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ca.1864-1871 Robert Josias Morgan born in
Chapelton,
Clarendon Parish, Jamaica, to Robert Josias and Mary Ann (née Johnson) Morgan.
Church of England
ca.1890-1895 According to the Daily Gleaner report of October 9, 1901 , Robert stated that he served five years in
West Africa, of which he spent three years in missionary work. This period included:
1901 The Daily Gleaner of October 9, 1901, reported that "the Rev. R. J. Morgan gave an interesting address on West Africa and mission work".
1902 The Daily Gleaner of October 7, 1902, reported that a lecture would be delivered in
Port Maria by the Rev. R.J. Morgan of the American Episcopal Church, entitled "Africa - lts people, Tribes, Idolatry, Customs."
Questioning Faith
ca.1902-1905 Deacon Morgan served at Richmond, Virginia, and in 1905 at Nashville, Tennessee.
ca.1902-1904 Robert began intensive study
Anglicanism,
Catholicism, and
Eastern Orthodoxy over a three year period, to discover what he felt was the true religion. He concluded that the
Orthodox Church was "the pillar and ground of truth".
Orthodoxy
1904 Robert travels to the
Russian Empire including sites in Odessa, St. Petersburg, Moscow and
Kiev, becoming quite the sensation; Morgan's letter to Vestnik (Russian-American Orthodox Messenger), published in October/November 1904 issue.
In Philadelphia
ca.1905-1907 For another three years, Robert studied under Greek priests in
Philadelphia for his
baptism.
1906 Robert assisted in the Christmas liturgy at the Greek Orthodox Church in Philadelphia; the Philadelphia Inquirer reported on January 8, 1906, that “Rev. R.J. Morgan of the American Catholic Church, an off-shoot of the Protestant Episcopal Church, assisted."
1907 June 18, Fr. Demetrios Petrides, the Greek priest then serving the Philadelphia community writes a letter of rrecommendation on behalf of Robert to the
Ecumenical Patriarchate; the the "Ecclesiastical Committee" of the Philadelphia Greek Orthodox Church sent a second letter of support as well.
In Constantinople
1907 August 2, The
Holy Synod of Constantinople approved that Robert's
Baptism take place the following Sunday in the Church of the Life-giving Source at the Patriarchal Monastery at Balıklı, in Constantinople.
1907 August 4, Robert received baptism by triple immersion, and baptized as "Raphael" before 3000 people,by Metropolitan
Joachim (Phoropoulos) of Pelagonia.
1907 August 12, Robert was ordained a deacon in the Greek Orthodox Church by Metropolitan Joachim (Phoropoulos) of Pelagonia.
1907 Late August, At a special service Robert was duly commissioned Priest-Apostolic from the Ecumenical and Patriarchal Throne of Constantinople, to America and the West Indies.
1907 October 2, The minutes of the Holy Synod made it clear that Fr. Raphael was to be under the jurisdiction of Rev. Petrides of Philadelphia, until such time as he had been trained in liturgics and was able to establish a separate Orthodox parish.
In America
1907 December,
Ellis Island records indicate the arrival in New York from Naples, Italy, of the priest, Raffaele Morgan.
1907-1908 Fr. Raphael baptized his wife and children in the
Orthodox Church.
1908 November 4, the minutes of the Holy Synod cite a letter from Fr. Raphael recommending an Anglican priest of Philadelphia, named "A.C.V. Cartier" as a candidate for conversion to Orthodoxy and ordination as a priest; Cartier was rector of the
African Episcopal Church of St. Thomas, in Philadelphia, from 1906-12; (Rev.
George Alexander McGuire had been rector of The African Episcopal Church of St. Thomas in Philadelphia from 1902-05).
1908 The
Episcopal Church of the USA suspended Fr. Rapahel (Robert) from ministry on the allegations of abandoning his post.
1909 His wife filed for divorce, leaving with their son Cyril to Delaware County, where she remarried; Fr. Raphael retained custody of his teenaged daughter.
Overseas trip
1911 Fr. Raphael sailed to Cyprus, presumably to be tonsured a
hieromonk; it is also possible that he was tonsured in Athens, Greece, as the
Church of Greece had been given responsibility over the
Greek Church in America since 1908.
In Jamaica
1913 The Jamaica Times article of 26 April 1913 wrote that Fr. Raphael was headquartered at Philadelphia where he wanted to build a chapel for his missionary efforts, that he had recently visited Europe to collect funds to this end, and had the intention of extending his work to the West Indies.
1914 Daily Gleaner edition of November 2, 1914, Fr. Raphael had just set sail back for America to start mission work under his Faith.
In Philadelphia - Last Known Records
1916 October 4, Fr. Raphael wrote a letter to the Daily Gleaner, representing a group of about a dozen other like-minded Jamaican-Americans, he wrote to protest the lectures of Black Nationalist
Marcus Garvey.
A Possible Inspiration for McGuire and the "African Orthodox Church" (AOC)?
1921 September 2, in the Church of the Good Shepherd in New York City,
George Alexander McGuire (1866-1934) founded the "
African Orthodox Church" (AOC), envisaged as a home for blacks of the protestant Episcopal persuasion who wanted ecclesiastical independence.
1921 September 28, Fr. McGuire had himself re-ordained Bishop in the American Catholic Church being consecrated in Chicago, Illinois, by Archbishop
Joseph René Vilatte, assisted by bishop Carl A. Nybladh who had been consecrated by Vilatte.
1924 August, shortly after the
UNIA convention in August 1924, McGuire broke with Garvey and focused on expanding his church, which mostly attracted Anglican West Indian immigrants.
1924 The newly organized conclave of the
African Orthodox Church (AOC) unanimously elected McGuire Archbishop of the church.
1924-1934 McGuire built the AOC into a thriving international church. Branches were eventually established in: Canada, Barbados, Cuba, South Africa, Uganda, Kenya, Miami, Chicago, Harlem, Boston, Cambridge (Massachusetts), and elsewhere. The official organ of AOC, The Negro Churchman, became an effective link for the far-flung organization.
I have conducted extensive editing to make this more manageable - it is supposed to be a bio article of Morgan, not a history of African-American influences or inspiration in Orthodoxy all over the world and in current times. There are too many assumptions by editors abotu his influence. Stick to Reliable Sources, preferably Secondary ones, and not just those written praising him during his lifetime.
Parkwells (
talk)
15:55, 28 August 2018 (UTC)reply