Facing the rising sun of our new day begun,
Let us march on 'til victory is won.

Stony the road we trod,
Bitter the chast'ning rod,
Felt in the days when hope unborn had died;
Yet with a steady beat,
Have not our weary feet
Come to the place for which our fathers sighed?
We have come over a way
that with tears has been watered,
We have come, treading our path
through the blood of the slaughtered,
Out from the gloomy past,
'Til now we stand at last
Where the white gleam of our bright star is cast.

God of our weary years,
God of our silent tears,
Thou who has brought us thus far on the way;
Thou who has by Thy might
Led us into the light,
Keep us forever in the path, we pray.
Lest our feet stray from the places,
our God, where we met Thee,
Lest, our hearts drunk with the wine of the world,
we forget Thee;
Shadowed beneath Thy hand,
May we forever stand,
True to our God,
True to our native land.

Black History Month: The Blood Will Never Lose It's Power, Part II

I got wind that the group in the video below (Selah) was performing for free at the local non-denominational mega-church.  It was on a Thursday night, so I made the trek up to the northwest suburbs.

Having never been to this church and wishing to go unnoticed, I slipped up to the balcony of the auditorium.  I couldn't help but notice that most of the African-Americans in attendance sat up there as well.

It turns out that the brother and sister of this group were missionary kids in Africa, and the sister sang in the gospel choir at Wheaton College when she was a student there.  That gospel choir's conductor happened to be in attendance, and they invited her on stage towards the end of the performance.  They decided to sing "The Blood Will Never Loose It's Power."

Singing backup from the balcony were the African Americans in attendance and myself :)

Here's Selah with "The Blood Will Never Loose It's Power"

It should be noted here that this church is actively involved in issues bridging race relations, so I do not want to paint a picture of segregation there. I am merely telling my experience on one given evening.

Black History Month: The Blood Will Never Lose It's Power, Part I

A few of the songs I had to learn pronto when I began playing for an urban congregation were

• The Blood Will Never Lose It's Power
• God Has Smiled On Me
• We've Come This Far by Faith
• Lead Me, Guide Me

One of the more difficult ones was "The Blood Will Never Lose It's Power."

Israel Houghton tells the story about a song-writing workshop he was leading where all those in attendance were all sitting around talking about the bad songs they wrote when they first started song writing.  In walks Andrae Crouch.  He asked Andrae about the first song he wrote.  Andrae sat down at the piano and played, "The Blood Will Never Lose It's Power."  Apparently Andrae never wrote a bad song when he first started.

Here's Andrae Crouch closing out the Mike Douglas Entertainment Hour in 1981. Andrae is at the piano. Mike Douglas is singing backup between two couples. One of those couples looks like Donnie and Marie Osmond :) Most of the people are still wearing 70's clothes except for the guy in the leather sport coat with a leather tie. He's a little ahead of his time!