Posted May 22, 2006 to GDN Headlines | Section Home | Print

137th Annual Session of The North Carolina Annual Conference

137th Annual Session of The North Carolina Annual Conference 2nd Episcopal District Convenes At The Holiday Inn Bordeaux 1707 Owen Drive, Fayetteville, NC Host Church St. Luke AME, Fayetteville, NC May 18-20, 2006

In a few days Fayetteville will be filled with A.M.E.s. Don’t get them confused with any other denomination. They are sensitive about their name and proud of their heritage. They will come to North Carolina to carry on the history of their great church, African Methodist Episcopal.

It all started in 1787, when a group of blacks withdrew from St. George Methodist Episcopal Church in Philadelphia, Pa. protesting segregation in the Lord’s house. Two free blacks, Richard Allen and Absalom Jones, led the protest.

Richard Allen, the founder and first bishop of the African Methodist Episcopal (A.M.E.) church rose from slavery to organize the first independent black church in America. He was born a slave on February 14, 1760, sold to a Delaware farmer in 1767, purchased his freedom in 1786, returned to Philadelphia and became a traveling minister.

Bishop Allen and a small group of poor blacks bought an old blacksmith shop and moved it to a lot at the corner of South and Lombard Street in Philadelphia. There they organized Bethel A.M.E. Church. Mother Bethel stands as one of the historic shrines in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania today. Richard Allen and his wife Sarah are entombed in Mother Bethel. Today the African Methodist Episcopal Church is composed of 20 Districts throughout the United States, Virgin Isles, England, and Africa.

Approximately a decade after the Civil War, Mrs. Amanda, a resident of Fayetteville and a true Christian lady allowed a devout band of A.M.E.s to meet in her home to hold worship services. Answering a need for a minister to lead this small group, Presiding Bishop D. A. Payne sent Rev. J.E.C. Barham to Fayetteville to pastor this small group.

Since there was not an adequate place to worship, Rev. Barham was able to hold services in the City Hall and sometimes at the McKeithan’s Hall. It was at this time, St Luke A.M.E. Church was organized in September, 1879.

In 1881, a lot was purchased for $85.00 and the first church was built on Hay St. The church remained there until it was sold in 1917. It was relocated to Caswell Street. (Present location of the Airborne Museum). St. Luke AME Church remained at the Caswell location for a few years, until a larger sanctuary was needed.

In 1980, under the leadership of Rev. H. L. Ingram, a new sanctuary was built at its present location – 522 Hillsboro Street. It is important to note that St. Luke is the only African Methodist Episcopal Church in Fayetteville. The closest sister church is McCormick Chapel in Lumberton, NC. St. Luke is not a branch of the “Zion” churches. It is frequently confused with A.M.E. Zion but the two are different and under different leadership.

Through the years, many dynamic and spirit-led ministers have led St. Luke to greater endeavors. They have always fulfilled the mission of the original Free African Society out of which the A.M.E.Church evolved, that is, “to seek out and save the lost, and serve the needy.” The motto of the church is “Enter to Worship, Depart to Serve.”

Presently, the pastor at St. Luke A.M.E. Church is Rev. David L. Morrison, Sr., a forth generation minister. Under the leadership of this powerful man of God, St. Luke continues to grow, continues to answer and carry out the directions of God. Pastor Morrison is a traditionalist and a progressive leader. He upholds the traditions of the church and embraces the contemporary spiritual needs and ideas of the younger diverse congregation. Special emphasis is placed on the youth of St. Luke. They are being groomed as Godly, strongly A.M.E. leaders to continue the legacy of the African Methodist Episcopal (A.M.E.) church.

St. Luke A.M.E Church is busy preparing to host the 137th Annual Conference to be held in Fayetteville at the Holiday Inn Bordeaux, on May 18 through May 20. African Methodist Episcopal Churches’ from northern and southern North Carolina will convene to discuss the churches affairs. Over _1,200 people are expected to be in attendance. Bishop Adam Jefferson Richardson, of the Second Episcopal District will be the presiding prelate of this conference. Bishop A. J. Richardson was elected in 1996 as the 115th Bishop of the A.M.E. Church in Louisville, Kentucky. Bishop Richardson is a native of Florida and a graduate of Florida A & M University in Tallahassee, Florida and Turner Theological Seminary at the Interdenominational Theological Center in Atlanta, Georgia. He served as Bishop in Africa before coming to the Second District. Service will be held at the Holiday Inn Bordeaux each night of the conference. The public is invited. •