In the 1920's and 30's, over 2 million people accepted Father Divine as God incarnate. What allowed him to command such devotion, and where are those people today? Visit leolevy.myportfolio.com for more information on the filmmaker.
I live in Philadelphia; in the 1990's while riding the bus I left my handwritten book of scriptures on the bus. A woman called me and said I could come pick up my book at The Divine Lorraine Hotel on Broad street. When I stepped into that hotel it was like stepping back in time to the 1800's. It was as clean as the board of health; the women were dressed in long dresses and had turbans on their heads and looked impeccably clean with aprons on and in white. When the lady came down to give me my book as I thanked her we struck up a conversation; I said "this is where Father Divine had his headquarters isn't it"? "What year was it he died"? To which she responded: "He ain't dead." I was outta there but I will never forget how it seemed literally like a trip back in time.
Including the Kool-Aid. Abstaining from all alcohol and requiring the same of his followers, Father Divine served lots of 'imitation-flavored soft drinks' at those huge banquets.
Wait didn’t Jim Jones force people to kill them self . Even though he called his self God and had two wives is werid but doesn’t seem like he hurt any of his followers or caused them to hurt them selfs
Father Divine was one of the smoothest one of the most sophisticated cult leaders I have ever seen in all my life I never knew Divine existed until now the summer of 2020 I am not sure apparently Ive been living under a rock cause I never heard of this man proclaiming to be 🙄 GOD the only GOD I ever really knew was the Alpha, the Omega, the Beginning and the Ending amen and 2 GOD B the Glory!
@Violin Accordion well I am not really certain they all want money but let's just say at least there's a few in the bunch who sincerely have the best interest of the people in heart and are making God's sanctuary as beautiful and as delicate as can be with tithes and building funds money's coming in from the congregation, I am sure there must be a few of them folk somewhere out there or at least I hope and pray even though a majority of the preachers in the world are living in the most elegant houses if not mansions and are driving the most expensive cars likes Lamborghini, Bentley Porsche and so have you and furthermore most of them have taken your hard earned monies and have moved in the most upscale neighbor hoods ain't nobody rich but the preacher man.
@@katymartin5026 Usually, it's the ones who impact the most people who are the ones who get rich. That's the key. There's nothing wrong with that when it is done legally and ethically.
even though I know of Father Divine, I had no idea he had two million followers from Australia to Switzerland, I knew he re married and she was a white woman but didn't realize he had thousands of white followers also, that's hard to believe because of racism in 1920's-40's
Christ deserves the followers. Bible and verse >> James 1:27 KJV (Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.)
Yeah,he came and tried,to take it over but, Mother Divine was wise enough to see through his bull.Enough some of their members left, and went with him unfortunately.
Where does the name jealous divine come from? Who was he jealous of? I guess its a little before my time please if you don't mind so kindly share with me.
This is why I love to read. I was educated with the works of Hemingway and Emily Dickinson and very well-known stories about Columbus and Washington and Martin Luther King Jr. At one time, I regularly shopped with my parents just a few miles south of this guy's Harlem establishment. Yet I doubt I would have heard of this guy, had I not been an avid reader. His charisma affected an already somewhat delusional Barbadian immigrant in the novel 'Brown Girl, Brownstones'; the man went on to abandon his wife and daughters and manage a 'Peace' restaurant at Divine's request. His younger daughter didn't see any spirituality in the banquets and idolization of that 'little man'.
Jim Jones tried to unite both Churches after Father died but Jones said in order to do so he had to make Love to Mrs. Divine, but she unfortunately said no. These people are freakin crazy.
xCaptxCrunchx I remember seeing that in a doc about Jim Jones. I knew she was white but didn’t know Father Divine was black. Never heard of Father Divine until now
@@b7k1l8yn well, we have the Bible that would explain that to us, wouldn't it? Jesus said that if anyone claims to know where the Kingdom of Heaven is, not to go follow it because the Kingdom of Heaven is within you. If we read the Bible further, we'd find that each and every individual make up the sum of God. Jesus himself called us gods. Genesis says that God himself called us gods. There is a parallel in all of this. Sure, there are messengers of God; pastors, prophets, teachers, evangelists and apostles that speak to us and lead us, but they alone aren't God himself. Just a vessel. If someone called themselves God. Watch out! We are all of the same body. Christ is the head of that body and no one else.
Deception is contagious and when you neglect the teaching of Jesus... Abide in me and I will Abide in you. Then you can be sold the Brooklyn Bridge for a dime. How can so many become victim to this...by not knowing the Truth and accepting The Lie. Question everything ?
Notice how his movement was so powerful that they literally have to belittle it by pointing out some of his flaws. A black man in those times got people of all races to come together and help each other and they try to discredit him cause no religion have ever done for the people what he did. This is sad world we live in when a person tries to do something good for humanity and he or she is attacked cause they wasnt perfect.
@@akreacts8194 you cant be that????? He took the concept and used it to trick people into believing in him and then once he knee it was over he then killed them so they would never know that he was fake. So NO he shouldnt be praised.
@@seanp3302 you are correct sir. Have you seen our school system. I have learned more with this new technology then i ever learned before it. I'm 51 and it was just 10 years ago i learned that Africa was three times bigger then America and that they had amazing cities and good education. Americans were told and shown the tribes that didnt even have water or that was starving living in hits. Most of us was too poor to travel and the ones that did never showed us the real Africa. This is why I cant stand all those rich black bastards cause they knew what Africa really looked liked and said nothing.
Here's another twist to this story. The story of John West Hunt and or Warner Hunt who had the original patent to confectioners sugar and became a Candy magnate only to devote his vast fortune to Mr. Divine. Oh, its a great story.
It was still cult like itself. He controlled their free will. Didn't allow them to date or even have their own families. So when these older ones die out now there is no one left to keep the movement growing. Not a very smart concept. Plus, it was said,while he didn't allow them to interact,he did. All the women called him,their husband.Poor Mother Divine, I wouldn't to have wanted to be in her shoes,no matter how strong I was. He used his people's money, to finance his ventures so, nothing was free.Not even their free will.And he even took that.
False he did something that is now widely acceptable. He used religion to bring people together. Something no other religion has done. They had to destroy him and make up lies about him to take away what he accomplished. A black man had millions of people working together from multiple countries in a time where blacks didnt have that type of voice. All these new and old televangelist today is just copying his movement.
The Peace Mission is a voluntary cooperative and teaches that "Where coercion begins the work of God that moment ends." Our response to FATHER DIVINE has been born of love and nothing else. Authoritarian religion is always false religion. Everything the Peace Mission has owned collectively is a result of members pooling their resources, and all properties have been held in common--there were over 150 names on the deed for the Divine Lorraine Hotel, for example. The Peace Mission neither requests nor accepts donations and will return any money sent, believing that God never has to beg, borrow or steal and that churches that do request donations are never the authentic Work of God.
As a child I remember going to the hotel with someone who was affiliated with him (Ms. Love). Back in the day he use to have an Annex bldg at 17 and Oxford.
Worship the Lord GOD Almighty and not some slickster. This man knew his people well, therefore to "get over" on them was no problem. Some Blacks are always looking for somebody to lead them out of the wilderness so to speak. When a charismatic (to them) man comes along, they become easy prey to his schemes. Where did he derive funds to feed that many people? From his businesses of course. Some of our people, especially those who possess the dependency syndrome, fall victim to con men time after time. We never seem to grow up. Sad.
I think a big part of how he was successful in the intervention department was because no one could have sex! Not even with their own spouse or sleep on the same floor much less the same room or bed. Men with men women with women with no intermingling where it really mattered to racists which is sex or procreating. Yes he did as one man marry and had a white wife and I’m guessing a black one I would hope but not his many followers. That’s an easier pill to swallow for outsiders in a Jim Crow era. I think if white and black followers were marrying up a storm and producing large interracial families with as big of a following as his at a time where law prohibits mingling of whites and blacks, I think there would have been such an uproar from the white community, a bounty would have been put out for him as whites would fear this is the man that is leading white inhalation by bringing whites and coloreds together to marry as he had and have families and threatening white American domination. Not doing that and it being hard to decipher exactly how he finds all of this and his huge following I think is partly why he wasn’t just assassinated by some angry white person or group.
Favoring Integration during Jim Crow era and advocating celibacy makes him Jealous in what way? What are you chasing after? The fact that he was financially stable and able to build His nation???
For salvation, we just need to follow the way they did it in Acts? They were baptized in water for the removal of sins and filled with the Holy Ghost. Acts 2:38! Here's why! The gospel is the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. 1 Corinthians 15:1-4. If we are to follow him, we must do the same thing. Death= repentance, Burial = baptism, and resurrection = being filled and rising again from the dead and walking in the newness of life. That's what Acts 2:38 is. We must obey the gospel, 2 Thessalonians 1:8-9, in flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that OBEY NOT THE GOSPEL of our Lord Jesus Christ... Matthew 7:21-23, Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that DOETH THE WILL OF MY FATHER which is in Heaven. St John 3:3-5, EXCEPT a man, be born of WATER AND OF THE SPIRIT, he cannot enter into the kingdom of GOD. We can't come up with our own gospel. Galatians 1:8-9, But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. Don't be cursed. One way for all people. Jews, Gentiles, and Samaritans. Our salvation has to match up with the scriptures and no scriptures on the subject can be taken away. Eternity is TOOO long to be WRONG! st, John 5:39, Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me. The gospels show what Christ has done on the cross for us. The book of Acts shows us the beginning of Christ's Church and how to enter the Church, obeying Acts 2:38. The letters were written to the Church to show us how to behave now that we are born again into the Church. It's better to walk alone than to walk with a crowd going in the wrong direction. Are we supposed to follow the teachings of the apostles? Acts 2:42, And they continued steadfastly in the apostle's doctrines. Ephesians 2:20, We are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief cornerstone. Don't get Titus 3:5 mixed up with James 2:14-26, about WORKS. One is a WORK of your OWN RIGHTEOUSNESS OR GOOD DEEDS and the other is a WORK OF FAITH or OBEDIENCE TO GOD. Titus 1:16, They profess that they know God; but in WORKS they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate. God bless you
During the 1800s this man owned much of Harlem. If there is anything to be praised, it's that. Of course he left his wealth to a white and was deluded about race. But amazing that he had ownership during this time. @4:20 Wife doesnt seem too bright.
What piqued my interest in looking on RU-vid before the Divine I was watching hoodlum and there was a sign saying Father Divine is God, because remember it was in the 1930s interesting huh.
Following them We sent Our (other) Messengers, and We sent following in their footsteps, (Prophet) Jesus, the son of Mary and gave him the Gospel, and put tenderness and mercy in the hearts of his followers. As for monasticism, they invented it thereby seeking the pleasure of Allah. We did not write it for them, and they did not observe it as it should be observed. We gave to those of them who believed their wage, but many of them are impious. (27)
It would be a waste of time lady. You already have a "set" mind. I'm surprised I even wasted this much time responding to this comment. As it is written the things of SPIRIT are foolishness to the unenlightened or those that are not awake. Only GOD'S SPIRIT could give you a pure revelation. As it is said for those who believe no explanation is needed, and for those who don't, no explanation will ever do. Pray for your answer as for me I have plenty of work here in The Philippines to get back to. #opentheireyesFather
Con men always appear brilliant to the gullible, uninformed and ignorant. "My people PERISH for lack of knowledge" says Scripture. Heed it. Man can be slick; GOD is always truthful. Which one should we believe and trust?
Looking for an earthly answer is not what you want to do . There is a lot of confusion here and in the comment section . We will not be here on earth so earthly things are not the answer .... We will eventually all die so look for the Holy Spirit . There is only one way to God that is through Christ Jesus. No not religion No not politics No not an occult Fallow Christ ways and receive Him as your personal savior ,not necessarily as the masses do, just you internally you . Walk righteous in your ways we are not perfect but try . Have faith and believe . Well God Bless yaw journey well . Don't be afraid of all of this craziness ... God will lay the truth in your Heart Mind and Spirit . If you think Im lying ignore me ..... But if you think Im telling the truth consider and try ... If it is not for you at least you tried to change for the better .
Spiritual aka spirit ritual aka breath ceremony is the union of body and breath aka yoga. There's no afterlife for those that have not proved themselves worthy of benefitting the physical realm on earth.
Calling him self God is Questionable. Which is the worse thing a human can do of course. The two wives questionable. But besides that it doesn’t seem like he did any thing wrong. Who is this man. I’m very curious. Are there any controversies ?