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The Teachings Of Father Divine 's Mission

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Notoriously recognized as a spiritual figure self- proclaimed as “God”, Father Divine was a controversial figure in the 20th century in the midst of a divided nation. The abundance of racial inequality in the United States catalyzed the rejection of Father Divine’s mission; a mission completely blind to the criteria of race, gender, or previous religious background. Whether one supports or rejects the teachings of Father Divine, one cannot deny that Father Divine’s mission congregated a diverse following in a nation that actively denied civil liberties to individuals based on sex, racial identity, and religious associations. Father Divine, a black man born in the late 1800’s, was born in Rockville, Maryland with parents who endured the …show more content…

Declaring himself as “God” was a personal sentiment towards his leadership of a movement that reflected peace and tranquility. Serving as the “God” of his people, he “set the Standard for a real American as being a citizen of the world, without being limited being limited to family, race, nationality, or religion” (Divine, 35). Still maintaining a sense of nationalism, Father Divine aimed to reassess what it means to truly be an American. Father Divine opposes the national status quo and stresses the importance of inclusivity. Given the time period and its distaste for inclusivity, his following is regarded of as a “colt”, many overlooked the important factor that he was able to transcend race and rectify the division the United Sates tries to procure. Along with the stress of inclusivity, Father Divine acknowledges that all people are different; consequently, he embraces those differences and unifies a diverse group of people under one common interest. One does not need to believe the lessons set forth by Father Divine in order to understand that his goal was to oppose discrimination in a land tarnished by segregation. His qualifications for joining the peace movement stemmed in being ““Real Americans in that they are people of different racial, national, religious, and social backgrounds” (Divine, 20). On top of stressing inclusivity, Father Divine also emphasizes the imperativeness of diversity. It is a

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