As you all know, I’m participating in a Daily Shoot photo challenge where I take a photo each day and post it to Flickr.com.

Here is the photo I took on Sunday:

Timeline:

November 6, 1746 – Absalom Jones was born as an enslaved person in the colony of Delaware.

1762 – Absalom Jones was sold to a man in Philadelphia.

1770 – Mr. Jones married a woman named Mary King who was also a slave.

1778 – Absalom Jones bought his wife’s freedom using money he saved.

1785 – Mr. Jones bought his own freedom.

1786 – Absalom Jones became one of the first African-American ministers in the Methodist Church.

1787 – Absalom Jones and Richard Allen founded the Free African Society.

1792 – Mr. Jones started The The African Episcopal Church of St. Thomas, the first black church in Philadelphia.

1804 – Absalom Jones officially became the first African-American to be ordained as an Episcopal priest in the United States.

February 13, 1818 – Absalom Jones died at his home in Philadelphia.

1973 – Absalom Jones was added to the Episcopal Church calendar as an optional feast day to recognize his accomplishments and service to people in need.

On November 6, 1746, Absalom Jones was born as an enslaved person in the colony of Delaware. Even as a young person, Absalom had a desire to learn and accomplish important things. He taught himself to read and learned the New Testament of the Bible.

In 1762, when Absalom was sixteen years old, his mother, five brothers and sister were all sold to different masters. Absalom Jones was sold to a man in Philadelphia and moved there from Delaware. He worked in a store during the day, but was also able to work for himself in the evenings and save what he earned. These savings would be very important in Mr. Jones life.

In 1770, Mr. Jones married a woman named Mary King who was also a slave. Mr. Jones worked hard to buy his wife’s freedom in 1778. Mr. Jones and his wife especially wanted her to be free so that any children they had would be born free. The laws at that time – like the Virginia Slavery Act of 1662 – said that babies born to an enslaved woman would also be enslaved. Babies born to a free woman would also be free.

Absalom Jones continued to work hard and was able to purchase his own freedom in 1785. He also used the money he had saved to buy a house for his family and two other houses that he rented out to other people. Mr. Jones’ hard work and wise decisions were a good example to other people in Philadelphia.

By 1786, Absalom Jones had become one of the first African-American ministers in the Methodist Church. He and his friend Richard Allen got tired of the way blacks were treated in the church, so they decided to leave the Methodist Church and start their own organization. They started the Free African Society in 1787 to help newly freed slaves in Philadelphia and to also assist widows and orphans with life needs.
In 1793, when a horrible Yellow Fever devastated Philadelphia, Mr. Jones and Mr. Allen led the Black community to serve as nurses and attendants to the sick people in their city.

After a while, Mr. Jones and Mr. Allen decided they believed different things about religion so they separated but stayed friends for the rest of their lives.

Mr. Jones wanted to have black congregation that wasn’t controlled by whites. In 1791 and 1792, he started giving religious services at the Free African Society and eventually started the African Church of Philadelphia. The new church applied to become an Episcopal parish and was made official on July 17, 1794. The African Episcopal Church of St. Thomas was the first black church in Philadelphia and Jones was the deacon. In 1804, Absalom Jones officially became the first African-American to be ordained as an Episcopal priest in the United States.

Absalom Jones used his position in the church and authority as a priest to speak out against slavery. Since he had been born enslaved and worked so hard to buy his family’s freedom, he knew first hand how horrible and dehumanizing slavery is. He believed that a person’s faith should lead him or her to take action against the bad things happening in society. He inspired people to stand up for what they knew was right and to use their resources to help others.

Absalom Jones died at his home in Philadelphia on February 13, 1818 and was buried in the St. Thomas church yard. The inscription on his tomb says, “To the memory of the Rev. Absalom Jones, who, born a slave, and becoming possessed of freedom by good conduct, and rendered respectable by a course of virtuous industry, was principally instrumental in founding the African Church of St. Thomas.”

The church Mr. Jones helped start is still an important servant to the people of Philadelphia 218 years after is was first opened. In 1973, Absalom Jones was added to the Episcopal Church calendar as an optional feast day to recognize how God used him to minister to people in need.

Bibliography:

“About Absalom Jones.” The African Episcopal Church of St. Thomas. The African Episcopal Church of St. Thomas, n.d. Web. 27 Mar. 2010.

“Absalom Jones.” Biographic Devotions from Historic Renewal. Historic Renewal, n.d. Web. 27 Mar. 2010.

“Absalom Jones.” Contemporary Black Biography. The Gale Group, Inc, 2006. Answers.com 27 Mar. 2010. http://www.answers.com/topic/absalom-jones

“Absalom Jones.” Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., n.d. Web. 27 Mar. 2010.

Mac, Toby, Michael Tait, and LeAnna Willis, eds. Under God. 1st ed. Grand Rapids, MI: Bethany House Publishers, 2004. Print.

“The New World: Origins of Slavery.” Columbia American History Online. Columbia University, n.d. Web. 27 Mar. 2010.

Virginia Slavery Act, (December 1662), in Statutes at Large; Being a Collection of all the Laws of Virginia, ed. William Waller Hening, vol. 2, (Richmond, Va.: Samuel Pleasants, 1809-1823), 170.

Here are some links I want to look at later:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Absalom_Jones

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aia/part3/3narr3.html – information from a PBS television series which included Absalom Jones

http://www.aecst.org/ajones.htm – the website of the church Mr. Jones founded

http://www.historicalrenewal.com/biographies/bio_AJones.htm - Focuses on Mr. Jones’ role as a man of color and a man of faith.

I have found a several more classes using Kidblog for their student blogs. Take some time and read the posts these students are making. Please make high quality, respectful, and specific comments on what they have written. You might mention what their posts makes you think of or tell about similar experiences you’ve had.

• Mrs. Dunsiger’s Class: http://kidblog.org/missdunsigersclass/student-blogs/
• Mrs. Johnson’s 3rd Grade Class: http://kidblog.org/thirdgradetechnology/student-blogs/
• Mrs. Solis’s Class: http://kidblog.org/mrssolissclass/student-blogs/
• Room 129 Class: http://kidblog.org/room129/student-blogs/
• By the way, the Room 129 teacher has created some excellent “How To” screencasts to help students learn how to insert elements into their blog posts. Pay close attention, especially, to his screencast about inserting Google images the correct way. Check them out at http://kidblog.org/room129/jazzymiles/how-to/
• Mrs. Ancona’s Class: http://kidblog.org/mrsanconasclass/student-blogs/
• Mr. Allen’s Class: http://kidblog.org/mrallensclass/student-blogs/
• Mr. Burk’s 3rd Grade Class: http://kidblog.org/mrburk3rdgradeclass/student-blogs/
• Mr. Hill’s Class (not the Mr. Hill from our school) http://kidblog.org/mrhillsclass/student-blogs/
• iFifth Explorers Blogs: http://kidblog.org/ififthexplorers-veldman/student-blogs/
• Mr. Mak’s Class: http://kidblog.org/mistermaksclass/student-blogs/
• Grace Lutheran 6th Grade: http://kidblog.org/gracelutheran6thgrade/student-blogs/
• WHS Year 5: http://kidblog.org/whs_year5/student-blogs/
• Mr. McDonald’s Class: http://kidblog.org/mrmcdonaldsclass/student-blogs/
• Mrs. Norton’s 5th Grade Class: http://kidblog.org/mrsnortons5thgrade/student-blogs/
• Mrs. Goodwin’s Class: http://kidblog.org/mrsgoodwinsclass/student-blogs/

Also, don’t forget to read student posts from the two classes I mentioned in a previous post:

• Room 8 Students: http://kidblog.org/room8isgreat/student-blogs/
• Mrs. Koblert’s Class: http://kidblog.org/mrskolbertsclass/student-blogs/

I encourage to explore these class blogs and see what other students are writing about in their posts. Just be very careful, as always, to use good sense and be safe. Never give out any personal information and always represent yourself and our class in a positive and respectful manner.