While we all recognize the names of Harriet Tubman, Frederick Douglass and Martin Luther King, Jr., from our studies of Black History Month, there are many other African American heroes who were important in the struggle for freedom and equality but whose names aren’t as widely known. These men and women are a vital part of our nation’s religious heritage, as well, and without their contributions, we might not even have had a Martin Luther King, Jr. So, I would like to highlight a few of those here today.
Many black preachers alive today are renowned for their impressive sermon oratory, but this is nothing new in African-American history. One of the earliest American black preachers to be appreciated and respected for his sermon delivery was Rev. Harry Hosier, who was the first to preach to white audiences during the post-Revolutionary War era. He was born a slave in North Carolina and freed in Maryland toward the end of the war, but remained illiterate despite traveling with the famed leader of American Methodism Francis Asbury. This is what made his sermon delivery all the more impressive. One of his most famous sermons, “The Barren Fig Tree,” based on Luke 13:6-9, goes down in history as the first formal sermon delivered by an African American. Always humble, Rev. Hosier credited his faith in God for everything he accomplished.