Universal Hagar’s Spiritual Church
The world Father Hurley and his contemporaries lived in was very different than ours, although we are still struggling with its legacy. The United States of America was partially founded, unfortunately, on racism and slavery. The Civil War, along with pressure from the Radical Republicans (the abolitionist party), forced President Abraham Lincoln’s hand to draft the Emancipation Proclamation, which took effect on January 1, 1863. (Wormser: (a)) Though the war had to continue before the slaves began to be released, it marked the beginning of the end of the physical slavery; mental slavery, however, continues to this day. In 1875 the Civil Rights Act was passed to ensure “full and equal enjoyment”. (Wormser: (b)) In 1883 it was declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court. (Wormser: (c)) Congress did not pass another Civil Rights bill until 1957. (Wormser: (c))These events, plus the continued racism, caused the former slaves to live in a horrible world of lynching, burning, and general unfairness. Imagine walking out your door and seeing your best friend dead, hanging in a tree, or maybe your cousin, or even your mother or father – this was a reality for African-Americans. Imagine having to bow your head low whenever a certain kind of person walked by – this was how Blacks had to respond to Whites. Imagine being told everyday that you are an animal, worthless, less than human, and not worthy to live – this was the reality of the former slaves.
Marcus Garvey, DuPont Bell, Noble Drew Ali, Wallace D. Fard, the Honorable Elijah Muhammad, Father Divine, Sweet Daddy Grace, Father Elias Dempsey Smith, and many other Black leaders emerged in the late 19th and early 20th century to respond to this worldview. They also took issue with the American Christian world’s apparent inability to reach out to the Black race and uplift them. It is no secret that some racist White ministers used their pulpits to preach discrimination and oppression.
A great deal of academic work has been done on all of the leaders just mentioned, however one of their most powerful, intelligent, and spiritual contemporaries is still largely unknown and ignored by scholars. This leader is Father George William Hurley….
Father Hurley was raised in the Protestant tradition. His mother, Tina Hurley, began raising him as a Methodist, but after a few years they became Baptist. At the age of seven he began to preach in the churches and challenge the ministers and was ordained at the age of 11. In 1897, at the age of 13, the Spirit of God revealed to him his great Commission. After high school he went to Tuskegee Institute and Phelps Bible Hall Training School to receive ministerial training. Dr. E. J. Penny was Phelps’ dean and Father Hurley’s ministerial instructor.
By the time he reached his early 20s, Reverend Hurley… was known, especially among southern Baptists, as a dynamic preacher and orator with a seeming special relationship with God. It was not just his ability to ‘woo’ the crowd that made him popular; it was his ability to expound on the teachings of Christ in such a way that even the more uneducated members, which were many times the majority, were able to comprehend the lessons of the Gospel.
In around 1918 or 1919 Reverend Hurley met Father Elias D. Smith, founder of the Triumph the Church and Kingdom of God in Christ, which was founded on January 20, 1904, popularly known as the Triumph Church (Triumph Church website). He was spiritually moved by Father Smith and his teachings and consequently joined. After several years, he reached the level of Elder and the presiding Prince of Michigan, but became dissatisfied with the teachings of the Triumph Church. He disagreed with the way they taught the Bible and how some of the ministers purposely lacked clarity in their explanations of the Gospel to the congregation, among other things. [This possibly could be due to the fact that the Triumph Church began moving away from its original teachings after Father Smith passed away in January 1920 while on a trip to Addis Ababa Abyssinia.] After this he briefly joined the International Spiritual Church, but again he was not completely content. So on September 23, 1923 he founded the Universal Hagar’s Spiritual Association (later changing ‘Association’ to ‘Church’).
References
Triumph Church website. “History of Triumph Church”, 19 Feb. 2004 <http://www.triumphchurch-jax2.org/history.html>.
Wormser, Richard.(a) “The Emancipation Proclamation (1863)”, 19 Feb. 2004 <http://www.pbs.org/wnet/jimcrow/stories_events_emancipate.html>.
Wormser, Richard.(b) “Civil Rights Act (1875)”, 19 Feb. 2004 <http://www.pbs.org/wnet/jimcrow/ stories_events_civil.html>.
Wormser, Richard.(c) “Civil Rights Act of 1875 Declared Unconstitutional”, 19 Feb. 2004 <http://www.pbs.org/wnet/jimcrow/stories_events_uncivil.html>.
Short excerpt from “Father Hurley as a Light Among His Contemporaries” by Rev. George Latimer-Knight, first presented at the American Academy of Religion Midwest Meeting, April 2, 2004, at the DePaul Center in Chicago, Illinois.
Thank you for this message of the UHSC. As a member of the UHSC, I appreciate the way in which you presented Father Hurley and the history of our church.
While I appreciate the desire to celebrate African American culture, and have an appreciation and reverence for those who came before us, I do not see how anyone in this religion (UHSC) can consider themselves Christian in any stretch of the imagination.
How do you have a separate set of “ten commandments”, which essentially contradict the teachings of Jesus Christ? (e.g., not praying for your enemies?)
In Matthew 7:15, Jesus says: “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves.”
I will pray for all of you. But perhaps you should read your Bibles a bit more carefully..
Perhaps, John you should do a little more research before you judge and study who you really are. Also take into consideration who really wrote the Bible. Study to know thyself. And by the way we are not African Americans we were in this country before the white man. Study my Brother Study
Kudos, Sister Theresa! If more of us really knew ourselves or even CARED to know,our eyes might really come open. John, I pray that you really DO study…a LOT more. Peace
I relly apprecite all that you all do for U.S.H.C and ive enjoyed my self sence I’ve been in the church and we love u Father Hurley!