Lift Every Voice: Celebrating Black History Month
2/7/2023
Through the month of February the OKUMC will be sharing “Lift Every Voice - Celebrating Black History” video series. Join us every Wednesday posting at 10 am on the conference Youtube, facebook and Instagram channels.
Rev. Dr. Bessie Hamilton
ViaFaith McCullough
On Feb. 1 Rev. Dr. Bessie Hamilton the Associate Director of Connectional Ministry for New Faith Communities and Multi Ethnic Initiatives will give an introductory look at this series and the history of Black History Month.
On Feb. 8 Rev. Dr. Joe Harris, the conference director of communications and assistant to the bishop will share about Black leaders in the Oklahoma Conference on whose shoulders we stand.
On Feb. 15 ViaFaith McCullough, the new Program Director for Project Transformation, reflects on the legacy of Daisy L. Gatson Bates, and her commitment to mobilizing young adults to leadership.
And finally, on Feb. 22, Ash Wednesday, Rev. Valerie Steele, the pastor of Quail Springs UMC will share about the history of Black Methodists and how they were able to shift the vision of the church in difficult times.
Lift Every Voice and Sing - the hymn
Often referred to as “The Black National Anthem,” Lift Every Voice and Sing was a hymn written as a poem by NAACP leader James Weldon Johnson in 1900. His brother, John Rosamond Johnson (1873-1954), composed the music for the lyrics. A choir of 500 schoolchildren at the segregated Stanton School, where James Weldon Johnson was principal, first performed the song in public in Jacksonville, Florida, to celebrate President Abraham Lincoln’s birthday.
Set against the religious invocation of God and the promise of freedom, the song was later prominently used as a rallying cry during the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s.
On Feb. 8 Rev. Dr. Joe Harris, the conference director of communications and assistant to the bishop will share about Black leaders in the Oklahoma Conference on whose shoulders we stand.
On Feb. 15 ViaFaith McCullough, the new Program Director for Project Transformation, reflects on the legacy of Daisy L. Gatson Bates, and her commitment to mobilizing young adults to leadership.
And finally, on Feb. 22, Ash Wednesday, Rev. Valerie Steele, the pastor of Quail Springs UMC will share about the history of Black Methodists and how they were able to shift the vision of the church in difficult times.
Lift Every Voice and Sing - the hymn
Often referred to as “The Black National Anthem,” Lift Every Voice and Sing was a hymn written as a poem by NAACP leader James Weldon Johnson in 1900. His brother, John Rosamond Johnson (1873-1954), composed the music for the lyrics. A choir of 500 schoolchildren at the segregated Stanton School, where James Weldon Johnson was principal, first performed the song in public in Jacksonville, Florida, to celebrate President Abraham Lincoln’s birthday.
Set against the religious invocation of God and the promise of freedom, the song was later prominently used as a rallying cry during the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s.
Rev. Dr. Joe Harris
Rev. Valerie Steele