Readings:

Psalm 119:9-16
Sirach 51:13-26
2 Peter 1:16-21
John 3:1-15

Preface of a Saint (2)

[Common of a Missionary] [Common of a Pastor]
[For the Ministry II]
[For the Mission of the Church]
[For Education]

 
PRAYER (traditional language)
Almighty God, who didst raise up thy servant Samuel Ferguson and inspire in him a missionary vision of thy Church in education and ministry: Stir up in us through his example a zeal for a Church, alive with thy Holy Word, reaching forth in love and service to all; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

PRAYER (contemporary language)
Almighty God, who raised up your servant Samuel Ferguson and inspired in him a missionary vision of your Church in education and ministry: Stir up in us through his example a zeal for a Church, alive with your Holy Word, reaching forth in love and service to all; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

This commemoration appears in A Great Cloud of Witnesses.

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Last updated: 1 June 2019
 

SAMUEL FERGUSON

MISSIONARY BISHOP FOR WEST AFRICA, 1916
 

Bp. Samuel FergusonSamuel David Ferguson (January 1, 1842-August 2, 1916) was the first Black person to be elected a bishop of the Episcopal Church. He was born at Charleston, South Carolina and died in Cape Palmas, Liberia.

Ferguson moved with his family to Liberia at age six. He was ordained a deacon on December 28, 1865 and a priest on March 15, 1868. He was consecrated as bishop on June 24, 1885 (Saint John the Baptist's Feast Day), at Grace Church, New York, becoming the first black member of the House of Bishops. He married Mary Leonora Montgomery.

As Missionary Bishop of Liberia, he founded what is now Cuttington University College. He also established the Bromley Mission School. He remained in Liberia until his death in Monrovia in 1916.

— from Wikipedia

 
Further information about Bp. Ferguson may be found in the Episcopal Church Archives and in History of the Afro-American Group of the Episcopal Church, Ch. 24.