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St. Philip's African Orthodox Church: a Case Study of a Unique Religious Institution

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St. Philip's African Orthodox Church: a Case Study of a Unique Religious Institution St. Philip's African Orthodox Church: A Case Study of A Unique Religious Institution Kimberly L. Harding B.A., University College of Cape Breton, 1996 Thesis Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts (Sociology) Acadia University Fall Convocation 1998 @ by Kimberly Harding 1998 I, Kimberly L. (Kimberly </a> Harding, grant permission to the University Librarian at Acadia University to reproduce, loan, or distrubute copies of my thesis in microform, paper or electronic formats on a non-profit basis. I, however, retain the copyright in my thesis. Signature of Author Date Table of Contents List of Tables ....................................................... ............................... vi .. Acknowledgements ................................................................................. vu ... Abstract ................................................................................................. mu Chapter One: Introduction and Literature Review ...................... 1 Ethnic Composition and Population Characteristics .............................. 4 Literature Review .................................................................................. 11 Theoretical Framework .................................................................... 11 Black Religion ........................ ... ......................................................... 14 Women in the Black Church .......................-. ..................................... 24 Ethnicim in Canada ........................................................................... 26 McanOrthodox Churcb in the Literature ................... ....,,., ............ 28 Chapter Two: Methods ....................................................................31 Case Study ............................................................................................. 31 Description of Methods ........................................................................... 32 Participant Obsewation ......................................................................... 33 Semi-Structured f nterviews ............. ,. ................................................. 37 Sampling ................................................................................................. 39 Samphg Profile ..................................................................................... 40 Historical Analysis and Document Review ........................................... 41 Questions to Clergy of Other Denominations ....................................... 42 Analysis .................................................................................................. 42 Critical Distance ..................................................................................... 43 Concluding Comments ........................................................................... 44 Chapter Three: History and Background of the Af'rican Orthodox Church ................... ,, ..................................................... 46 Patriarch and the AOC founder McGuire ........................................... 47 The AOC and Links to the UNXA .......................................................... 50 The AOC and the American Catholic Church .............................. ... .... 58 Chapter Four: Description of the Place. Community and Church............ ....................................................................................... 62 Description of the Place ......................................................................... 63 Social and Economic Description of the Sydney Area .......................... 65 The Church ............................................................................................. 67 Worship ............................................................................................... 72 Chapter Five: Analysis of the Historical Development of the Church in Sydney ........................................................................ 79 Origins in Sydney ................................................................................. 79 Racism ............................................................................................... 82 Reasons for mationwith St. Philip 's .............................................. 84 Community Response to St. Philip's ...................... .. ........................... 85 Ethnie Identity ............................. .. ................................................ 86 Community Attendance at Churches Other than St- Philip's .............. 88 Uniqueness of St. Philip's .............................. .. ............................... 90 Concluding Comments ........................................................................ 92 Chapter Six: Social Organization and Service to the Black Community ...............................................................................94 Membership ................................ ............ .................................. 96 Economic Situation of Sydney and its Effects on Membership ............ 96 Youth Attendance at St . Philip's .................................................... 101 Memberships in Other Churches....................................................... 105 Supports offered by St . Philip's ...................................................... 106 Perceptions of Racism within the Community .................................... 107 Cultural Supports................................................................................ 112 Description of Activities .............................. ... .............................. 113 Special Functions ................................................................................. 114 On-going Functions ............................................................................ 118 Uniqueness of St. Phdip's ....................... ... .................................. 121 Chapter Seven: Conclusion ............................................................124 Concluding Comments ........................ .... ........................................ 129 Bibliography .................................e.........t.....m.......e.. ..................... 132 Appendix A: Confidentiality Letter ..............................................143 Appendix B: Interview Guide .........................................................144 Appendix C: List of Other Churches in Sydney Area ............... 151 Appendix D: Chronological List of Rectors at St. Philip's....... 152 List of Tables Table 1.1: Distribution of the 1991 Black Population in Canada for Selected Provinces .................................................................................... 5 Table 1.2. Black Popdation in Selected Counties in Nova Scotia ........ 6 Table 1.3: Black Population in Selected Cape Breton Island Municipalities ............................. ...... ................................................... 6 Table 1.4. Number of Baptisms within St. Philip's by Decade ........... 10 vii Many people were of assistance in the writing of this thesis. 1 would like to thank my supervisor, Bruce Matthews for his willingness to take on a student at a late date. Janet McClain desemes many thanks for her many helpful comments throughout the entire process. Isaac Addai warrants recognition for his many helpful suggestions and discussions and help in focusing the thesis. I would also like to thank Tom Regan for his help in this project. 1 also want to recognize the tremendous support given to me by Dianne Looker to present this research and her encouragement when things became dificuit. 1 would like to thank Kurt Bowen for his help in the initial stages of this research. My sincere thanks to Robert Campbell and David Mullan at the University College of Cape Breton and Jennifer Reid at the University of Maine at Farmington for their words of encouragement, their suggestions, answers to fiantic emails and help in hding detailed information. On a more personal note 1 would like to thank Susan PWps and Pamela Magee for their support and laughs during the entire thesis process. I would like to acknowledge my family for their unwavering support and help during this research project. A special thanks to Amanda who stayed up past her bedtime to help me. Also, thanks to the two boys in my life, my cats Tibby and Squeak for understanding why 1 could not stay home to play. Findy, 1would like to Say a huge thank you to the congregation of St. Philip's and Archbishop Waterman who gave so fieely of their time. 1 enjoyed the experiences 1 shared with them and 1 appreciate what they taught me while conducting my research. Abstract This thesis is the result of a qualitative case study conducted within the congregation of St. Philip's fican Orthodox Church in the neighbourhood of Whitney Pier in Sydney, Nova Scotia. St. Philip's is the only parish of the AOC in Canada. The purpose of this thesis is to understand and illustrate the uniqueness of this church. This is accomplished through an examination of the church's history in the area and the social supports the church offers to the contemporary Black community. A total of 10 long interviews were conducted 6thmembers of the congregation, as well as interviews with other clergy members in the Sydney area. The findings of this study support its designation as a unique religious institution. Chapter One Introduction and Literature Review This thesis is a case study of the congregation of St. Philip's African Orthodox Church (AOC) in Sydney, Nova Scotia. This church
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