Robert Josias "Raphael" Morgan (c. 1866 - July 29, 1922) was a Jamaican-American who is believed to be the first Black

Eastern Orthodox Eastern Orthodoxy, otherwise known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity or Byzantine Christianity, is one of the three main Branches of Christianity, branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholic Church, Catholicism and Protestantism ...

priest in the United States. After being active in other denominations, including the

AME Church The African Methodist Episcopal Church, usually called the AME Church or AME, is a Methodist denomination based in the United States. It adheres to Wesleyan–Arminian theology and has a connexional polity. It cooperates with other Methodist ...

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

, and the Episcopal Church, Morgan converted to Orthodoxy. He was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are Consecration in Christianity, consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the religious denomination, denominationa ...

as an

Eastern Orthodox priest Presbyter is, in the Bible, a synonym for ''bishop'' (''episkopos''), referring to a leader in local church congregations. In modern Eastern Orthodox usage, it is distinct from ''bishop'' and synonymous with priest. Its literal meaning in Greek ...

of the

Ecumenical Patriarchate The Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople (, ; ; , "Roman Orthodox Patriarchate, Ecumenical Patriarchate of Istanbul") is one of the fifteen to seventeen Autocephaly, autocephalous churches that together compose the Eastern Orthodox Church. ...

. He was designated as "Missionary () to America and the

West Indies The West Indies is an island subregion of the Americas, surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, which comprises 13 independent island country, island countries and 19 dependent territory, dependencies in thr ...

." He claimed to have founded the "Order of Golgotha", but the Orthodox Church is not organized into orders. As a young man he had traveled in the Caribbean and to the United States, where he became a minister in the AME Church, the first independent black denomination in the US. He next traveled to England, and joined the Church of England and began religious studies. He returned to the US, where he was ordained in 1895 after a period as a deacon in the Episcopal Church. He continued studies and worked in several parishes in the US. Morgan never became fluent in Greek, the traditional language of the Eastern Orthodox Church; he conducted his services mostly in English. Since his life was rediscovered in the late 20th century, he has been the subject of study. But much of his life is not well documented and remains a mystery. According to a 1915 short biography, Morgan had resided all over the world, including: "Palestine, Syria, Joppa, Greece, Cyprus, Mytilene, Chios, Sicily, Crete, Egypt, Russia, Ottoman Turkey, Austria, Germany, England, France, Scandinavia, Belgium, Holland, Italy, Switzerland, Bermuda, and the United States".

Early life

Robert Josias Morgan was born in Chapelton, Clarendon Parish, Jamaica, either in the late 1860s or early 1870s to Robert Josias and Mary Ann (née Johnson) Morgan. He was born six months after his father's death and named in his honour. He was raised in the Anglican tradition and received elementary schooling locally. In his teenage years Morgan travelled to

Colón, Panama Colón () is a city and Port#Seaport, seaport in Panama, beside the Caribbean Sea, lying near the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic entrance to the Panama Canal. It is the capital of Panama's Colón Province and has traditionally been known as Panama's se ...

, then to

British Honduras British Honduras was a Crown colony on the east coast of Central America — specifically located on the southern edge of the Yucatan Peninsula from 1783 to 1964, then a self-governing colony — renamed Belize from June 1973

, back to Jamaica, and then to the United States. There he became a minister in the

African Methodist Episcopal Church The African Methodist Episcopal Church, usually called the AME Church or AME, is a Methodist denomination based in the United States. It adheres to Wesleyan theology, Wesleyan–Arminian theology and has a connexionalism, connexional polity. It ...

(AME), the first independent black denomination in the United States. He traveled to Germany as a

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group who is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thoma ...

Church of England

Morgan went to England, where he joined the established

. He was sent to the colony of

Sierra Leone Sierra Leone, officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered to the southeast by Liberia and by Guinea to the north. Sierra Leone's land area is . It has a tropical climate and envi ...

to serve at the

Church Missionary Society The Church Mission Society (CMS), formerly known as the Church Missionary Society, is a British Anglican mission society working with Christians around the world. Founded in 1799, CMS has attracted over nine thousand men and women to serve as ...

Grammar School at

Freetown Freetown () is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Sierra Leone. It is a major port city on the Atlantic Ocean and is located in the Western Area of the country. Freetown is Sierra Leone's major urban, economic, financial, cultural, e ...

. There he studied Greek, Latin, and other higher-level subjects. Morgan also worked in a paid position as second master at a public school at Freetown. He took courses in the Church Missionary Society College at Fourah Bay in Freetown. The colony was established in the late eighteenth century as a place for resettlement of the "Black Poor of London" (many of them

Black Loyalists Black Loyalists were people of African descent who sided with Loyalist (American Revolution), Loyalists during the American Revolutionary War. In particular, the term referred to men enslaved by Patriot (American Revolution), Patriots who served ...

of the British colonies, African-American slaves who had been freed by the British during the American Revolutionary War). They were joined by Black Loyalists who voluntarily resettled in Freetown after having first been taken to

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, located on its east coast. It is one of the three Maritime Canada, Maritime provinces and Population of Canada by province and territory, most populous province in Atlan ...

, as well as by

Jamaican Maroons Jamaican Maroons descend from Africans who freed themselves from slavery in the Colony of Jamaica and established communities of Free black people in Jamaica, free black people in the island's mountainous interior, primarily in the eastern Pari ...

, and Africans liberated from slave ships by the British navy in the years after the abolition of the Atlantic slave trade. Morgan was next appointed as a missionary teacher and lay-reader by Samuel David Ferguson, the Episcopal

Bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

of Liberia, a country adjacent to Sierra Leone. Morgan later said, during a trip to Jamaica in 1901, that he had served five years in West Africa, three years of this time in missionary work.West Africa
, ''The Daily Gleaner'', 9 October 1901, p. 7. Liberia had been set up as a colony for the resettlement of free blacks from the United States, and was supported by the

American Colonization Society The American Colonization Society (ACS), initially the Society for the Colonization of Free People of Color of America, was an American organization founded in 1816 by Robert Finley to encourage and support the repatriation of freeborn peop ...

before the American Civil War. After Morgan returned to England for private study, he travelled to the United States to work as a lay reader in the African-American community. He was accepted as a

Postulant A postulant (from , "to ask") was originally one who makes a request or demand; hence, a candidate. The use of the term is now generally restricted to those asking for admission into a Christian monastery or a religious order for the period precedi ...

and as candidate for the Episcopal

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian denominations, such as the Cathol ...

ate in the

Episcopal Church (United States) The Episcopal Church (TEC), also known as the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of America (PECUSA), is a member of the worldwide Anglican Communion, based in the United States. It is a mainline Protestant denomination and is ...

. During the canonical waiting period before ordination, Morgan again returned to England. He was said to have studied at Saint Aidan's Theological College in

Birkenhead Birkenhead () is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, Merseyside, England. The town is on the Wirral Peninsula, along the west bank of the River Mersey, opposite Liverpool. It lies within the Historic counties of England, historic co ...

, and completed his studies at King's College at the University of London, although the colleges do not have records of his attendance.

Episcopal Church (United States)

After Morgan returned to the United States, he was

as deacon on June 20, 1895, by the Rt. Rev. Leighton Coleman, bishop of the

Episcopal Diocese of Delaware The Episcopal Church in Delaware, formerly known as the Episcopal Diocese of Delaware, is one of 108 dioceses making up the Episcopal Church in the United States of America. It consists of 33 congregations or parishes in an area the same as the St ...

, and a well-known opponent of racism. Morgan was appointed honorary curator at St Matthews' Church in

Wilmington, Delaware Wilmington is the List of municipalities in Delaware, most populous city in the U.S. state of Delaware. The city was built on the site of Fort Christina, the first Swedish colonization of the Americas, Swedish settlement in North America. It lie ...

, serving there from 1896 to 1897.White, Gavin. "Patriarch McGuire and the Episcopal Church". In: Randall K. Burkett and Richard Newman (eds). ''Black Apostles: Afro-American Clergy Confront the Twentieth Century.'' G. K. Hall & Co., 1978, pp. 151–180. He also taught in public schools in Delaware. From 1897 he served the Episcopal Church in

Charleston, West Virginia Charleston () is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in West Virginia, most populous city of the U.S. state of West Virginia. It is the county seat of Kanawha County, West Virginia, Kanawha County and ...

. In 1898, Morgan was transferred to the Missionary Jurisdiction of

Asheville, North Carolina Asheville ( ) is a city in Buncombe County, North Carolina, United States. Located at the confluence of the French Broad River, French Broad and Swannanoa River, Swannanoa rivers, it is the county seat of Buncombe County. It is the most populou ...

(now in the Diocese of Western North Carolina). By 1899 he was listed as being assistant minister a
St. Stephen's Chapel
in

Morganton, North Carolina Morganton is a city in and county seat of Burke County, North Carolina, United States. It is located in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains along the Catawba River. The population was 17,474 at the 2020 census. Morganton is approximately ...

an
St. Cyprian's Church
in

Lincolnton, North Carolina Lincolnton is a city in Lincoln County, North Carolina, United States within the Charlotte metropolitan area. The population was 11,091 at the 2020 census, with an estimated population of 12,128, as of 2023. Lincolnton is northwest of Charlo ...

.Lumsden, Joy, MA (Cantab), PhD (UWI).
Father Raphael: His Background and Career
'' September 29, 2007. In 1901-1902 Morgan visited his homeland, Jamaica. In October 1901 he gave an address to the Jamaica Church Missionary Union on West Africa and mission work. He also gave a lecture in

Port Maria Port Maria () is the capital town of the Jamaican parish of Saint Mary Parish, Jamaica, Saint Mary. Originally named "Puerto Santa Maria", it was the second town established by Spanish settlers in Jamaica. The ruins of Fort Haldane, built 1759, ...

in October 1902, entitled "Africa – Its People, Tribes, Idolatry, Customs". Between 1900 and 1906, Morgan moved around much of the Eastern seaboard in the US. From 1902 to 1905 he served at Richmond, Virginia, in 1905 at Nashville, Tennessee, and by 1906 at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His address was in care of th
Church of the Crucifixion
At some point during this period, Morgan joined the American Catholic Church (ACC), a sect of the Episcopal Church founded by Joseph René Vilatte, a former Roman Catholic. Morgan was listed in the records of the Episcopal Church (United States) as late as 1908, when he was suspended from ministry the result of allegations of abandoning his post.

Orthodoxy

Trip to Russia

By the turn of the 20th century, Morgan began to question his faith, and he began intensive study of

Anglicanism Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

Catholicism The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

, and

Eastern Orthodoxy Eastern Orthodoxy, otherwise known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity or Byzantine Christianity, is one of the three main Branches of Christianity, branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholic Church, Catholicism and Protestantism ...

over a three-year period. He was in search of what he called the true religion. He concluded that the

Eastern Orthodox Church The Eastern Orthodox Church, officially the Orthodox Catholic Church, and also called the Greek Orthodox Church or simply the Orthodox Church, is List of Christian denominations by number of members, one of the three major doctrinal and ...

was "the pillar and ground of truth", resigned from the Episcopal Church, and embarked on an extensive trip abroad beginning in 1904 in the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

. Once there, Morgan visited various

monasteries A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone ( hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which m ...

and churches, including sites in Odessa, St. Petersburg, Moscow and

Kiev Kyiv, also Kiev, is the capital and most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city of Ukraine. Located in the north-central part of the country, it straddles both sides of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2, ...

. As a black American, he attracted attention. Sundry periodicals began publishing pictures and articles on him, and soon Morgan became a special guest of the Tsar. He was allowed to be present for the anniversary celebrations of Nicholas II's coronation, and the

memorial service A memorial is an object or place which serves as a focus for the memory or the commemoration of something, usually an influential, deceased person or a historical, tragic event. Popular forms of memorials include landmark objects such as home ...

said for the repose of the soul of the late Emperor Alexander III. Leaving Russia, Morgan traveled the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

Cyprus Cyprus (), officially the Republic of Cyprus, is an island country in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Situated in West Asia, its cultural identity and geopolitical orientation are overwhelmingly Southeast European. Cyprus is the List of isl ...

, and the

Holy Land The term "Holy Land" is used to collectively denote areas of the Southern Levant that hold great significance in the Abrahamic religions, primarily because of their association with people and events featured in the Bible. It is traditionall ...

. After he returned to the US, he published an open letter in the ''Russian-American Orthodox Messenger'' (''Vestnik'') in 1904 about his experiences in Russia. He expressed hope that the Episcopal Church could unite with the Orthodox Churches.} Morgan continued his spiritual quest.Fr. Oliver Herbel. "Morgan, Raphael"
The African American National Biography
at ''mywire.com''. January 1, 2008.

Study and trip to Ecumenical Patriarchate

For another three years, Morgan studied under Greek priests in the United States for his

baptism Baptism (from ) is a Christians, Christian sacrament of initiation almost invariably with the use of water. It may be performed by aspersion, sprinkling or affusion, pouring water on the head, or by immersion baptism, immersing in water eit ...

, eventually deciding to seek entry and ordination in the

Greek Orthodox Church Greek Orthodox Church (, , ) is a term that can refer to any one of three classes of Christian Churches, each associated in some way with Christianity in Greece, Greek Christianity, Antiochian Greek Christians, Levantine Arabic-speaking Christian ...

. In January 1906, he is documented as "assisting" in the Christmas

liturgy Liturgy is the customary public ritual of worship performed by a religious group. As a religious phenomenon, liturgy represents a communal response to and participation in the sacred through activities reflecting praise, thanksgiving, remembra ...

. In 1907 the Greek community in Philadelphia referred Morgan to the

in Constantinople, along with two letters of support. Fr. Demetrios Petrides, the Greek priest serving the Philadelphia community, described Morgan as a man sincerely coming to Orthodoxy after long and diligent study, and recommended his baptism and ordination into the priesthood. The second letter was from the Ecclesiastical Committee of the Philadelphia Greek Orthodox Church, saying that Morgan could serve as an assistant priest if he failed to form a separate Orthodox parish among Black Americans. In Constantinople, Morgan was interviewed by Metropolitan Joachim (Phoropoulos) of Pelagonia, one of the few bishops of the Ecumenical Patriarchate who could speak English. Metropolitan Joachim examined Morgan noting that he had a "deep knowledge of the teachings of the Orthodox Church" and that he also had a certificate from the president of the Methodist Community, duly notarized, stating that he was a man "of high calling and of a religious life".Manolis, Paul G., "Raphael (Robert) Morgan: The First Black Orthodox Priest in America". ''Theologia: Epistēmonikon Periodikon Ekdidomenon Kata Trimēnian''. (''En Athenais: Vraveion Akadēmias Athēnōn''), 1981, vol.52, no.3, pp.464-480. He agreed to his baptism.

Baptism and ordination

On August 2, 1907, the

Holy Synod In several of the autocephalous Eastern Orthodox Churches and Eastern Catholic Churches, the patriarch or head bishop is elected by a group of bishops called the Holy Synod. For instance, the Holy Synod is a ruling body of the Georgian Orthodox ...

approved that the baptism take place the following Sunday in the Church of the Life-giving Source at the Patriarchal Monastery at Balıklı, in Constantinople. Metropolitan Joachim (Phoropoulos) of Pelagonia was to officiate at the sacrament, and the sponsor was to be Bishop Leontios (Liverios) of Theodoroupolis,

Abbot Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the head of an independent monastery for men in various Western Christian traditions. The name is derived from ''abba'', the Aramaic form of the Hebrew ''ab'', and means "father". The female equivale ...

of the Monastery at Balıklı. On Sunday August 4, 1907, Robert was baptised "Raphael" before 3000 people; subsequently he was ordained a deacon on August 12, 1907, by Metropolitan Joachim; and finally ordained a

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

on the feast of the

Dormition of the Theotokos The Dormition of the Mother of God is a Great Feast of the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, and Eastern Catholic Churches (except the East Syriac churches). It celebrates the "falling asleep" (death) of Mary the '' Theotokos'' ("Mother ...

, August 15, 1907. According to the contemporary

Uniate The Eastern Catholic Churches or Oriental Catholic Churches, also known as the Eastern-Rite Catholic Churches, Eastern Rite Catholicism, or simply the Eastern Churches, are 23 Eastern Christian autonomous (''sui iuris'') particular churches of ...

periodical ''L'Echo d' Orient'', which sarcastically described Morgan's baptism as triple immersion, the Metropolitan conducted the sacraments of Baptism and Ordination in English, following which Fr. Raphael chanted the Divine Liturgy in English. With Fr. Raphael Morgan's ordination in the Greek Orthodox Church he became the first African-American Orthodox priest. Fr. Raphael was sent back to the US with vestments, a cross, and 20 pounds sterling for his traveling expenses. He was allowed to hear confessions, but denied Holy Chrism and an antimension, presumably to attach his missionary ministry to the Philadelphia church. The minutes of the Holy Synod from October 2, 1907, made it clear that Fr. Raphael was to be under the jurisdiction of Rev. Petrides of Philadelphia. After he was thoroughly trained in liturgics and was able to establish a separate Orthodox parish, he could gain independence.

Return to America

Recorded as Raffaele Morgan at Ellis Island, he landed in New York in December 1907. Fr. Raphael baptized his wife and children in the Orthodox Church. The last mention of Fr. Raphael in Patriarchal records is in the minutes of the Holy Synod of November 4, 1908, which cite a letter from him 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 to 1912. The church served the African-American elite of Philadelphia and was one of the most prestigious congregations in African-American Christianity. It was started in 1794 by

Absalom Jones Absalom Jones (November 7, 1746February 13, 1818) was an African-American abolitionist and clergyman who became prominent in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Disappointed at the racial discrimination he experienced in a local Methodist church, he foun ...

, who had been an early leader with Richard Allen of the Free African Union. This preceded Allen's founding of the African Methodist Episcopal Church.Tony Martin
"McGuire, George Alexander
, ''Encyclopedia of the Harlem Renaissance''. Volume 2. Cary D. Wintz, Paul Finkelman (eds). Taylor & Francis, 2004, p. 776. In 1909, Charlotte Morgan filed for divorce alleging physical and verbal abuse, infidelity and failure to support their children, with the accusations of abuse and neglect corroborated by a witness. Both gave graphic testimony to the court. In a deposition, Fr. Raphael denied any wrongdoing and counter-accused his wife of abuse toward him, but he did not appear at the divorce hearing. The divorce was granted by the court in 1910.Matthew Namee.
The Fr. Raphael Morgan Divorce Documents
'' OrthodoxHistory.org. September 3, 2019. Fr. Raphael retained custody of their 13-year-old daughter, Roberta Viola Morgan. Their 9-year-old son Cyril Ignatius lived with his mother in Delaware County, where she remarried.

Monastic tonsure

In 1911 Morgan sailed to Cyprus, presumably to be

tonsure Tonsure () is the practice of cutting or shaving some or all of the hair on the scalp as a sign of religious devotion or humility. The term originates from the Latin word ' (meaning "clipping" or "shearing") and referred to a specific practice in ...

d a

hieromonk A hieromonk,; Church Slavonic, Slavonic: ''Иеромонахъ''; ; ; ; ; Albanian language, Albanian: ''Hieromurg'' also called a priestmonk, is a person who is both monk and Priest#Roman Catholic and Orthodox, priest in the Eastern Christianity ...

. (But, Fr. Oliver Herbel ( OCA) has suggested that in 1911 Morgan was tonsured in Athens.) Possibly at this time, he claimed to have founded what he called the Order of the Cross of

Golgotha Calvary ( or ) or Golgotha () was a site immediately outside Jerusalem's walls where, according to Christianity's four canonical gospels, Jesus was crucified. Since at least the early medieval period, it has been a destination for pilgrimage. ...

(O.C.G.). As noted above, the Archives of the Church of Greece contain no information about Morgan.

Lecture tour in Jamaica

According to an April 1913 article in the ''Jamaica Times'', Fr. Raphael was headquartered at Philadelphia where he wanted to build a chapel for his missionary efforts. It reported that he had recently visited Europe to collect funds to this end, and had the intention of extending his work to the West Indies. Near the end of 1913, Fr. Raphael visited his homeland of Jamaica, staying for several months. While there, he met a group of Syrians, who were complaining of a lack of Orthodox churches on the island. Fr. Raphael did his best to contact the Syrian-American diocese of the Russian church, writing to St.

Raphael of Brooklyn Raphael of Brooklyn (, born Raphael Hawaweeny; ; November 20, 1860 – February 27, 1915), was bishop of the Russian Orthodox Church, auxiliary bishop of Brooklyn, vicar of the Northern-American diocese, and head of the Antiochian Syrian Chris ...

. As most descendants of the Syrians in Jamaica are now communicants in the Episcopal Church, the Russian Orthodox Church may have established a mission here; this presumably came to no avail. In December, a Russian warship came to port, and he co-celebrated the Divine Liturgy with the sailors, their chaplain, and his new-found Syrians. Morgan chiefly conducted a lecture circuit that he ran throughout Jamaica. Given the lack of Orthodox churches, Fr. Raphael gave his talks at churches of other denomination. He discussed his travels, the Holy Land, and Holy Orthodoxy. At some point, he returned to Chapelton, where he told attendees regarding his name change, "I will always be Robert to you". According to the ''Daily Gleaner'' edition of November 2, 1914, Fr. Raphael had just set sail for America to start mission work under his Faith.

Last known records

According to a 1915 short biography, Morgan had resided all over the world, including: "in Palestine, Syria, Joppa, Greece, Cyprus, Mytilene, Chios, Sicily, Crete, Egypt, Russia, Ottoman Turkey, Austria, Germany, England, France, Scandinavia, Belgium, Holland, Italy, Switzerland, Bermuda, and the United States."Mather, Frank Lincoln
''Who's Who of the Colored Race: A General Biographical Dictionary of Men and Women of African Descent''
', University of Michigan. Gale Research Co., 1915, pp. 226–227.'' In 1916 Fr. Raphael was still in Philadelphia, having made the Philadelphia Greek parish his base of operations. The last documentation of Fr. Raphael comes from a letter to the ''Daily Gleaner'' on October 4, 1916. Representing a group of about a dozen Jamaican-Americans, he wrote to protest the lectures of Black Nationalist

Marcus Garvey Marcus Mosiah Garvey Jr. (17 August 188710 June 1940) was a Jamaican political activist. He was the founder and first President-General of the Universal Negro Improvement Association and African Communities League (UNIA-ACL) (commonly known a ...

. They felt Garvey's views damaged the reputation of their homeland and its people. They objected to Garvey saying he preferred the prejudice of American whites to that of English whites. Garvey said that the letter was a conspiratorial fabrication meant to undermine the success and favour he had gained while in Jamaica and in the United States. Little is known of Fr. Raphael's later life. The Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America has records neither of Fr. Raphael Morgan, nor of Fr. Demetrios Petrides. Records in the archives for this Philadelphia community do not begin until 1918. As noted, Morgan's daughter said on her passport that her father had died between 1916 and 1924. In the 1970s Greek-American historian Paul G. Manolis interviewed surviving members of the Greek Community of the Annunciation in Philadelphia, who recalled the black priest who had been part of their community. Grammatike Kritikos Sherwin said that Fr. Raphael's daughter left to attend Oxford University. Kyriacos Biniaris said that Morgan spoke broken Greek and served with Fr. Petrides, reciting the

mostly in English. George Liacouras recalled that after serving in Philadelphia for some years, Fr. Raphael left for

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

, never to return. Fr. Raphael Morgan died on

July 29 Events Pre-1600 *587 BC – The Neo-Babylonian Empire sacks Jerusalem and destroys the First Temple. * 615 – Pakal ascends the throne of Palenque at the age of 12. * 904 – Sack of Thessalonica: Saracen raiders under Leo o ...

1922 Events January * January 7 – Dáil Éireann (Irish Republic), Dáil Éireann, the parliament of the Irish Republic, ratifies the Anglo-Irish Treaty by 64–57 votes. * January 10 – Arthur Griffith is elected President of Dáil Éirean ...

, aged 56, in

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

and is buried in the ''Historic Eden Cemetery, 1434 Springfield Road, Collingdale, Pennsylvania, 1902''. He was given a pauper's funeral, buried in obscurity, and laid to rest by Pro-Royalist Fr. Thomas Daniels.Credit Priest Samuel Davis & Archpriest John Perich, Church Historian & Curator https://crossbearing.org

Influence

"Indirect Conversion of Thousands" theory

During the 16th Annual Ancient Christianity and African-American Conference in 2009, Matthew Namee presented a 23-minute lecture on the heretofore recently discovered life of Fr. Raphael Morgan. He postulates that even if Fr. Raphael's missionary efforts failed outside of his immediate family, he may be indirectly responsible for the conversion of thousands, via contact with Episcopal priest George Alexander McGuire (1866–1934), the founder of the non-canonical

African Orthodox Church The African Orthodox Church (AOC) is a predominantly African-American Christian denomination which was founded in the United States in 1918 by the joint collaboration of its first patriarch, George Alexander McGuire, and Marcus M. Garvey. The ...

in 1921. Namee questions whence the idea came for McGuire to form namely an ''Orthodox'' church. Fr. Raphael Morgan and George McGuire have some striking similarities, including the facts that both: * served concurrently or consecutively a
St Philip's Episcopal Church
in Virginia, * were ordained in the Episcopal Church around the same time, and * both later served in Philadelphia, each having had some contact with Rev. A. C. V. Cartier of the African Episcopal Church of St. Thomas. Namee concludes that with so many coincidences, it is impossible for these two men to not have known one another; and therefore it must be from some influence — either in conversation with Fr. Raphael or through evangelism — that McGuire received his inspiration and came to know the Orthodox Church. An additional point is that Garvey also knew of Fr. Raphael Morgan when McGuire joined his organisation in 1920 (i.e. Fr. Raphael's letter of 1916), which makes it likely that McGuire and Garvey had discussed Morgan at some point, both having known of him. One deterrent from this theory comes in the familiarity that McGuire may have had with the Eastern Orthodox Church through his ''consecrator'', Joseph René Vilatte. At various points, Vilatte come into contact with both the

Russian Russian(s) may refer to: *Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *A citizen of Russia *Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages *''The Russians'', a b ...

and

Syriac Orthodox Church The Syriac Orthodox Church (), also informally known as the Jacobite Church, is an Oriental Orthodox Christian denomination, denomination that originates from the Church of Antioch. The church currently has around 4-5 million followers. The ch ...

es in a move for Catholic-Orthodox reconciliation, having even been accepted for a while by Bishop

Vladimir Vladimir (, , pre-1918 orthography: ) is a masculine given name of Slavic origin, widespread throughout all Slavic nations in different forms and spellings. The earliest record of a person with the name is Vladimir of Bulgaria (). Etymology ...

of Alaska in May 1891.

Philadelphia

Scholar Gavin White, writing in the 1970s, said that if Morgan tried to organise an African-American Greek Orthodox church in Philadelphia, its memory has vanished. He added: :"...there can be no doubt that McGuire knew all about Morgan and it is very probable that he knew him personally. It is just possible that it was Morgan who first introduced McGuire to the Episcopal Church in Wilmington; it was almost certainly Morgan who introduced McGuire to the idea of Eastern episcopacy". While Fr. Raphael Morgan's work among Jamaicans in Philadelphia appears to have been transitory, he may have inspired the interest of some current African Americans interest in Orthodoxy.

Notes

References

Sources

Contemporary sources * ATOR ('' African Times and Orient Review''), (February – March 1913), p. 163. * Bragg, Rev. George F. (D.D.). "Chapter XXXVI: Negro Ordinations from 1866 to the Present". In:
History of the Afro-American group of the Episcopal church (1922)
'' Baltimore, Md.: Church Advocate Press, 1922. * Bragg, Rev. George F. (D.D.). "Afro-American Clergy List. Priests". In:
Afro-American Church Work and Workers
'' Baltimore, Md.: Church Advocate Print, 1904. * Hill, Robert A., Marcus Garvey, Universal Negro Improvement Association.
The Marcus Garvey and Universal Negro Improvement Association Papers: 1826–August 1919
'' University of California Press, 1983. * Mather, Frank Lincoln.
Who's Who of the Colored Race: A General Biographical Dictionary of Men and Women of African Descent
'' University of Michigan. Gale Research Co., 1915, pp. 226–227. * R. J. Morgan. "An Open Letter." ''Amerikanskiĭ Pravoslavnyĭ Viestnik''. October and November Supplement (1904), pp. 380–382. * ''The Daily Gleaner''.

'. October 9, 1901, p. 7.

''The Daily Gleaner'', October 7, 1902, p. 29.

''The Daily Gleaner'', July 22, 1913.

''The Daily Gleaner'', August 15, 1913. * ''The Daily Gleaner.'' November 2, 1914, p. 13.

''The Jamaica Times'', 26 April 1913. * "Une Conquete du Patriarcat Oecumenique". ''Échos d'Orient'', Vol. XI. No. 68, 1908, pp. 55–56. :(''Publication of the Roman Catholic Uniate Assumptionist Fathers, located in Chalcedon;'' for an online translation of the French article, see: Fr. Andrew S. Damick.
The Sorcerer on the Golden Horn
" ''OrthodoxHistory.org'' (The Society for Orthodox Christian History in the Americas), December 15, 2009) * Work, Monroe N. (ed.). ''The Negro Yearbook, an Annual Encyclopedia of the Negro, 1921–1922''. The Negro Year Book Publishing Company:

Tuskegee Institute Tuskegee University (Tuskegee or TU; formerly known as the Tuskegee Institute) is a Private university, private, Historically black colleges and universities, historically black land-grant university in Tuskegee, Alabama, United States. It was f ...

, 1922 (1921 edition, p. 213) Modern sources * Herbel, Fr. Oliver ( OCA). . ''Orthodox Christians for Accountability''. April 22, 2009. * Herbel, Fr. Oliver ( OCA). "Morgan, Raphael"
''The African American National Biography''
at ''mywire.com''. 1 January 2008. * Herbel, Fr. Oliver ( OCA). "Turning to Tradition: Intra-Christian Converts and the Making of an American Orthodox Church." Ph.D. Dissertation, under the direction of Michael McClymond (2009). 349 pp. * Herbel, Fr. Oliver ( OCA). "The Relationship of the African Orthodox Church to the Orthodox Churches and Its Importance for Appreciating the Brotherhood of St. Moses the Black," ''Black Theology.'' ''(forthcoming)'' * Kourelis, Kostis.
Philadelphia Greeks and Their Black Priest
" ''Objects-Building-Situation: Musings on Architecture, Art and History, with Special Focus on Mediterranean Archaeology.'' Thursday, October 29, 2009. * Lumsden, Joy, MA (Cantab), PhD (UWI).

'' * Lumsden, Joy
"Robert Josias Morgan, aka Father Raphael"
''Jamaican History Month 2007.'' 16 February 2007. * Manolis, Paul G. "Raphael (Robert) Morgan: The First Black Orthodox Priest in America". ''Theologia: Epistēmonikon Periodikon Ekdidomenon Kata Trimēnian''. (En Athenais: Vraveion Akadēmias Athēnōn), 1981, vol. 52, no. 3, pp. 464–480. * Martin, Tony
"McGuire, George Alexander"
''Encyclopedia of the Harlem Renaissance''. Volume 2. Cary D. Wintz, Paul Finkelman (eds). Taylor & Francis, 2004. * Namee, Matthew
"Fr. Raphael Morgan: America's First Black Orthodox Priest"
''16th Annual Ancient Christianity & African-American Conference'', June 3, 2009. * Namee, Matthew
"The First Black Orthodox Priest in America"
''OrthodoxHistory.org'' (The Society for Orthodox Christian History in the Americas). July 15, 2009. * Namee, Matthew
"Robert Josias Morgan visits Russia, 1904"
''OrthodoxHistory.org'' (The Society for Orthodox Christian History in the Americas). September 15, 2009. * Namee, Matthew
"Fr. Raphael Morgan against Marcus Garvey"
''OrthodoxHistory.org'' (The Society for Orthodox Christian History in the Americas). March 29, 2010. * White, Gavin. ''Patriarch McGuire and the Episcopal Church.'' In: Randall K. Burkett and Richard Newman (eds). ''Black Apostles: Afro-American Clergy Confront the Twentieth Century.'' G. K. Hall, 1978, pp. 151–180.

External links

Evangelismos Greek Orthodox Church
Philadelphia, PA. ''(Fr. Raphael's home parish, ca.~1907-1916)'' * Joachim (Phoropoulos) of Pelagonia at Orthodoxwiki.
Brotherhood of St. Moses the Black - 2009 Conference
* Sean D. Hamill

in: ''The New York Times: Religion Journal.'' January 29, 2010. (Print edition: January 30, 2010, on p. A12 of the New York edition.) (Re: Fr

) * {{DEFAULTSORT:Morgan, Raphael 1860s births 1922 deaths 19th-century American Episcopalians 20th-century Eastern Orthodox priests 20th-century American clergy African-American Christian clergy African-American missionaries Alumni of St Aidans College Birkenhead American Christian missionaries American Eastern Orthodox priests American people of Jamaican descent 19th-century Anglican deacons Anglican lay readers Anglican missionaries in Sierra Leone Clergy from Philadelphia Converts to Eastern Orthodoxy from Protestantism Eastern Orthodox missionaries Eastern Orthodox monks Greek Christian monks Jamaican Anglican missionaries Jamaican clergy People from Clarendon Parish, Jamaica 20th-century African-American people