F.F. Bosworth and Black Gospel Groups: A Moment in Black History

By Roscoe Barnes III, PhD

Author, F.F. Bosworth: The Man Behind "Christ the Healer"
Copyright (c) 2020

#FFBosworth
#BosworthMatters

#BlackHistory

F.F. Bosworth’s love for music contributed to his relationship with people of color. Music apparently served as a catalyst for race relations in his ministry.

In addition to working with Gospel songwriter Thoro Harris, who was African American, Bosworth shared the platform with the Tindley Jubilee Gospel Singers. In January 1928, the Tindley Jubilee Gospel Singers participated in a series of evangelistic meetings that Bosworth held at Paul Rader’s Chicago Gospel Tabernacle.

Bosworth also ministered with the Cleveland Coloured Gospel Quintette, a group that was said to represent the finest in black gospel music. Each of the group’s five members had become Christian through the Christian & Missionary Alliance (C&MA). Bosworth invited the group to sing for his meetings in several places, including Pittsburgh, Toledo, Chicago, and Toronto, Canada. The  Cleveland Coloured Gospel Quintette is mentioned in the book, All For Jesus: God at Work in the Christian and Missionary Alliance Over One Hundred Years (Christian Publications, 1986) by Robert L. Niklaus, John S. Sawin and Samuel J. Stoesz.

In my doctoral thesis on Bosworth, I wrote about Bosworth’s ministry during the Jazz Age. I noted, for instance, that some of his most successful meetings were held during this period, which was also known as “The Roaring Twenties.” This period, which lasted from 1920 to 1929, coincided with the Harlem Renaissance, a black cultural movement of the 1920s and early 1930s. At the time, I wondered if that time period (or the jazz music) had any influence on Bosworth. Specifically, I wondered if the music had any influence his music, his meetings, or the relationship he had with blacks. After much thought, I settled with the belief that more research was needed.

“However, there is a possibility that his relationship with the black singers and songwriter [might] have grown, in part, out of the recognition given to blacks during this time,” I suggested.

It is my view that while Bosworth’s ministry with black singers during this time might have been coincidental, it also might have been divinely appointed or simply a small part of a major trend. Either way, music appeared to be the catalyst through which his ministry crossed racial lines and reached people of different backgrounds. 

 ---------------------------

Reminder: "F.F. Bosworth History" is now on Twitter. Follow @bosworth_fred

Note: My book, F.F. Bosworth: The Man Behind "Christ the Healer," can be purchased here with a 25% discount. Use the discount code: bosworth25.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Want to know more

about F.F. Bosworth?

Follow the Bosworth Matters blog!

You can start right here:

ffbosworth.strikingly.com

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

For more information:

Visit the F.F. Bosworth page here. Questions about the research and commentary on F.F. Bosworth may be directed to Roscoe Barnes III, Ph.D., via email at doctorbarnes3@gmail.com or roscoebarnes3@yahoo.com. For updates on F.F. Bosworth history, simply follow this blog or @bosworth_fred and @Roscoebarnes3 on Twitter. #ChristTheHealer #BosworthMention #BosworthMatters