302 Political Activity and Resistance to Oppression: From the American Revolution to the Civil War
largely preoccupied his daily life. By 1815, the relationship
between the members of Bethel Church and Methodist
denominational authorities had deteriorated considerably.
When a white elder attempted to take the pulpit at a Sun-
day morning Bethel service, he was forcibly prevented from
doing so by the congregation. Th at elder then fi led with the
courts, arguing that the black members of Bethel had no
right to rebel against their white institutional elders. Th e
case would eventually make it to the Pennsylvania Supreme
Court; in 1816, that body found for Bethel Church, eff ec-
tively inaugurating the independent African American
church movement. Although dedicated by Francis Asbury
in 1794, it took over 20 years for Allen and Bethel Church
to achieve independent authority.
Allen seized the opportunity. In 1816, Bethel hosted
the fi rst General Conference of 16 black congregations,
which ordained Allen as the fi rst bishop of the fi rst racially
distinct denomination in this country, the African Method-
ist Episcopal (AME) Church. Under this defi nitive bureau-
cratic umbrella, Allen promoted education, economy, and
spiritual discipline. Observers debated whether Allen was
more interested in garnering personal power or in uniting
black Methodists; his single-minded independence made it
diffi cult to work with him. For this reason, the early years of
black Methodism saw the proliferation of Methodist sects,
such as the Methodist Zion churches, founded by James
Varick. However, a strong contingency of low-income con-
stituencies found purpose and clarity within Allen’s tri-
partite endorsement of economic independence, political
activism, and moral fortitude. Th e AME church quickly ex-
panded to become the primary agency of black social ser-
vices and economic cooperation within African America,
off ering everything from clothing to spiritual education to
sanctuary for runaway slaves.
Allen’s national reputation continued to grow alongside
that of his church. Although Allen’s views on black emigra-
tion are not widely known, he initially supported Haitian
migration. In 1824, Allen began corresponding with Hai-
tian President Jean Pierre Boyer and began recruiting mi-
grants. Eventually, both Allen and James Forten formed the
Philadelphia Haitian Emigration Society’s leadership. Allen
even sent one of his sons to Haiti to assess the movement’s
progress and provide reports about its success and, in 1825,
helped publish a pamphlet urging free blacks to consider
immigration to Haiti on the grounds that they would never
achieve full equality in the United States. Yet by the endAllen broke with Jones and organized the Bethel Church
for Black Methodists, in 1794.
Th e break with Jones was diffi cult for Allen, who
valued Jones’s friendship and oratorical panache. How-
ever, Allen’s commitment to Methodism was absolute.
He believed Methodism alone off ered resolution to black
oppression. With simple doctrine and extemporaneous
preaching, Methodism diff erentiated itself from the dogma
of Episcopal catechism and exegesis. In addition, the re-
lentless Methodist invocation of discipline was, for Allen,
the watchword for an impoverished race. Unlike other
denominations, which focused on complex theology and
complex ritual, the Methodist church celebrated industry
and temperance, two virtues necessary for economic up-
lift. Allen always combined the social conditions of blacks
with their spiritual reformation. Bethel Church organized a
day school in 1795, and in 1804, Allen founded the Society
of Free People of Color for Promoting the Instruction and
School Education of Children of African Descent. An active
abolitionist, he led petition drives demanding the abolition
of slavery in Pennsylvania (1799, 1800) and in the United
States (1800). From the earliest days of Bethel, then, Allen
saw his religious labors and his political eff orts conjoined.
Black Americans needed salvation, and Allen provided it
on several fronts.
As Allen developed a religious reputation among black
Philadelphians, he also acquired a political profi le among
whites. In 1793, Matthew Carey, a prominent white Phila-
delphian, published an account of the yellow fever epidemic
in that city, describing black residents as immoral scaven-
gers during this crisis. However, he complimented Allen
and Absalom Jones for possessing uniquely high moral
standards. Rather than merely enjoy the compliment, Allen
and Jones replied in print to Carey’s praise, publishing a ref-
utation to his condemnation of Philadelphia blacks. Th ey
rejected Carey’s condescending approval and argued that
blacks were not the problem in Philadelphia; the problem
was the pernicious moral weight of slavery. Absent slavery,
blacks would triumph as whites did. At the conclusion of
their retort, Allen appended an “Address to Th ose Who
Keep Slaves and Approve the Practice.” Using scriptural ar-
gument, Allen off ered a markedly direct antislavery argu-
ment, reiterating the moral optimism he experienced while
a young man in Dover, Delaware.
With this publication, Allen acquired a reputation
beyond his church. However, it was church matters that