George Alexander McGuire
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George Alexander McGuire (28 March 1866 – 10 November 1934) is best known for his prominence in
Marcus Garvey Marcus Mosiah Garvey Sr. (17 August 188710 June 1940) was a Jamaican political activist, publisher, journalist, entrepreneur, and orator. He was the founder and first President-General of the Universal Negro Improvement Association and African ...
's
Universal Negro Improvement Association The Universal Negro Improvement Association and African Communities League (UNIA-ACL) is a black nationalist fraternal organization founded by Marcus Garvey, a Jamaican immigrant to the United States, and Amy Ashwood Garvey. The Pan-African o ...
(UNIA). McGuire was elected in 1920 as Chaplain-General of the UNIA and wrote important documents about black ritual and catechism, drawing from his knowledge of religion and African history. Both he and Garvey were immigrants to the United States from Caribbean islands who had a vision of Pan-African goals. In addition McGuire was known for his other religious contributions. Already a minister in the
Moravian Church The Moravian Church ( cs, Moravská církev), or the Moravian Brethren, formally the (Latin: "Unity of the Brethren"), is one of the oldest Protestantism, Protestant Christian denomination, denominations in Christianity, dating back to the Bohem ...
when he immigrated in 1894 to the US, McGuire soon joined the Episcopal Church. He was ordained in 1897 as an Episcopal
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 deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particu ...
. An early member of the American Negro Historical Society in Philadelphia, McGuire became more concerned about developing institutions that supported persons of African ancestry. In 1921 McGuire founded the
African Orthodox Church The African Orthodox Church (AOC), registered as the Holy African Orthodox Church, is an Episcopalian, primarily African-American denomination which was founded in the United States in 1918 by the joint collaboration of its first Patriarch George ...
(AOC); and he was consecrated that year as its first bishop, serving until his death in 1934. During his tenure, new congregations were started in several cities in the US, Canada, the Caribbean, and in East Africa. McGuire envisioned the AOC as a home for Blacks of
Episcopal Episcopal may refer to: *Of or relating to a bishop, an overseer in the Christian church *Episcopate, the see of a bishop – a diocese *Episcopal Church (disambiguation), any church with "Episcopal" in its name ** Episcopal Church (United State ...
belief who wanted ecclesiastical independence. It was based on
Christian tradition Christian tradition is a collection of traditions consisting of practices or beliefs associated with Christianity. These ecclesiastical traditions have more or less authority based on the nature of the practices or beliefs and on the group in que ...
and
Apostolic succession Apostolic succession is the method whereby the ministry of the Christian Church is held to be derived from the apostles by a continuous succession, which has usually been associated with a claim that the succession is through a series of bish ...
. Orthodoxy attracted persons of African descent because it had not been implicated in colonialism or slavery.


Life

George McGuire was born to an Afro-Caribbean family on 28 March 1866 in
Swetes Swetes is located in Saint Paul Parish on the island of Antigua, in Antigua and Barbuda. Geography It is the sixth largest town in Antigua and Barbuda. Swetes is located in central Antigua, to the north of Liberta on the road to the town of ...
,
Antigua Antigua ( ), also known as Waladli or Wadadli by the native population, is an island in the Lesser Antilles. It is one of the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean region and the main island of the country of Antigua and Barbuda. Antigua and Bar ...
. He studied in local grammar schools, then at the Antigua branch of Mico College for teachers. He also studies at the Moravian Miskey Seminary in the
Danish West Indies The Danish West Indies ( da, Dansk Vestindien) or Danish Antilles or Danish Virgin Islands were a Danish colonization of the Americas, Danish colony in the Caribbean, consisting of the islands of Saint Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, Saint Thomas ...
. From 1888 to 1894 McGuire served as pastor of a
Moravian Church The Moravian Church ( cs, Moravská církev), or the Moravian Brethren, formally the (Latin: "Unity of the Brethren"), is one of the oldest Protestantism, Protestant Christian denomination, denominations in Christianity, dating back to the Bohem ...
in the Danish West Indies.


Episcopal Church USA

In 1894, McGuire immigrated to the United States. He initially joined the
African Methodist Episcopal Church The African Methodist Episcopal Church, usually called the AME Church or AME, is a Black church, predominantly African American Methodist Religious denomination, denomination. It adheres to Wesleyan-Arminian theology and has a connexionalism, c ...
, which was the first independent black denomination in the country, founded in the early nineteenth century. On 2 January 1895, McGuire formally joined the Episcopal Church, and two years later he was ordained as a priest. McGuire was called to lead small, mostly black Episcopal churches in
Cincinnati, Ohio Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...
;
Richmond, Virginia (Thus do we reach the stars) , image_map = , mapsize = 250 px , map_caption = Location within Virginia , pushpin_map = Virginia#USA , pushpin_label = Richmond , pushpin_m ...
; and
Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
. St. Philip's Episcopal Church of Richmond, Virginia lists "Reverend George Alexander McQuire" as rector from April 1898 to November 1900. After McGuire's tenure, the Rev. Robert Josias "Raphael" Morgan was listed as the rector there from "1901 – April 1901", likely acting on an interim basis until a full-time rector was called. The two men may have known each other. Morgan was later known as Fr. Raphael when he was ordained in 1907 as an
Orthodox Orthodox, Orthodoxy, or Orthodoxism may refer to: Religion * Orthodoxy, adherence to accepted norms, more specifically adherence to creeds, especially within Christianity and Judaism, but also less commonly in non-Abrahamic religions like Neo-pag ...
priest. By 1901 McGuire was appointed rector of St. Thomas' Episcopal Church in Philadelphia; this was the first black congregation in the Episcopal Church. Saint Thomas served the African-American elite of Philadelphia. It had been 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 found ...
, earlier a founder with Richard Allen of the
Free African Society The Free African Society, founded in 1787, was a benevolent organization that held religious services and provided mutual aid for "free Africans and their descendants" in Philadelphia. The Society was founded by Richard Allen and Absalom Jones. It ...
. This mutual aid society preceded the African Methodist Episcopal Church founded by Allen.Tony Martin.
McGuire, George Alexander
'' ''Encyclopedia of the Harlem Renaissance''. Volume 2. Cary D. Wintz, Paul Finkelman (Eds.). Taylor & Francis, 2004. p.776.
McGuire was rector of St. Thomas from 1902–05. He was succeeded as rector there by A.C.V. Cartier (1906–12). Cartier later followed Fr. Raphael Morgan in his interest in the Eastern Orthodox Church. In 1908 Fr Raphael recommended Cartier to the
Ecumenical Patriarchate The Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople ( el, Οἰκουμενικὸν Πατριαρχεῖον Κωνσταντινουπόλεως, translit=Oikoumenikón Patriarkhíon Konstantinoupóleos, ; la, Patriarchatus Oecumenicus Constanti ...
for Orthodox ordination. From 1905 to 1909, McGuire served as Archdeacon for Colored Work in the Diocese of Arkansas. He was the church's highest-ranking African American and the first to achieve the rank of
Archdeacon An archdeacon is a senior clergy position in the Church of the East, Chaldean Catholic Church, Syriac Orthodox Church, Anglican Communion, St Thomas Christians, Eastern Orthodox churches and some other Christian denominations, above that o ...
. He worked to increase the number of missions in the state from one to nine. He encountered opposition from the local Episcopal bishop, who believed blacks should be segregated from whites and placed in their own church jurisdiction. Following the Reconstruction era, Arkansas and other southern states had imposed legal racial segregation in most public and private facilities. At the turn of the century, Arkansas and other former Confederate states effectively disenfranchised most black citizens by raising barriers to voter registration. Eventually McGuire resigned and moved North to
Cambridge, Massachusetts Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. As part of the Boston metropolitan area, the cities population of the 2020 U.S. census was 118,403, making it the fourth most populous city in the state, behind Boston, ...
. There he established St. Bartholomew's Church for West Indians who were living in the Boston area. While in Cambridge, McGuire also studied at Boston College of Physicians and Surgeons, receiving his
M.D. Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated M.D., from the Latin ''Medicinae Doctor'') is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the M.D. denotes a professional degree. T ...
degree in 1910. When his small church was not recognized by the Episcopal diocese, McGuire resigned in 1911. As he traveled across the U.S., he became more discouraged, believing that blacks did not have opportunities to advance in the Episcopal Church, and decided to leave it.


Return to Antigua

In 1913 McGuire returned to the West Indies, settling in British-controlled
Antigua Antigua ( ), also known as Waladli or Wadadli by the native population, is an island in the Lesser Antilles. It is one of the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean region and the main island of the country of Antigua and Barbuda. Antigua and Bar ...
to care for his sick mother. While there he volunteered at a local parish, serving as a minister in the Church of England. The church was that of St. Paul in the Parish of St. Paul's Antigua. He served between 1913 - 1916 as Rector of the parish church. His name is listed as part of the priests who served. His signature can be viewed in the parish records. He gained acclaim for practicing medicine on the island. When a strike of local
sugar cane Sugarcane or sugar cane is a species of (often hybrid) tall, perennial grass (in the genus ''Saccharum'', tribe Andropogoneae) that is used for sugar production. The plants are 2–6 m (6–20 ft) tall with stout, jointed, fibrous stalks t ...
workers led to rioting and burning of the sugar cane fields, British colonial officials urged local and religious leaders to oppose the strikes, but McGuire refused and urged official to ensure that workers were paid decent, living wages.


UNIA

McGuire returned to the United States in 1918 and soon afterward joined the
UNIA ''Unia'' ( en, Dreams), released on 25 May 2007, is the fifth full-length studio album by the power metal band Sonata Arctica, following the album ''Reckoning Night''. The first single from the album was " Paid in Full", released on 27 April 2007 ...
.
Marcus Garvey Marcus Mosiah Garvey Sr. (17 August 188710 June 1940) was a Jamaican political activist, publisher, journalist, entrepreneur, and orator. He was the founder and first President-General of the Universal Negro Improvement Association and African ...
, a Jamaican immigrant and the president and founder of UNIA, appointed him as first
Chaplain A chaplain is, traditionally, a cleric (such as a Minister (Christianity), minister, priest, pastor, rabbi, purohit, or imam), or a laity, lay representative of a religious tradition, attached to a secularity, secular institution (such as a hosp ...
-General of the organization, at its inaugural international convention in New York in August 1920. In this position McGuire wrote two important documents of UNIA, "Universal Negro Ritual", and "Universal Negro Catechism", the latter containing both religious and historical sections, reflecting his interest in religion and race history. This was a period of black disillusionment and disenchantment with their status and with the enactment of discriminatory laws. This was not only true in the American South, but also in the Northern cities where the discrimination was also pervasive. In this period, some black leaders promoted separate development of the races. The mainline churches, such as the Episcopal Church (Anglican), wanted to bring faith to the Blacks, but did not want to advocate "political and social equality".


African Orthodox Church

On 2 September 1921, in the Church of the Good Shepherd in New York City, McGuire founded the African Orthodox Church(AOC). The new denomination was first called the ''Independent Episcopal Church''. A few years later at its first Conclave, or House of Bishops meeting, on 10 September 1924, the denomination was formally organized as the African Orthodox Church (AOC).African Orthodox Church Inc.
Net Ministries Network. Retrieved: 10 February 2017.
Right Rev. Philippe L. De Coster (B.Th., D.D. (Belgium), Latin Old Roman Catholic Church of Flanders).
African Orthodox Church: Its General History
'' 1st Ed. Publ. Eucharist and Devotion, 1993–2008. p.3.
McGuire believed that blacks who supported the Protestant Episcopal church deserved ecclesiastical independence. Based on traditional Roman Catholic doctrines, was open to all but was under complete black leadership and control. McGuire declared to his followers: "You must forget the white gods. Erase the white gods from your hearts. We must go back to the native church, to our own true God." McGuire may have been attracted to the Eastern Orthodox Church because it was not associated with racism, colonialism or religious imperialism. It was never involved in widespread missionary activity and had limited contacts with Afro-Americans and Africans. It was not perceived as racist. The adherents of Eastern Orthodoxy were primarily southern and eastern Europeans, people who were recent immigrants to the US and not associated with the establishment. Oriental Orthodoxy was based in what was then known as the Middle East, Egypt, Ethiopia and southern India. The name, ''African Orthodox Church'', "denoted its aim: to be a universal Black church in affiliation with a branch of Christianity not known for racism or colonialism."Theodore Natsoulas. "Patriarch McGuire and the Spread of the African Orthodox Church to Africa", ''Journal of Religion in Africa,'' Vol. 12, Fasc. 2 (1981), pp.81–104. Article one of the constitution of the African Orthodox church said:
The name of this church, which was organized September 2nd, 1921, is and shall be THE AFRICAN ORTHODOX CHURCH. Its faith as declared, is Orthodox, in conformity with the Orthodox Churches of the East from which its Episcopate is derived. While it admits to membership and other privileges persons of all races, IT SEEKS PARTICULARLY TO REACH OUT TO THE MILLIONS OF AFRICAN DESCENT IN BOTH HEMISPHERES, and declares itself to be perpetually autonomous and controlled by Negroes. Hence the name, AFRICAN ORTHODOX.
Shortly after the
UNIA ''Unia'' ( en, Dreams), released on 25 May 2007, is the fifth full-length studio album by the power metal band Sonata Arctica, following the album ''Reckoning Night''. The first single from the album was " Paid in Full", released on 27 April 2007 ...
convention in August 1924, McGuire broke with
Marcus Garvey Marcus Mosiah Garvey Sr. (17 August 188710 June 1940) was a Jamaican political activist, publisher, journalist, entrepreneur, and orator. He was the founder and first President-General of the Universal Negro Improvement Association and African ...
. He focused on expanding the AOC church, which primarily attracted Anglican immigrants from the West Indies who were from the
High Church The term ''high church'' refers to beliefs and practices of Christian ecclesiology, liturgy, and theology that emphasize formality and resistance to modernisation. Although used in connection with various Christian traditions, the term originate ...
Anglican tradition (
Anglo-Catholicism Anglo-Catholicism comprises beliefs and practices that emphasise the Catholic heritage and identity of the various Anglican churches. The term was coined in the early 19th century, although movements emphasising the Catholic nature of Anglica ...
). McGuire would have liked the AOC to be designated as the official church of UNIA, but Garvey was unwilling to grant such an exclusive privilege to any denomination. McGuire resigned from the UNIA. He ensured official "orthodox" status for his new church by arranging apostolic succession for himself.


Consecration in the American Catholic Church

McGuire initiated negotiations with the Russian Orthodox Church in America in order to obtain valid Apostolic Orders. The Russians were hesitant to assist the formation of another "independent" jurisdiction, however. They were willing to talk, but in the end, they intended to fully control this Black church. This was unacceptable to Fr. McGuire and the other leaders of this new jurisdiction. He met with similar positions from representatives of other Orthodox groups in the U.S.A. Finally the African Orthodox Church entered into negotiations with Archbishop
Joseph René Vilatte Joseph is a common male given name, derived from the Hebrew Yosef (יוֹסֵף). "Joseph" is used, along with "Josef", mostly in English, French and partially German languages. This spelling is also found as a variant in the languages of the mo ...
of the "
American Catholic Church American Catholic Church and American Catholic commonly refer to: * Catholic Church in the United States, the Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, in the US American Catholic Church may also refer to: * American Catholic Chur ...
" (ACC), an episcopal sect which he had founded. Fr. McGuire was re-ordained as Bishop in the American Catholic Church, consecrated on 28 September 1921, in Chicago, Illinois, by Archbishop
Joseph René Vilatte Joseph is a common male given name, derived from the Hebrew Yosef (יוֹסֵף). "Joseph" is used, along with "Josef", mostly in English, French and partially German languages. This spelling is also found as a variant in the languages of the mo ...
. He was assisted by bishop Carl A. Nybladh, who had been consecrated by Vilatte. The early issues of ''The Negro Churchman'', the official organ of the AOC, had articles that repeatedly tried to establish the validity of McGuire's consecration. On at least four occasions, a chart was printed on the cover page that traced the apostolic succession from the
See of Antioch Patriarch of Antioch is a traditional title held by the bishop of Antioch (modern-day Antakya, Turkey). As the traditional "overseer" (ἐπίσκοπος, ''episkopos'', from which the word ''bishop'' is derived) of the first gentile Christian c ...
to McGuire: :# Ignatius Peter III (IV), Syro-Jacobite Patriarch of Antioch and successor to S. Peter consecrated: :# Paul Athanasius (Paulose Mar Athanasious) in 1877, consecrated: :# Archbishop Alvarez of Ceylon in 1889, consecrated: :# Archbishop Vilatte in 1892, consecrated: :# Bishop McGuire in 1921.


Meeting with the Ecumenical Patriarch

McGuire tried to gain recognition from the Greek Orthodox
Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople The ecumenical patriarch ( el, Οἰκουμενικός Πατριάρχης, translit=Oikoumenikós Patriárchēs) is the archbishop of Constantinople (Istanbul), New Rome and '' primus inter pares'' (first among equals) among the heads of th ...
. In December 1921, three months after his consecration, McGuire, through the intercession of Eastern Orthodox prelates, was granted an audience with Patriarch Meletios while the latter was on a visit to New York City. The Patriarch was interested in the origins and dogma of the AOC. He accepted the Jacobite episcopal source as legitimate but was concerned over its
monophysite Monophysitism ( or ) or monophysism () is a Christological term derived from the Greek (, "alone, solitary") and (, a word that has many meanings but in this context means "nature"). It is defined as "a doctrine that in the person of the incarn ...
dogma. McGuire apparently had no difficulty in satisfying the Patriarch. Meletios also was concerned with Western Christian influences in dogma that might have permeated the AOC, especially on the question of the nature of the
Trinity The Christian doctrine of the Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the central dogma concerning the nature of God in most Christian churches, which defines one God existing in three coequal, coeternal, consubstantial divine persons: God the F ...
. (Both Roman Catholicism and Anglicanism adhere to the belief that the Holy Spirit proceeds from both the Father and Son, while Orthodoxy holds procession only from the Father). Here too McGuire appears to have satisfied the Patriarch. Areas of agreement between Greek Orthodoxy and the AOC included common acceptance of the dogmatic decisions of the seven Ecumenical Councils, the seven
Sacraments A sacrament is a Christian rite that is recognized as being particularly important and significant. There are various views on the existence and meaning of such rites. Many Christians consider the sacraments to be a visible symbol of the real ...
, the original form of the
Nicene Creed The original Nicene Creed (; grc-gre, Σύμβολον τῆς Νικαίας; la, Symbolum Nicaenum) was first adopted at the First Council of Nicaea in 325. In 381, it was amended at the First Council of Constantinople. The amended form is a ...
, the concept of
transubstantiation Transubstantiation (Latin: ''transubstantiatio''; Greek: μετουσίωσις ''metousiosis'') is, according to the teaching of the Catholic Church, "the change of the whole substance of bread into the substance of the Body of Christ and of th ...
, the declaration of the Virgin Mary as
Mother of God ''Theotokos'' (Greek: ) is a title of Mary, mother of Jesus, used especially in Eastern Christianity. The usual Latin translations are ''Dei Genitrix'' or ''Deipara'' (approximately "parent (fem.) of God"). Familiar English translations are " ...
(God-bearer or ''Theotokos'' in Greek Orthodoxy), justification by both faith and good works, and the rejection of
predestination Predestination, in theology, is the doctrine that all events have been willed by God, usually with reference to the eventual fate of the individual soul. Explanations of predestination often seek to address the paradox of free will, whereby G ...
, a Protestant Calvinist belief. McGuire claimed that the Patriarch accepted the AOC as an Orthodox Church but would not afford it communion with Eastern Orthodoxy until it demonstrated stability and growth. In 1924 Meletios and his successor, Gregorios VII, requested more information and received copies of the AOC's Divine Liturgy, canons, constitution and Declaration of Faith. The AOC never gained the desired recognition from a major Eastern Orthodox Church. Orthodoxy does recognize different rites, but its leaders may have rejected the apparent eclectic nature of the AOC's liturgy and services. At the church's inception, the liturgy was described as a mixture of Roman Catholicism, Anglicanism and Orthodoxy. The chief service was the Mass; minor and major orders were conferred through the Catholic Pontifical; and the official hymnal was the Anglican ''
Hymns Ancient and Modern ''Hymns Ancient and Modern'' is a hymnal in common use within the Church of England, a result of the efforts of the Oxford Movement. The hymnal was first published in 1861. The organization publishing it has now been formed into a charitable ...
''. The AOC was essentially
High Anglican The term ''high church'' refers to beliefs and practices of Christian ecclesiology, liturgy, and theology that emphasize formality and resistance to modernisation. Although used in connection with various Christian traditions, the term originated ...
and it was Orthodox only to the extent that its leader had the title of Patriarch, that the original form of the
Nicene Creed The original Nicene Creed (; grc-gre, Σύμβολον τῆς Νικαίας; la, Symbolum Nicaenum) was first adopted at the First Council of Nicaea in 325. In 381, it was amended at the First Council of Constantinople. The amended form is a ...
had been adopted, and that its episcopal source was in an Oriental Orthodox Church.


AOC consolidation and growth 1924–1934

In 1924, the newly organized conclave of AOC unanimously elected McGuire as archbishop of the church. During the remaining decade of his life, McGuire built the AOC into a thriving international church. Branches were eventually established in Miami, Chicago, Harlem (New York), Boston, and Cambridge, Massachusetts of the US, Canada, Barbados, Cuba, South Africa, Uganda, Kenya, and elsewhere. The official organ of AOC, ''The Negro Churchman'', was an effective link for the far-flung organization, with McGuire as its
editor Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, photographic, visual, audible, or cinematic material used by a person or an entity to convey a message or information. The editing process can involve correction, condensation, orga ...
. Endich Theological Seminary was founded shortly thereafter,AFRICAN ORTHODOX CHURCH
" In: Larry G. Murphy, J. Gordon Melton, Gary L. Ward (Eds.). ''Encyclopedia of African American Religions.'' Routledge, 2013. p. 24.
as well as an Order of
Deaconesses The ministry of a deaconess is, in modern times, a usually non-ordained ministry for women in some Protestant, Oriental Orthodox, and Eastern Orthodox churches to provide pastoral care, especially for other women, and which may carry a limited l ...
. In 1925 McGuire founded an AOC parish in
West Palm Beach, Florida West Palm Beach is a city in and the county seat of Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. It is located immediately to the west of the adjacent Palm Beach, which is situated on a barrier island across the Lake Worth Lagoon. The populati ...
. Two years after that, he consecrated Daniel William Alexander, an African clergyman, as Metropolitan Archbishop for South Africa and central and southern Africa. At the same time McGuire was elected
Patriarch The highest-ranking bishops in Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy, the Catholic Church (above major archbishop and primate), the Hussite Church, Church of the East, and some Independent Catholic Churches are termed patriarchs (and in certai ...
of the denomination with the title ''Alexander I''. The church spread to
Uganda }), is a landlocked country in East Africa East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territor ...
as well, where it grew to about 10,000 members. On 8 November 1931 McGuire dedicated Holy Cross
Pro-Cathedral A pro-cathedral or procathedral is a parish church that temporarily serves as the cathedral or co-cathedral of a diocese, or a church that has the same function in a Catholic missionary jurisdiction (such as an apostolic prefecture or apostolic ...
in
Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street (Manhattan), 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and 110th Street (Manhattan), ...
(New York). His church maintained its greatest strength in NYC.


Death

McGuire died 10 November 1934. He is buried in Woodlawn Cemetery in the Bronx, New York City. He was survived by his wife, Ada Robert McGuire (also a native of Antigua), and one daughter. At the time of his death in 1934, the African Orthodox Church claimed over 30,000 members, fifty clergy, and thirty churches located on three continents: North America, South America and Africa. George Alexander McGuire was canonized by the African Orthodox Church on 31 July 1983 and is a saint of that church.


Historical perspective

The movement for ecclesiastical independence started by McGuire in 1921 can be viewed from two perspectives. First, it was an expression of Black cultural independence in the United States and Africa. It was an effort to promote widespread religious unity under Black leadership. The AOC's inclusion within the
apostolic succession Apostolic succession is the method whereby the ministry of the Christian Church is held to be derived from the apostles by a continuous succession, which has usually been associated with a claim that the succession is through a series of bish ...
was intended to give it legitimacy both within the Black community and larger Christian world. McGuire did not achieve the growth in his church that he hoped for. While it did increase in size during its first decade, this was primarily through his forceful personality rather than attraction to its principle of apostolic succession. After McGuire's death, the AOC splintered and weakened. In South Africa there was growth, but not at the rate anticipated by Daniel William Alexander. He did plant new AOC churches in
Uganda }), is a landlocked country in East Africa East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territor ...
and Kenya, where they are now under the administrative umbrella of the Orthodox Patriarchate of Alexandria. Second, in its attempt to bring together Blacks of the
diaspora A diaspora ( ) is a population that is scattered across regions which are separate from its geographic place of origin. Historically, the word was used first in reference to the dispersion of Greeks in the Hellenic world, and later Jews after ...
and Africa into a common movement, the AOC was a manifestation of
Pan-Africanism Pan-Africanism is a worldwide movement that aims to encourage and strengthen bonds of solidarity between all Indigenous and diaspora peoples of African ancestry. Based on a common goal dating back to the Atlantic slave trade, the movement exte ...
of the period. Spiritual and emotional needs left unattended in their respective countries, propelled Blacks in the United States and South Africa to affiliate and assert their autonomy in an area where the White establishments saw no threat. Discrimination, racism and second-class citizenship engendered this effort at ecclesiastical independence and racial cooperation on both sides of the Atlantic.


See also

*
African Orthodox Church The African Orthodox Church (AOC), registered as the Holy African Orthodox Church, is an Episcopalian, primarily African-American denomination which was founded in the United States in 1918 by the joint collaboration of its first Patriarch George ...
*
Harlem Renaissance The Harlem Renaissance was an intellectual and cultural revival of African American music, dance, art, fashion, literature, theater, politics and scholarship centered in Harlem, Manhattan, New York City, spanning the 1920s and 1930s. At the t ...
*
Raphael Morgan Robert Josias "Raphael" Morgan (c. 1866 - July 29, 1922) was a Jamaican-American who is believed to be the first Black Eastern Orthodox priest in the United States. After being active in other denominations, including the AME Church, Church ...
* Eastern Orthodoxy in Uganda


Notes


References


Sources

* Byron Rushing. ''"A Note on the Origin of the African Orthodox Church."'' The Journal of Negro History 57:1 (Jan. 1972). * David Levinson. ''African Orthodox Church.'' In: Stephen D. Glazier (Ed.)
Encyclopedia of African and African-American Religions
Routledge Encyclopedias of Religion and Society. Taylor & Francis, 2001. pp. 15–16. * Frank S Mead. ''Handbook of Denominations in the United States.'' 10th Ed. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1995. * Gavin White. ''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. * John Hope Franklin and August Meier (Eds.). ''Black Leaders of the Twentieth Century''. Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 1982. * Makarios (Tillyrides) of Kenya. ''The Origin of Orthodoxy in East Africa].'' Orthodox Research Institute. * Rachel Gallaher.
McGuire, George Alexander (1866–1934)
'. BlackPast.org. * Rayford W. Logan and Michael R. Winston (Eds.). ''Dictionary of American Negro Biography''. New York: W.W. Norton, 1982. * Right Rev. Philippe L. De Coster (B.Th., D.D. (Belgium), Latin Old Roman Catholic Church of Flanders).
African Orthodox Church: Its General History
'. 1st Ed. Publ. Eucharist and Devotion, 1993–2008. 67 pp. * Theodore Natsoulas. ''Patriarch McGuire and the Spread of the African Orthodox Church to Africa.'' Journal of Religion in Africa, Vol. 12, Fasc. 2 (1981), pp. 81–104. * Tony Martin.
McGuire, George Alexander
'' Encyclopedia of the Harlem Renaissance. Volume 2. Cary D. Wintz, Paul Finkelman (Eds.). Taylor & Francis, 2004. pp. 776–777. * Warren C. Platt. ''The African Orthodox Church: An Analysis of Its First Decade.'' Church History, Vol. 58, No. 4 (Dec. 1989), pp. 474–488.


External links

*
The African Orthodox Church: Its Declaration of Faith: Constitutions and Canons
'' 14 pp. *
African Orthodox Church Inc.
'' Net Ministries Network. *
Commemoration of St. George Alexander McGuire
'' The San Luigi Orders Charitable Trust. 23 August 2012. *
Synod of the African Orthodox Church, Canada, 2014
'' The San Luigi Orders Charitable Trust. 24 August 2014. * Tromp Wynn Hayes, Stephen. "The African Orthodox Church." In:
ORTHODOX MISSION METHODS: A COMPARATIVE STUDY
'' Thesis, submitted in fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Theology. University of South Africa, June 1998. pp. 106–107. {{DEFAULTSORT:McGuire, George Alexander 1866 births 1934 deaths 19th-century American Episcopalians 20th-century American Episcopalians 20th-century American physicians 20th-century archbishops 20th-century American clergy African-American Episcopalians American Episcopal priests American Anglo-Catholics American pan-Africanists Antigua and Barbuda emigrants to the United States Antigua and Barbuda religious leaders Clergy of historically African-American Christian denominations Bishops of Independent Catholic denominations Independent Catholic patriarchs Independent Catholic primates Universal Negro Improvement Association and African Communities League members People from Saint Paul Parish, Antigua Burials at Woodlawn Cemetery (Bronx, New York)