Sale 2471 - Printed & Manuscript African Americana, March 29, 2018

344 343 c   (RELIGION.) Programs and other papers of the Mother African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church in Harlem. 93 items (0.2 linear feet) in one box; condition gen- erally strong. Vp, 1925-74 [500/750] The Mother African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church is New York’s oldest African-American church, founded in 1796. Its present building on West 137th Street was completed in 1925. These papers collected by a member include an 18-page manuscript record of donors to their 1925 Mortgage Fund Rally, listing many hundreds of individual donors and their gifts. A total of $23,571 was raised, almost all of it in small gifts under $50. Also included are 12 programs and handbills for events at the church, 1925-1972: the 1925 dedication program, 3 pageants titled “Crowned Kings and Jeweled Queens,” “America’s Unfinished Battles,” and “The Royal Celebrities,” 1929-31; the dedication of a light in honor of the pastor’s late wife Martha Hill Brown, 1929; the 1946 mortgage burning ceremony; and musical programs, 1950-72, most notably a concert by Duke Ellington in 1972. A file of 30 photographs and other memorabilia relates to a missionary trip to Africa in 1971. Also included are 11 copies of general A.M.E. publications such as the Missionary Seer from 1949-70, clippings, brochures, and miscellaneous other papers. 344    (RELIGION.) Minds and Attention, Love and Devotion, Ideas and Opinions all Concentrated on the Fundamental God Father Divine. Two-color poster, 22 x 28 inches; minor wear, short tape repair on verso, unmounted. [Philadelphia?], circa 1940s or 1950s [500/750] A devotional poster issued by the popular spiritual leader Reverend Major Jealous Divine (1876-1965), usually known as Father Divine. He preached at Sayville, Long Island from 1919-1931; Harlem from 1932-1942; and the Philadelphia area from 1942 until his death. He was using the “Minds and attention, love and devotion, ideas and opinions” slogan in his preaching as early as 1937. After his death, the American cult leader Jim Jones (1931-1978) recruited a few of Divine’s followers, and encouraged them to sing an adapted version of this message: “Minds and attention / Love and devotion / All directed to you / It’s true” (Los Angeles Times, 24 November 1978). No copies of this poster traced in OCLC.