August 2, 2023 • 44 mins
As a child, Marcy was never allowed to attend a United House of Prayer service — her family told her it was taboo. But the church — which Daddy Grace founded in 1919 — is still going strong. So what’s going on? Why did Daddy Grace want to start his own church in the first place? How did he manage to grow it so quickly? And what are the services actually like? Marcy travels down to Charlotte, NC to find out for herself.
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Speaker 1 (00:06):
I'm a Cape Verdian living in America. My family made
sacrifices so I could have this life, and it was
from my family stories that I first learned of our
history with sweet Daddy Grace. In short, my family isn't
particularly so enthused about.
Speaker 2 (00:23):
Our connection to him.
Speaker 1 (00:25):
They would prefer to keep their distance from this charismatic
and controversial preacher. My aunt Judy remembers some of the
things her grandfather, Nola Locke said about Bishop Grace.
Speaker 3 (00:40):
He did say that originally that Daddy Grace he felt
he was legit, that he was a legitimate, a man
of the word, But then somewhere down the line he
went off that and became cultish.
Speaker 1 (00:55):
This feeling of distrust continued through the generations.
Speaker 4 (01:00):
My parents, you know, they had nothing to do with
him or his so called religion. Strangely enough, my father's
first cousins were followers of Daddy Grace, and there were
stories that were told. Whether they were true or not,
I don't know, but my father said that one of
(01:20):
his cousins was told that she was an angel, and
she was at church and she decided to jump off
the platform, and in so doing fell and broke her wrist.
Speaker 1 (01:34):
But when I heard these stories about him, it had
the opposite effect.
Speaker 2 (01:39):
They just made me.
Speaker 1 (01:40):
More curious and I needed to know more. So I
booked a flight to Charlotte in the midst of a
hurricane to attend the House of Prayer's annual convocation. It's
the church's biggest celebration, so what a perfect time for
me to get to know the church from the inside.
(02:01):
I'm Marcy de Pena and from iHeart Podcasts, Enforce and
Media group. This is sweet Daddy, Grace.
Speaker 5 (02:11):
Good, glad for being happy, Power, You're glad, Ahamada, are happy,
(02:45):
down and cried.
Speaker 6 (02:47):
We're b.
Speaker 1 (02:58):
I am in the parking lot of the Charlotte Mother
House of the United House of Prayer for All People.
The convocation starts today. I actually feel a little nervous.
I'm not sure why. I'm trying to remember actually the
last time I was in church. It's been a while.
(03:20):
My relationship to organized religion, like many people's, is a
bit complicated. My father completely distanced himself from his strict
Church of the Nazarene upbringing. My mother, on the other hand,
was a C and E Catholic, that's a Christmas and
Eastern Catholic. My parents and I, we didn't talk a
(03:41):
lot about church. Instead, my mother taught me all about astrology.
She instructed me in the power of plant medicine. She
gave me an education in the power of music. Those
became my church. Also, as a Cape Verdean, I've always
worn a sabichi or quante d I old you, a
bead that protects you from evil spirits.
Speaker 2 (04:04):
We have a lot of spiritual practices and.
Speaker 1 (04:07):
Rituals that have nothing to do with Christianity, but are
also not in conflict with it. There has always been
an awareness of this spirit world, our ancestors, and the
power of words and manifestation, And for as long as
I can remember, I've had intuitive, lucid dreams.
Speaker 2 (04:27):
My mother shared this gift.
Speaker 1 (04:29):
While we may not have gone to church, she and
I often spoke about our inseparable connections to spirit. In
other words, we talked that hippie shit. So you can
imagine my surprise when, while I was in third grade,
my mother and stepfather chose to become born again Christians.
(04:49):
They got saved, and let me just say, that opened
up a whole other world. That's when we started going
to revivals and services one hot summer day, we attended
a big tent revival in Boston. It was led by
a Nigerian pastor. I remember the feeling of the humid
(05:12):
air and the sound of the bugs and the throb
of life that children are particularly attuned to. The tent
was large and packed to the brim. My family and
I we were seated in the middle. There was a
band upfront. The music was operating on high vibration. You
could feel the energy thrilled through the crowd. I could
(05:36):
feel the frequency pulsating throughout my little body too. When
the music calmed and the pastor spoke, I felt the
spirit moving through her.
Speaker 2 (05:47):
I was riveted. I was enraptured.
Speaker 1 (05:52):
She made the call asking if anyone wanted to be saved.
I did not hesitate. I popped up out of my
seat and walked up to the front of the sanctuary
as fast as my little legs could get me there.
I stood there before everybody in this packed tent, the
only child in a line of adults and teens. We
(06:15):
were calm and ready. The pastor walked down the line
asking us to accept Jesus into our hearts as our
Lord and savior. When the pastor got to me. She
reached down and touched my forehead and I fell out.
When I got back up, I felt like a different person.
(06:37):
When I got back to my seat, my mother told
me that I had been speaking in tongues. I don't
think my eight year old self knew how to articulate
what I'd experienced, but it felt like a profound light
had washed over me, and I knew in that moment,
without a single doubt in my tiny little body, I
(07:00):
had spiritual gifts. From that point on, the church and
our faith became a big part of our lives. We
attended multiple services a week. We went to Bible study
and pot luck dinners. My mom was a music minister
and I sang in the choir. It was our community.
(07:22):
It felt like every day I was doing something related
to church.
Speaker 2 (07:27):
And let me tell you, the rules were strict.
Speaker 1 (07:31):
For one, we weren't allowed to listen to secular music,
and I loved Prince, so this was a serious conflict.
I couldn't dress up anymore on Halloween, that was a
demonic holiday. We were expected to only hang out with
other church goers. It didn't matter that I was a kid,
I had my spiritual life to consider. We were constantly
(07:54):
repenting for our sins. We stayed ready for Jesus's return
in the rapture. But as I reached adolescence, I began
to read and study Black in African history, and my
curiosity about spirituality expanded. I learned more about traditional African
spiritual practices and recognized many beliefs and customs that were
(08:19):
also part of Cape Verdean culture. I also came to
know the influence of Islam, Buddhism, and other systems of
mysticism and thought, like numerology, and my passion for astrology,
something I had given up since my conversion, was reignited.
All that I learned challenged the notion that there was
(08:40):
only one true religion and if you weren't saved, you
were going to Hell soon enough, though, I moved away
to go to college, and like so many other first
year college students, that pretty much marked the end of
my church going days. All of this was swirling around
inside of me when I parked my car outside the
(09:00):
United House of Prayer in Charlotte, North Carolina. Meanwhile, at
the same time, Hurricane Ian, a hurricane that began in
the Atlantic waters surrounding Kabovid was heading into town. Both
inside of me and outside, a storm was gathering. Six
years had passed since the last time I stepped inside
(09:23):
of a church. I didn't know what was going to happen.
Would I feel the presence of God? Would it feel
like a coat?
Speaker 2 (09:32):
Or worse?
Speaker 1 (09:33):
What if I felt nothing at all? I once heard
a story. Daddy Grace never intended to live in the
United States. He only meant to come here seasonally, do
some work, and return to Kabovid with fresh coin in
his pockets. This was long before he was known as
(09:53):
Sweet Daddy Grace. He was happy on his home island
of Brava, where he was already al vocal celebrity. Young
Marcellino Manuel de Grasa was known for his storytelling abilities.
Speaker 2 (10:07):
People would come.
Speaker 1 (10:08):
From around the island to hear him tell folk tales.
He was determined to stay in Brava right up until
God told him this wasn't an option. To convey this message,
God turned to fire one day out of nowhere, Marcellino's
hair started burning. He immediately knew it was God speaking
(10:33):
to him. God told him that if he did not
go to America and spread the word, he would have
no hair left. Marcellino had no choice. In nineteen oh four,
he left cabuverd and he'd never return. Weeks later he
arrived in New Bedford, Massachusetts. It may have eased the
(10:56):
transition that much of his family was in fact already there,
including his brother Joseph, who had founded a church. And
still thinking, probably about his burning hair, he began to
look for a place to worship. Cape Verdeans were unwelcome
in the local Portuguese Catholic church, so he explored the
(11:17):
area's Protestant churches, including his brothers. As Marcelino Manuel de
Grasa settled into life in America, he began to carve
out a new identity for himself. First step a new name.
His new last name, Grace, was simply a translation of
(11:37):
the Grasa from Portuguese to English. He kept his middle
name Manuel, but for his new first name, he dreamed
big Charles, the King of Portugal, the colonial ruler of
Capoved was named Carlos. The root of Charles it means freeman.
(11:58):
Daddy Grace was writing his story, so Charles Manuel Grace
attended church service.
Speaker 2 (12:06):
After church service.
Speaker 1 (12:08):
Pentecostal Baptist, Methodist studying the Bible and sometimes even preaching
at his brother's chapel.
Speaker 2 (12:17):
He was searching for a church that spoke to his soul.
Speaker 1 (12:23):
He also got married to a Cape Verdian woman named Jeanie.
They had a daughter, Irene and a son, Norman, but
the marriage was rocky, and shortly after Norman was born,
Daddy Grace left the family. According to him, his wife
Genie was not cut out for the spiritual life. She however,
(12:45):
said that their discord was because Daddy Grace was paying
attention to another woman. Whatever the reason for the demise
of their relationship, it set Charles M. Grace on a
new path, a journey to find a church where he
could fulfill the mission that God sent him to complete,
to spread the Gospel in America and save souls. Finally,
(13:09):
one day he found his religion. Quite literally, he decided
to found his own religion. In nineteen nineteen, Charles Grace
founded a church in West Wareham, Massachusetts. He dubbed it
the United House of Prayer for All People and gave
himself the title of Bishop. Just two years later, he
(13:34):
opened a second church in New Bedford. He joined the
growing African American Holiness Pentecostal movement sweeping across the country.
Black people in America were looking for liberation and hope.
But this was not just a time of spiritual awakening
among Black Americans. It was also a time of religious change.
(13:57):
In the wake of World War One and the ravages
of the Spanish flu, people were hungry for a spiritual
message that could sustain their souls. It was the time
of charismatic pastors, itinerant preachers, and the radio evangelists like
Amy Simple McPherson and Billie Sunday. Through the power of
(14:18):
mass communication, they broadcast their messages far beyond the tent
poles of the revivals. So Bishop Grace took his church
on the road, heading south along the Eastern seaboard. By
nineteen twenty three, he made his first trip in what
he called a gospel car. Daddy Grace didn't invent this idea.
(14:40):
Other preachers before him had traveled in special cars. What
Daddy Grace did was take the gospel car to another level.
He plastered his car with Bible verses. He also decorated
it with enormous signs announcing when he'd be in town.
There was even a figure on top of the car.
(15:02):
It was of himself, robed and winged. The man knew
how to make a memorable appearance. He even ventured overseas,
spent two months in the Holy Land of Jerusalem, where
he preached, healed, and converted people. He built a house
of prayer in Egypt. When he returned to the States,
(15:24):
he had grown a full beard. Reinvigorated with purpose, Daddy
Grace got back on the road to continue his mission
and grow his following in America.
Speaker 6 (15:35):
It is not typical of the time the way he
was able to expand in an age when communication was
quite difficult. He would travel with little groups of followers
and set up this huge experience that turned into a
new congregation.
Speaker 1 (15:51):
Doctor Marie Dallam is a professor of American religion and
associate dean at the University of Oklahoma, also the author
of one of the few published books about Daddy Grace.
Doctor Dollom has always been particularly impressed by Daddy Grace's
marketing abilities. For instance, she marvels at his stagecraft. He
(16:16):
would travel from town to town, careful to send a
small advanced group ahead of him. They'd typically show up
armed with musical instruments and loudspeakers. Basically, he invented his
own version of the hype man.
Speaker 6 (16:31):
They'd find a place to set up the tent, they'd
do the advertising. They would be the first people at
the service to make sure that there were exuberant, enthusiastic
people paying attention.
Speaker 2 (16:43):
This worked for a while, but Daddy Grace had a greater.
Speaker 1 (16:46):
Vision for his church. He became a master of using
the press to get his message out to bigger and
bigger crowds. When he'd hit town, Daddy Grace would invite
local newspaper men to his sermons. He'd also pay for
ads in the same paper touting his healing abilities and
(17:07):
his mysterious foreign origins. Sometimes he'd announced that he had
returned from the Holy Land. Other times he claimed that
he was from the Holy Land. It worked.
Speaker 2 (17:20):
People came in large numbers.
Speaker 1 (17:23):
They had to know more about this flashy man with
the gospel car the man who claimed he possessed the
power to heal and to save them all. Who was
this sweet Daddy Grace. It's a question that's not easy
to answer, and this enigma was central to his appeal
(17:43):
and to his power. He was a pleasing mystery. Daddy
Grace may have been happy for others to wonder about him,
but he knew who he was and he acted like it.
To him, the answer was simple. It was self evident.
He was God's disciple sent to save America.
Speaker 7 (18:06):
It's part of the whole free market of American religion.
And he had a product, and he had a message,
and he had a style, and it was compelling to
lots of people.
Speaker 1 (18:16):
That's doctor James Fisher, Professor Emeritus of Theology and American
Studies at Fordham University.
Speaker 7 (18:24):
All the people are skeptical about new religious movements like that.
People say, oh, it's a cult and that kind of thing, brainwashing,
But I always point out that you got to get
people more credit for exercising their own free will.
Speaker 1 (18:37):
Part of what made Daddy Grace so appealing was that
both what he said in his sermons and how he
said it offered something to almost everyone.
Speaker 5 (18:47):
You may be black, black as stole, we may be
white black milk, we may.
Speaker 1 (18:54):
Be rich black, I don't know where going have it.
Speaker 7 (19:02):
For shee God's him. On the one hand, he's really
in that holiness Pentecostal tradition. But you can't help but
notice there's elements of Catholic ritual. He has almost a
Catholic preaching style. So it's a blend, which is everything
to be back is, it's a blend. He's just really
relatable for many people I think who are seeking, you know.
Speaker 1 (19:27):
Thinking about it now. The tent revival I attended with
my parents back in Boston, the one where I spoke
in tongues, It was probably very similar to Daddy Grace's revivals.
Joyful praise and powerful music, led by an African immigrant preacher,
pulling from many traditions, compelling his audience with rolling tones.
(19:51):
His crowd was hopeful, eagerly awaiting salvation. But Daddy Grace
wasn't met with open arms everywhere. Some people just trusted
this mystery, this fluidity. After all, this was the nineteen
twenties and nineteen thirties, a time of the snake oil salesman,
(20:12):
of illusionists, of hucksters who were just in it for
the money.
Speaker 8 (20:17):
He comes out on the religious scene in the late twenties.
This whole jack leg preacher debate going on in American culture,
where you get things like that Charlatan preacher who goes
from city to city, town to town and robs the people,
promises them all these fantastic things.
Speaker 1 (20:38):
That's Xavier Sivell's. He's a doctoral student at Mississippi State studying,
among other things, African American history, including the intersection of race, class,
sexual identity, and gender.
Speaker 8 (20:54):
And I think those are the things that people stuck to,
you know, and maybe that's how we get interesting stories.
Speaker 1 (21:02):
Xavier is familiar with these stories about Daddy Grace. He's
even heard some of them from his own grandmother, whose
parents were members of the House of Prayer in Norfolk, Virginia.
Speaker 8 (21:13):
My grandmother used to tell this story about she had
heard from her parents that he went out on the
James River and had set up some sort of contraction
to where it looked like he was walking on water,
and people were amazed, like, oh, my goodness, crisis returned
to the figure of Daddy Grace.
Speaker 1 (21:30):
I've actually seen footage of this, at least a version
of it. It's from an old newsreel, the kind that
they used to play in a theater before a movie.
Speaker 7 (21:41):
Rolled up to date with an amphibious jeep.
Speaker 5 (21:44):
The pictures of Negro baptism with Newport News, Virginia are
here again. Bishop Grace conducting his annual setimony of salvation.
Speaker 3 (21:55):
Total immersion is the.
Speaker 5 (21:56):
Older of the day.
Speaker 1 (21:59):
He wasn't walking on water, per se. He was seated
in this kind of white boat like vehicle, except it
had wheels and a convertible roof. On the side of
the car, there was a painted message, Grace's Gospel must
go over the land and sea, which it did. The
car drives down into the water and then starts floating. Honestly,
(22:23):
it's still pretty cool to see, But Daddy Grace isn't
pretending to walk on water. He's seated baptizing people. It
kind of seems like he just didn't want to get wet.
But I can imagine how it might have looked a
car that drives into the water and then Daddy Grace
is out there baptizing the congregation. It's powerful imagery. Xavier
(22:48):
can see that too. As the story gets told and retold,
as it's passed down, how many of the details change.
We've all played the game of telephone, right.
Speaker 8 (22:59):
My grandmother heard this from her parents, who were illiterate,
who had friends who were illiterate, and you know, they
just saw this happening. What didn't mean for him to
be in a bigious vehicle, probably did feel like he
was walking on water, right. I'm interested in how he's
perceived by people because I think that's a huge.
Speaker 1 (23:17):
Part of the mystery perception. That's an interesting concept. Here's
an example. In the early days of the United House
of Prayer, Daddy Grace was doing a lot of healing.
It was a big part of his message and a
main draw. He practiced the act of laying hands on
his parishioners, offering blessings, prayers, and the transmission of spiritual energy. People,
(23:43):
mostly African Americans, flocked from near and far to marvel
at his services. He was selling something that money couldn't buy. Sometimes,
after he touched someone, that person might joelt having caught
the spirit. But there was a rumor going around that
actually Daddy Grace wore a battery powered electric belt under
(24:05):
his shirt to physically shock people. Daddy Grace had an
answer to this during a sermon in Wilmington, Delaware. He
put his hand on his belly and he said, brethren,
that's no battery. You know what that is.
Speaker 2 (24:20):
That's chicken.
Speaker 1 (24:23):
He then added, addressing the doubters even more pointedly, if
you believe, then I'm right. Then to you, I'm right.
If you believe that I'm wrong, then to you, I'm wrong.
I am what I am. It is hard to prove
whether or not Daddy Grace himself healed anyone. But in
a time where hope and faith were means of survival,
(24:46):
he gave his parishioners something to believe in. And if
he offered hope, if their faith was there, does it
actually matter how they were healed?
Speaker 8 (24:57):
So for me, the service is always had me hooked.
Speaker 1 (25:02):
That's Xavier again.
Speaker 8 (25:04):
They always had me wanting to go back to the
next one or trying to somehow be around it. Every Sunday,
especially when the bishop would come into town for the
church's convocation season. You know, everyone shows up and you know,
to be at this large church where it's standing room only,
and it's an experience and I'd never seen anything like it.
(25:26):
There's nothing that compares to it. A lot of people
criticize the church for better or worse, but their faith
is real, like you can feel it.
Speaker 1 (25:37):
Daddy Grace started the tradition of convocation in the United
House of Prayer nearly one hundred years ago. It's still
a big event traveling the country, going strong. Last year,
it lasted for twelve weeks and went to twelve different cities.
Speaker 2 (25:55):
People book their hotel.
Speaker 1 (25:56):
Rooms months out and everything calledmates in Charlotte. Members come
from all around the country to attend the Grand Finale,
which has a huge parade, banned competitions, a closing sermon
from the bishop, and a massive baptism. It's like a
giant family reunion. Convocation is in many ways reminiscent of
(26:21):
the types of religious celebrations that take place in Kabalvid,
Saint Dave celebrations, Christmas, New Year's and even funerals end
with giant processions through the street. There are decorated floats, horses,
a king, queen and a royal court, and of course
music heavy on the drums and horns, leading everyone to
(26:43):
the church for dancing, food, and naturally more music. This
influence is evident in the United House of Prayers convocations.
In nineteen forty seven, The Charlotte Observer featured a lengthy
article on that year's parade, which was believed to be
one of the city's largest at that time. It describes
(27:05):
boys selling peanuts and sodas to thousands of spectators lining
the streets of Charlotte. It was vibrant, colorful, with Grace
Flower girls dressed in white, gray, soul hunters in orange
and green, and the Grace Jubilee Choir in blue ropes.
Most people walk the route, but the lucky ones rode
(27:26):
in or on one of the trucks, cars or horses
decorated with red, white and blue streamers. One boy even
danced a few steps of the Jitterbug on top of
a horse, which the crowd apparently loved, and naturally, Daddy
Grace made his own entrance. He arrived towards the back
(27:50):
of the parade in a red, white and blue amphibious jeep.
He was seated on a throne of sheets and pillows,
attendants by a side. I may have been a little
nervous about going to the church, but I was excited
to experience convocation for myself. But if I'm going to
be honest, the first thing I did when I got
(28:12):
to Charlotte was go to the House of Prayer kitchen.
I was curious to see if the food was going
to taste like it did when I was a kid
back in New Bedford. I don't know what to expect
now with the convocation but I'm excited and I'm looking
forward to it. And now I'm about to get into
(28:32):
this food. I cannot wait. I got fried whiting with steam, cabbage,
mac and cheese, and some corn bread. I put some
hot sauce on it already. Oh my god, this is
(28:53):
really like bringing me back to being a kid. It's
so good. I love how food speaks to the spirit.
Similar to music. Food is literal sustenance. It's this way
to build and support one's community, to grow strong bodies
and minds with souls to match. This, of course, was
(29:16):
the wisdom the Black Panthers used for their free breakfast program.
They knew that food rebuilds what's broken, it tends to
what ales. Sweet Daddy Grace understood this as well, the
power of food, especially as a Cape Verdean where starvation
was a reality for so many. His church kitchen doors
(29:40):
were open to anyone who was hungry, even if they couldn't.
Speaker 2 (29:44):
Afford to eat.
Speaker 1 (29:46):
It was also a great business model to earn income
for the church and to employ members of the congregation.
Tasting this food once again in Charlotte brought me back
to the feeling of community my neighborhood growing up the
comfort of home.
Speaker 2 (30:03):
Plus it's so damn delicious. That helps too.
Speaker 1 (30:08):
They must have like a special recipe that they use
for the breading on this. It's so good. All right now,
I gotta try the corn bramm.
Speaker 3 (30:24):
Wow.
Speaker 1 (30:25):
You guys can't see me, but I'm doing the food dance,
sweet Daddy Grace. I was baptized in the ocean, probably
even in the same waters where Daddy Grace baptized his
new Bedford followers. For me, as a Cape Verdean, the
(30:49):
ocean is a place that I go to care for myself. Really,
just water in general, whether it's the ocean or even
taking a shower, it's symbolic of washing away whatever, whatever
you're feeling, whatever you want to release. I imagine that
Daddy Grace felt similarly, and I imagine for him a
(31:09):
baptism was a very holy act, a form of communion
with the spirit. The press loved to cover Daddy Grace's baptisms,
where thousands and thousands of people might come out to
watch him in his element.
Speaker 2 (31:24):
Here's doctor Dollam again.
Speaker 6 (31:26):
Daddy Grace did like to do big public baptismal events.
He would do them in rivers or lakes. He would
build pools baptismal pools at his churches.
Speaker 1 (31:37):
Daddy Grace was on a mission to save as many
souls as needed saving, but in cities like New York, Baltimore,
and Detroit, it was difficult to access bodies of water
large enough to accommodate the crowds. Daddy Grace had to
get creative. He focused on what water he and his
people did have access to from the fire highth drends.
Speaker 6 (32:01):
Fire hose baptisms were much more controversial because they're so
reminiscent of anti black violence committed by law enforcement in
the Civil Rights era, but even before the Civil Rights era.
So there's this kind of why would you choose that
mechanism to baptize people? And I don't know the answer
to that, but again, it got impressed, It got him attention.
(32:25):
It's certainly a spectacular kind of event.
Speaker 1 (32:30):
There's not a lot of footage of Daddy Grace preaching,
but I've watched some of the clips of the baptisms,
and doctor Dollam is right, they're really an event. There'd
often be thousands of spectators there watching hundreds of people,
all dressed in white, prepared to be baptized. By Daddy Grace,
(33:04):
but as doctor Dollam also mentioned, not all the attention
around these baptisms was good. In nineteen twenty six, during
a baptism at a lake near Charlotte, one of his
aides began to struggle in the water. Daddy Grace tried
to save the man, but the man drowned. According to
the newspapers, Daddy Grace, seeing that there were so many
(33:26):
people waiting to be baptized, went back in the water
to finish his work, seemingly unworried.
Speaker 6 (33:34):
Did he know someone had drowned one hundred feet over there?
Speaker 7 (33:37):
Maybe?
Speaker 1 (33:37):
Maybe not.
Speaker 6 (33:38):
There was also this interesting component that it seems like
he continued baptizing even though there had been a tragedy
that took place, which I cannot make sense of. I
almost wonder if the story is not quite true in
the way it has been reported, because who would do that?
Speaker 1 (33:54):
Like doctor Dollam, I'm also a little confused by this
story what really happened. Daddy Grace's own response to the tragedy,
at least what was quoted in the newspapers, doesn't really
clear anything up. He tells the press that he thought
quote it was good for the man, it was a
beautiful way to die, don't you think so? He was
(34:17):
working for the glory of heaven. One thing does seem true.
Daddy Grace was really good at taking a positive spin
on things. At his core, he really understood the power
of marketing. From the way he dressed to how he traveled,
to what he said and what he said or did,
and especially what people thought he.
Speaker 2 (34:38):
Said or did.
Speaker 1 (34:40):
It didn't always correspond with what people expected a preacher
to be doing or wearing or saying. Add to that mix,
a black man who seemed unafraid of anything in his path,
who didn't mind a little pageantry, and whose message and
methods were attracting followers at a really high rate, well
(35:03):
you're going to.
Speaker 2 (35:04):
Have some controversy.
Speaker 1 (35:06):
Daddy Grace was driven by his belief in God and
the Holy Spirit, and the people who heard him they
felt this. His empire of faith grew quickly. But you
have to remember he was preaching to integrated crowds, openly
ignoring segregation rules. He was arrested several times for violating
(35:28):
segregation laws. And this was in the Jim Crow South,
a truly dangerous time and place for a black man
in America, especially a black man with power, influence, and
growing wealth. Just a few years prior, in nineteen nineteen,
white mobs had brutally attacked and murdered hundreds and hundreds
(35:51):
of black people across the country in what became known
as the Red Summer, And in nineteen twenty one, the
tall Al Race Massacre destroyed the prosperous black business district
and residential neighborhood of Greenwood and killed as many as
three hundred people. Daddy Grace, no doubt was aware of
(36:14):
the risks he faced. He was certainly aware of the
ascendant dominance of the klu Klux Klan. By the early
nineteen twenties, there were millions of enrolled members of the
newly revived KKK. Men in white hoods would show up
at his services, and there are numerous accounts of the
clan's attempts to scare him off and chase him out
(36:37):
of town. But Bishop Grace couldn't be scared off. And
I wonder if his unwillingness to shrink from bigotry earned
him greater respect and reverence in the eyes of his followers.
I went to Charlotte because I wanted to experience Daddy
(36:57):
Grace's Church for myself during the most vibrant time convocation.
I also thought, as a non member, it might be
easier for me to blend in in such a big crowd.
Charlotte is home to one of the largest congregations in
the country, and of the nine churches which are called houses,
(37:18):
none is greater than the Mother House. It's an impressive building.
The main sanctuary fits a couple thousand people, and it
has a splendid baptismal pool. The entrance is huge, with
white doors and two statues of lions flanking the stairs.
(37:39):
Tall golden steeples reached to the sky. It's a serious place,
a magnificent place, but a serious place.
Speaker 2 (37:49):
Here's a confession.
Speaker 1 (37:51):
I've been familiar with Daddy Grace for most of my life,
the legends, his legacy, the food. But I've never attended
a single service, never even stepped inside the sanctuary. My
family always told me it was forbidden to enter. Here's
another thing. I almost didn't make it to Charlotte. My
(38:13):
trip happened to coincide with Hurricane Ian, and I was
certain it'd be canceled. But now here I was in
the parking lot looking up at the doors of the motherhouse.
Hearing the last of the rain splatter against the roof
of my car, I was glad I'd arrived, but I
also felt like I was doing something taboo, something my
(38:36):
family would not approve of. Despite the bright red thread
of doubt running through me, I knew I had to
find out for myself.
Speaker 2 (38:46):
I had to get closer to Daddy Grace.
Speaker 1 (38:48):
So I reached for the door handle with one hard yank,
tugged it open, and I stepped inside. It's probably pretty
obvious I'm not from here, so it was interesting to
have people ask me, you know, like, hey, who are
you and what are you doing here? And I explained
(39:12):
that I was visiting. I'm from New Jersey, but I
grew up in Massachusetts and New Bedford and that, you know,
Daddy Grace is one of my ancestors. And the woman
I was talking to, she was just like, we, you know,
have to have a special seat for you at the convocation.
We're going to have you sit right up in front.
And I'm like, oh my god, you know, like, wow, okay,
(39:35):
that's a lot, but okay, it's just I was just like,
what did I just get myself into? And then a
few of the other folks came out and they started
kind of whispering, Oh my God, welcome, and they were like,
you even look like Daddy Grace, Like we can tell
you're his family. My first time ever in a house
(39:58):
of prayer, I was treated as family. I was welcomed
in as a grace. That stirred something inside of me,
something I couldn't stop thinking about even after the service ended.
Like as many mysteries, this one is mine or perhaps
it is ours to share. So it is now almost
(40:24):
four o'clock. I feel completely overwhelmed emotionally. The church service
was actually really soul filling and you know, hearing words
I needed to hear, feeling music that really moves me. Yeah,
(40:52):
I danced, I cried, I got my hands as saying
long and I did feel the spirit move in that place,
which was pretty incredible. I felt the love, I felt
the goodness. I've spent a lot of time with Daddy Grace,
(41:15):
especially if you consider that he died twenty years before
I was born. The man has been a presence in
my life, from overhearing those family whispers as a kid
to now outside of his church in Charlotte on that
blustery fall day. The last of the hurricane passed overhead
in the end, more of a rainstorm than a catastrophic landfall.
(41:39):
I sat by myself in my car, trying to make
sense of what I felt, what I'd experienced. I came
to convocation, not knowing what to expect, anxious about what
I might experience in the church, but being here, I think.
Speaker 2 (41:55):
I get it.
Speaker 1 (41:57):
I feel Daddy Grace's presence, his light, and his love
in the church, in the city, in the hurricane itself.
One of my favorite quotes from Daddy Grace is when
he says I.
Speaker 2 (42:12):
Came from the land beyond the sea. I understand that quote.
I could have said that quote myself.
Speaker 1 (42:20):
Now, having finally set foot inside and seeing his church
for myself, experiencing the music and once again tasting the food,
I felt much closer to Daddy Grace, even more connected,
if not by blood, then most definitely by spirit. But
I couldn't help to still feel conflicted, still not understanding
(42:45):
the disdain my family had for this man. I believe
Daddy Grace was driven to serve and spread God's word.
That was his mission, and I felt that in Charlotte,
But not everyone feels the same way. That's next time.
(43:06):
Sweet Daddy Grace is a production of iHeart Podcasts and Force,
a Media group. This show is hosted by Me Marcy Depina.
It's written and produced by Marissa Brown and Me. Our
story editors are Darryl Stewart, Duncan Riedel, and Zarren Burnett. Editing,
sound design and theme music by Jonathan Washington. Original music
(43:31):
by Enrique Silva of Acasia Mayor. Show cover art by
Viviana Salgado of Studio Creative Group. Fact checking by Austin Thompson.
Our executive producers are Marcy Depina and Jason English. Special
thanks to Will Pearson, Nikki Ettore, Ali Perry, Tamika Campbell,
(43:55):
and Lulu Phillip of iHeartMedia and all of my family
members who talked to me for this show, my ancestors,
the United House of Prayer for All People, and the
countless number of people who shared their memories of Sweet
Daddy Grace with me. Thanks also to doctor Marie Dollam
and doctor Danielle brun Sigler, whose academic work on Sweet
(44:18):
Daddy Grace has been incredibly helpful. And finally, I want
to thank Bishop Grace himself for choosing me to tell
his story. For more information on Bishop Charles M. Grace,
check out the website Sweet Daddy Grace and follow me
at Marcy Depina on all social platforms
I'm a Cape Verdian living in America. My family made
sacrifices so I could have this life, and it was
from my family stories that I first learned of our
history with sweet Daddy Grace. In short, my family isn't
particularly so enthused about.
Speaker 2 (00:23):
Our connection to him.
Speaker 1 (00:25):
They would prefer to keep their distance from this charismatic
and controversial preacher. My aunt Judy remembers some of the
things her grandfather, Nola Locke said about Bishop Grace.
Speaker 3 (00:40):
He did say that originally that Daddy Grace he felt
he was legit, that he was a legitimate, a man
of the word, But then somewhere down the line he
went off that and became cultish.
Speaker 1 (00:55):
This feeling of distrust continued through the generations.
Speaker 4 (01:00):
My parents, you know, they had nothing to do with
him or his so called religion. Strangely enough, my father's
first cousins were followers of Daddy Grace, and there were
stories that were told. Whether they were true or not,
I don't know, but my father said that one of
(01:20):
his cousins was told that she was an angel, and
she was at church and she decided to jump off
the platform, and in so doing fell and broke her wrist.
Speaker 1 (01:34):
But when I heard these stories about him, it had
the opposite effect.
Speaker 2 (01:39):
They just made me.
Speaker 1 (01:40):
More curious and I needed to know more. So I
booked a flight to Charlotte in the midst of a
hurricane to attend the House of Prayer's annual convocation. It's
the church's biggest celebration, so what a perfect time for
me to get to know the church from the inside.
(02:01):
I'm Marcy de Pena and from iHeart Podcasts, Enforce and
Media group. This is sweet Daddy, Grace.
Speaker 5 (02:11):
Good, glad for being happy, Power, You're glad, Ahamada, are happy,
(02:45):
down and cried.
Speaker 6 (02:47):
We're b.
Speaker 1 (02:58):
I am in the parking lot of the Charlotte Mother
House of the United House of Prayer for All People.
The convocation starts today. I actually feel a little nervous.
I'm not sure why. I'm trying to remember actually the
last time I was in church. It's been a while.
(03:20):
My relationship to organized religion, like many people's, is a
bit complicated. My father completely distanced himself from his strict
Church of the Nazarene upbringing. My mother, on the other hand,
was a C and E Catholic, that's a Christmas and
Eastern Catholic. My parents and I, we didn't talk a
(03:41):
lot about church. Instead, my mother taught me all about astrology.
She instructed me in the power of plant medicine. She
gave me an education in the power of music. Those
became my church. Also, as a Cape Verdean, I've always
worn a sabichi or quante d I old you, a
bead that protects you from evil spirits.
Speaker 2 (04:04):
We have a lot of spiritual practices and.
Speaker 1 (04:07):
Rituals that have nothing to do with Christianity, but are
also not in conflict with it. There has always been
an awareness of this spirit world, our ancestors, and the
power of words and manifestation, And for as long as
I can remember, I've had intuitive, lucid dreams.
Speaker 2 (04:27):
My mother shared this gift.
Speaker 1 (04:29):
While we may not have gone to church, she and
I often spoke about our inseparable connections to spirit. In
other words, we talked that hippie shit. So you can
imagine my surprise when, while I was in third grade,
my mother and stepfather chose to become born again Christians.
(04:49):
They got saved, and let me just say, that opened
up a whole other world. That's when we started going
to revivals and services one hot summer day, we attended
a big tent revival in Boston. It was led by
a Nigerian pastor. I remember the feeling of the humid
(05:12):
air and the sound of the bugs and the throb
of life that children are particularly attuned to. The tent
was large and packed to the brim. My family and
I we were seated in the middle. There was a
band upfront. The music was operating on high vibration. You
could feel the energy thrilled through the crowd. I could
(05:36):
feel the frequency pulsating throughout my little body too. When
the music calmed and the pastor spoke, I felt the
spirit moving through her.
Speaker 2 (05:47):
I was riveted. I was enraptured.
Speaker 1 (05:52):
She made the call asking if anyone wanted to be saved.
I did not hesitate. I popped up out of my
seat and walked up to the front of the sanctuary
as fast as my little legs could get me there.
I stood there before everybody in this packed tent, the
only child in a line of adults and teens. We
(06:15):
were calm and ready. The pastor walked down the line
asking us to accept Jesus into our hearts as our
Lord and savior. When the pastor got to me. She
reached down and touched my forehead and I fell out.
When I got back up, I felt like a different person.
(06:37):
When I got back to my seat, my mother told
me that I had been speaking in tongues. I don't
think my eight year old self knew how to articulate
what I'd experienced, but it felt like a profound light
had washed over me, and I knew in that moment,
without a single doubt in my tiny little body, I
(07:00):
had spiritual gifts. From that point on, the church and
our faith became a big part of our lives. We
attended multiple services a week. We went to Bible study
and pot luck dinners. My mom was a music minister
and I sang in the choir. It was our community.
(07:22):
It felt like every day I was doing something related
to church.
Speaker 2 (07:27):
And let me tell you, the rules were strict.
Speaker 1 (07:31):
For one, we weren't allowed to listen to secular music,
and I loved Prince, so this was a serious conflict.
I couldn't dress up anymore on Halloween, that was a
demonic holiday. We were expected to only hang out with
other church goers. It didn't matter that I was a kid,
I had my spiritual life to consider. We were constantly
(07:54):
repenting for our sins. We stayed ready for Jesus's return
in the rapture. But as I reached adolescence, I began
to read and study Black in African history, and my
curiosity about spirituality expanded. I learned more about traditional African
spiritual practices and recognized many beliefs and customs that were
(08:19):
also part of Cape Verdean culture. I also came to
know the influence of Islam, Buddhism, and other systems of
mysticism and thought, like numerology, and my passion for astrology,
something I had given up since my conversion, was reignited.
All that I learned challenged the notion that there was
(08:40):
only one true religion and if you weren't saved, you
were going to Hell soon enough, though, I moved away
to go to college, and like so many other first
year college students, that pretty much marked the end of
my church going days. All of this was swirling around
inside of me when I parked my car outside the
(09:00):
United House of Prayer in Charlotte, North Carolina. Meanwhile, at
the same time, Hurricane Ian, a hurricane that began in
the Atlantic waters surrounding Kabovid was heading into town. Both
inside of me and outside, a storm was gathering. Six
years had passed since the last time I stepped inside
(09:23):
of a church. I didn't know what was going to happen.
Would I feel the presence of God? Would it feel
like a coat?
Speaker 2 (09:32):
Or worse?
Speaker 1 (09:33):
What if I felt nothing at all? I once heard
a story. Daddy Grace never intended to live in the
United States. He only meant to come here seasonally, do
some work, and return to Kabovid with fresh coin in
his pockets. This was long before he was known as
(09:53):
Sweet Daddy Grace. He was happy on his home island
of Brava, where he was already al vocal celebrity. Young
Marcellino Manuel de Grasa was known for his storytelling abilities.
Speaker 2 (10:07):
People would come.
Speaker 1 (10:08):
From around the island to hear him tell folk tales.
He was determined to stay in Brava right up until
God told him this wasn't an option. To convey this message,
God turned to fire one day out of nowhere, Marcellino's
hair started burning. He immediately knew it was God speaking
(10:33):
to him. God told him that if he did not
go to America and spread the word, he would have
no hair left. Marcellino had no choice. In nineteen oh four,
he left cabuverd and he'd never return. Weeks later he
arrived in New Bedford, Massachusetts. It may have eased the
(10:56):
transition that much of his family was in fact already there,
including his brother Joseph, who had founded a church. And
still thinking, probably about his burning hair, he began to
look for a place to worship. Cape Verdeans were unwelcome
in the local Portuguese Catholic church, so he explored the
(11:17):
area's Protestant churches, including his brothers. As Marcelino Manuel de
Grasa settled into life in America, he began to carve
out a new identity for himself. First step a new name.
His new last name, Grace, was simply a translation of
(11:37):
the Grasa from Portuguese to English. He kept his middle
name Manuel, but for his new first name, he dreamed
big Charles, the King of Portugal, the colonial ruler of
Capoved was named Carlos. The root of Charles it means freeman.
(11:58):
Daddy Grace was writing his story, so Charles Manuel Grace
attended church service.
Speaker 2 (12:06):
After church service.
Speaker 1 (12:08):
Pentecostal Baptist, Methodist studying the Bible and sometimes even preaching
at his brother's chapel.
Speaker 2 (12:17):
He was searching for a church that spoke to his soul.
Speaker 1 (12:23):
He also got married to a Cape Verdian woman named Jeanie.
They had a daughter, Irene and a son, Norman, but
the marriage was rocky, and shortly after Norman was born,
Daddy Grace left the family. According to him, his wife
Genie was not cut out for the spiritual life. She however,
(12:45):
said that their discord was because Daddy Grace was paying
attention to another woman. Whatever the reason for the demise
of their relationship, it set Charles M. Grace on a
new path, a journey to find a church where he
could fulfill the mission that God sent him to complete,
to spread the Gospel in America and save souls. Finally,
(13:09):
one day he found his religion. Quite literally, he decided
to found his own religion. In nineteen nineteen, Charles Grace
founded a church in West Wareham, Massachusetts. He dubbed it
the United House of Prayer for All People and gave
himself the title of Bishop. Just two years later, he
(13:34):
opened a second church in New Bedford. He joined the
growing African American Holiness Pentecostal movement sweeping across the country.
Black people in America were looking for liberation and hope.
But this was not just a time of spiritual awakening
among Black Americans. It was also a time of religious change.
(13:57):
In the wake of World War One and the ravages
of the Spanish flu, people were hungry for a spiritual
message that could sustain their souls. It was the time
of charismatic pastors, itinerant preachers, and the radio evangelists like
Amy Simple McPherson and Billie Sunday. Through the power of
(14:18):
mass communication, they broadcast their messages far beyond the tent
poles of the revivals. So Bishop Grace took his church
on the road, heading south along the Eastern seaboard. By
nineteen twenty three, he made his first trip in what
he called a gospel car. Daddy Grace didn't invent this idea.
(14:40):
Other preachers before him had traveled in special cars. What
Daddy Grace did was take the gospel car to another level.
He plastered his car with Bible verses. He also decorated
it with enormous signs announcing when he'd be in town.
There was even a figure on top of the car.
(15:02):
It was of himself, robed and winged. The man knew
how to make a memorable appearance. He even ventured overseas,
spent two months in the Holy Land of Jerusalem, where
he preached, healed, and converted people. He built a house
of prayer in Egypt. When he returned to the States,
(15:24):
he had grown a full beard. Reinvigorated with purpose, Daddy
Grace got back on the road to continue his mission
and grow his following in America.
Speaker 6 (15:35):
It is not typical of the time the way he
was able to expand in an age when communication was
quite difficult. He would travel with little groups of followers
and set up this huge experience that turned into a
new congregation.
Speaker 1 (15:51):
Doctor Marie Dallam is a professor of American religion and
associate dean at the University of Oklahoma, also the author
of one of the few published books about Daddy Grace.
Doctor Dollom has always been particularly impressed by Daddy Grace's
marketing abilities. For instance, she marvels at his stagecraft. He
(16:16):
would travel from town to town, careful to send a
small advanced group ahead of him. They'd typically show up
armed with musical instruments and loudspeakers. Basically, he invented his
own version of the hype man.
Speaker 6 (16:31):
They'd find a place to set up the tent, they'd
do the advertising. They would be the first people at
the service to make sure that there were exuberant, enthusiastic
people paying attention.
Speaker 2 (16:43):
This worked for a while, but Daddy Grace had a greater.
Speaker 1 (16:46):
Vision for his church. He became a master of using
the press to get his message out to bigger and
bigger crowds. When he'd hit town, Daddy Grace would invite
local newspaper men to his sermons. He'd also pay for
ads in the same paper touting his healing abilities and
(17:07):
his mysterious foreign origins. Sometimes he'd announced that he had
returned from the Holy Land. Other times he claimed that
he was from the Holy Land. It worked.
Speaker 2 (17:20):
People came in large numbers.
Speaker 1 (17:23):
They had to know more about this flashy man with
the gospel car the man who claimed he possessed the
power to heal and to save them all. Who was
this sweet Daddy Grace. It's a question that's not easy
to answer, and this enigma was central to his appeal
(17:43):
and to his power. He was a pleasing mystery. Daddy
Grace may have been happy for others to wonder about him,
but he knew who he was and he acted like it.
To him, the answer was simple. It was self evident.
He was God's disciple sent to save America.
Speaker 7 (18:06):
It's part of the whole free market of American religion.
And he had a product, and he had a message,
and he had a style, and it was compelling to
lots of people.
Speaker 1 (18:16):
That's doctor James Fisher, Professor Emeritus of Theology and American
Studies at Fordham University.
Speaker 7 (18:24):
All the people are skeptical about new religious movements like that.
People say, oh, it's a cult and that kind of thing, brainwashing,
But I always point out that you got to get
people more credit for exercising their own free will.
Speaker 1 (18:37):
Part of what made Daddy Grace so appealing was that
both what he said in his sermons and how he
said it offered something to almost everyone.
Speaker 5 (18:47):
You may be black, black as stole, we may be
white black milk, we may.
Speaker 1 (18:54):
Be rich black, I don't know where going have it.
Speaker 7 (19:02):
For shee God's him. On the one hand, he's really
in that holiness Pentecostal tradition. But you can't help but
notice there's elements of Catholic ritual. He has almost a
Catholic preaching style. So it's a blend, which is everything
to be back is, it's a blend. He's just really
relatable for many people I think who are seeking, you know.
Speaker 1 (19:27):
Thinking about it now. The tent revival I attended with
my parents back in Boston, the one where I spoke
in tongues, It was probably very similar to Daddy Grace's revivals.
Joyful praise and powerful music, led by an African immigrant preacher,
pulling from many traditions, compelling his audience with rolling tones.
(19:51):
His crowd was hopeful, eagerly awaiting salvation. But Daddy Grace
wasn't met with open arms everywhere. Some people just trusted
this mystery, this fluidity. After all, this was the nineteen
twenties and nineteen thirties, a time of the snake oil salesman,
(20:12):
of illusionists, of hucksters who were just in it for
the money.
Speaker 8 (20:17):
He comes out on the religious scene in the late twenties.
This whole jack leg preacher debate going on in American culture,
where you get things like that Charlatan preacher who goes
from city to city, town to town and robs the people,
promises them all these fantastic things.
Speaker 1 (20:38):
That's Xavier Sivell's. He's a doctoral student at Mississippi State studying,
among other things, African American history, including the intersection of race, class,
sexual identity, and gender.
Speaker 8 (20:54):
And I think those are the things that people stuck to,
you know, and maybe that's how we get interesting stories.
Speaker 1 (21:02):
Xavier is familiar with these stories about Daddy Grace. He's
even heard some of them from his own grandmother, whose
parents were members of the House of Prayer in Norfolk, Virginia.
Speaker 8 (21:13):
My grandmother used to tell this story about she had
heard from her parents that he went out on the
James River and had set up some sort of contraction
to where it looked like he was walking on water,
and people were amazed, like, oh, my goodness, crisis returned
to the figure of Daddy Grace.
Speaker 1 (21:30):
I've actually seen footage of this, at least a version
of it. It's from an old newsreel, the kind that
they used to play in a theater before a movie.
Speaker 7 (21:41):
Rolled up to date with an amphibious jeep.
Speaker 5 (21:44):
The pictures of Negro baptism with Newport News, Virginia are
here again. Bishop Grace conducting his annual setimony of salvation.
Speaker 3 (21:55):
Total immersion is the.
Speaker 5 (21:56):
Older of the day.
Speaker 1 (21:59):
He wasn't walking on water, per se. He was seated
in this kind of white boat like vehicle, except it
had wheels and a convertible roof. On the side of
the car, there was a painted message, Grace's Gospel must
go over the land and sea, which it did. The
car drives down into the water and then starts floating. Honestly,
(22:23):
it's still pretty cool to see, But Daddy Grace isn't
pretending to walk on water. He's seated baptizing people. It
kind of seems like he just didn't want to get wet.
But I can imagine how it might have looked a
car that drives into the water and then Daddy Grace
is out there baptizing the congregation. It's powerful imagery. Xavier
(22:48):
can see that too. As the story gets told and retold,
as it's passed down, how many of the details change.
We've all played the game of telephone, right.
Speaker 8 (22:59):
My grandmother heard this from her parents, who were illiterate,
who had friends who were illiterate, and you know, they
just saw this happening. What didn't mean for him to
be in a bigious vehicle, probably did feel like he
was walking on water, right. I'm interested in how he's
perceived by people because I think that's a huge.
Speaker 1 (23:17):
Part of the mystery perception. That's an interesting concept. Here's
an example. In the early days of the United House
of Prayer, Daddy Grace was doing a lot of healing.
It was a big part of his message and a
main draw. He practiced the act of laying hands on
his parishioners, offering blessings, prayers, and the transmission of spiritual energy. People,
(23:43):
mostly African Americans, flocked from near and far to marvel
at his services. He was selling something that money couldn't buy. Sometimes,
after he touched someone, that person might joelt having caught
the spirit. But there was a rumor going around that
actually Daddy Grace wore a battery powered electric belt under
(24:05):
his shirt to physically shock people. Daddy Grace had an
answer to this during a sermon in Wilmington, Delaware. He
put his hand on his belly and he said, brethren,
that's no battery. You know what that is.
Speaker 2 (24:20):
That's chicken.
Speaker 1 (24:23):
He then added, addressing the doubters even more pointedly, if
you believe, then I'm right. Then to you, I'm right.
If you believe that I'm wrong, then to you, I'm wrong.
I am what I am. It is hard to prove
whether or not Daddy Grace himself healed anyone. But in
a time where hope and faith were means of survival,
(24:46):
he gave his parishioners something to believe in. And if
he offered hope, if their faith was there, does it
actually matter how they were healed?
Speaker 8 (24:57):
So for me, the service is always had me hooked.
Speaker 1 (25:02):
That's Xavier again.
Speaker 8 (25:04):
They always had me wanting to go back to the
next one or trying to somehow be around it. Every Sunday,
especially when the bishop would come into town for the
church's convocation season. You know, everyone shows up and you know,
to be at this large church where it's standing room only,
and it's an experience and I'd never seen anything like it.
(25:26):
There's nothing that compares to it. A lot of people
criticize the church for better or worse, but their faith
is real, like you can feel it.
Speaker 1 (25:37):
Daddy Grace started the tradition of convocation in the United
House of Prayer nearly one hundred years ago. It's still
a big event traveling the country, going strong. Last year,
it lasted for twelve weeks and went to twelve different cities.
Speaker 2 (25:55):
People book their hotel.
Speaker 1 (25:56):
Rooms months out and everything calledmates in Charlotte. Members come
from all around the country to attend the Grand Finale,
which has a huge parade, banned competitions, a closing sermon
from the bishop, and a massive baptism. It's like a
giant family reunion. Convocation is in many ways reminiscent of
(26:21):
the types of religious celebrations that take place in Kabalvid,
Saint Dave celebrations, Christmas, New Year's and even funerals end
with giant processions through the street. There are decorated floats, horses,
a king, queen and a royal court, and of course
music heavy on the drums and horns, leading everyone to
(26:43):
the church for dancing, food, and naturally more music. This
influence is evident in the United House of Prayers convocations.
In nineteen forty seven, The Charlotte Observer featured a lengthy
article on that year's parade, which was believed to be
one of the city's largest at that time. It describes
(27:05):
boys selling peanuts and sodas to thousands of spectators lining
the streets of Charlotte. It was vibrant, colorful, with Grace
Flower girls dressed in white, gray, soul hunters in orange
and green, and the Grace Jubilee Choir in blue ropes.
Most people walk the route, but the lucky ones rode
(27:26):
in or on one of the trucks, cars or horses
decorated with red, white and blue streamers. One boy even
danced a few steps of the Jitterbug on top of
a horse, which the crowd apparently loved, and naturally, Daddy
Grace made his own entrance. He arrived towards the back
(27:50):
of the parade in a red, white and blue amphibious jeep.
He was seated on a throne of sheets and pillows,
attendants by a side. I may have been a little
nervous about going to the church, but I was excited
to experience convocation for myself. But if I'm going to
be honest, the first thing I did when I got
(28:12):
to Charlotte was go to the House of Prayer kitchen.
I was curious to see if the food was going
to taste like it did when I was a kid
back in New Bedford. I don't know what to expect
now with the convocation but I'm excited and I'm looking
forward to it. And now I'm about to get into
(28:32):
this food. I cannot wait. I got fried whiting with steam, cabbage,
mac and cheese, and some corn bread. I put some
hot sauce on it already. Oh my god, this is
(28:53):
really like bringing me back to being a kid. It's
so good. I love how food speaks to the spirit.
Similar to music. Food is literal sustenance. It's this way
to build and support one's community, to grow strong bodies
and minds with souls to match. This, of course, was
(29:16):
the wisdom the Black Panthers used for their free breakfast program.
They knew that food rebuilds what's broken, it tends to
what ales. Sweet Daddy Grace understood this as well, the
power of food, especially as a Cape Verdean where starvation
was a reality for so many. His church kitchen doors
(29:40):
were open to anyone who was hungry, even if they couldn't.
Speaker 2 (29:44):
Afford to eat.
Speaker 1 (29:46):
It was also a great business model to earn income
for the church and to employ members of the congregation.
Tasting this food once again in Charlotte brought me back
to the feeling of community my neighborhood growing up the
comfort of home.
Speaker 2 (30:03):
Plus it's so damn delicious. That helps too.
Speaker 1 (30:08):
They must have like a special recipe that they use
for the breading on this. It's so good. All right now,
I gotta try the corn bramm.
Speaker 3 (30:24):
Wow.
Speaker 1 (30:25):
You guys can't see me, but I'm doing the food dance,
sweet Daddy Grace. I was baptized in the ocean, probably
even in the same waters where Daddy Grace baptized his
new Bedford followers. For me, as a Cape Verdean, the
(30:49):
ocean is a place that I go to care for myself. Really,
just water in general, whether it's the ocean or even
taking a shower, it's symbolic of washing away whatever, whatever
you're feeling, whatever you want to release. I imagine that
Daddy Grace felt similarly, and I imagine for him a
(31:09):
baptism was a very holy act, a form of communion
with the spirit. The press loved to cover Daddy Grace's baptisms,
where thousands and thousands of people might come out to
watch him in his element.
Speaker 2 (31:24):
Here's doctor Dollam again.
Speaker 6 (31:26):
Daddy Grace did like to do big public baptismal events.
He would do them in rivers or lakes. He would
build pools baptismal pools at his churches.
Speaker 1 (31:37):
Daddy Grace was on a mission to save as many
souls as needed saving, but in cities like New York, Baltimore,
and Detroit, it was difficult to access bodies of water
large enough to accommodate the crowds. Daddy Grace had to
get creative. He focused on what water he and his
people did have access to from the fire highth drends.
Speaker 6 (32:01):
Fire hose baptisms were much more controversial because they're so
reminiscent of anti black violence committed by law enforcement in
the Civil Rights era, but even before the Civil Rights era.
So there's this kind of why would you choose that
mechanism to baptize people? And I don't know the answer
to that, but again, it got impressed, It got him attention.
(32:25):
It's certainly a spectacular kind of event.
Speaker 1 (32:30):
There's not a lot of footage of Daddy Grace preaching,
but I've watched some of the clips of the baptisms,
and doctor Dollam is right, they're really an event. There'd
often be thousands of spectators there watching hundreds of people,
all dressed in white, prepared to be baptized. By Daddy Grace,
(33:04):
but as doctor Dollam also mentioned, not all the attention
around these baptisms was good. In nineteen twenty six, during
a baptism at a lake near Charlotte, one of his
aides began to struggle in the water. Daddy Grace tried
to save the man, but the man drowned. According to
the newspapers, Daddy Grace, seeing that there were so many
(33:26):
people waiting to be baptized, went back in the water
to finish his work, seemingly unworried.
Speaker 6 (33:34):
Did he know someone had drowned one hundred feet over there?
Speaker 7 (33:37):
Maybe?
Speaker 1 (33:37):
Maybe not.
Speaker 6 (33:38):
There was also this interesting component that it seems like
he continued baptizing even though there had been a tragedy
that took place, which I cannot make sense of. I
almost wonder if the story is not quite true in
the way it has been reported, because who would do that?
Speaker 1 (33:54):
Like doctor Dollam, I'm also a little confused by this
story what really happened. Daddy Grace's own response to the tragedy,
at least what was quoted in the newspapers, doesn't really
clear anything up. He tells the press that he thought
quote it was good for the man, it was a
beautiful way to die, don't you think so? He was
(34:17):
working for the glory of heaven. One thing does seem true.
Daddy Grace was really good at taking a positive spin
on things. At his core, he really understood the power
of marketing. From the way he dressed to how he traveled,
to what he said and what he said or did,
and especially what people thought he.
Speaker 2 (34:38):
Said or did.
Speaker 1 (34:40):
It didn't always correspond with what people expected a preacher
to be doing or wearing or saying. Add to that mix,
a black man who seemed unafraid of anything in his path,
who didn't mind a little pageantry, and whose message and
methods were attracting followers at a really high rate, well
(35:03):
you're going to.
Speaker 2 (35:04):
Have some controversy.
Speaker 1 (35:06):
Daddy Grace was driven by his belief in God and
the Holy Spirit, and the people who heard him they
felt this. His empire of faith grew quickly. But you
have to remember he was preaching to integrated crowds, openly
ignoring segregation rules. He was arrested several times for violating
(35:28):
segregation laws. And this was in the Jim Crow South,
a truly dangerous time and place for a black man
in America, especially a black man with power, influence, and
growing wealth. Just a few years prior, in nineteen nineteen,
white mobs had brutally attacked and murdered hundreds and hundreds
(35:51):
of black people across the country in what became known
as the Red Summer, And in nineteen twenty one, the
tall Al Race Massacre destroyed the prosperous black business district
and residential neighborhood of Greenwood and killed as many as
three hundred people. Daddy Grace, no doubt was aware of
(36:14):
the risks he faced. He was certainly aware of the
ascendant dominance of the klu Klux Klan. By the early
nineteen twenties, there were millions of enrolled members of the
newly revived KKK. Men in white hoods would show up
at his services, and there are numerous accounts of the
clan's attempts to scare him off and chase him out
(36:37):
of town. But Bishop Grace couldn't be scared off. And
I wonder if his unwillingness to shrink from bigotry earned
him greater respect and reverence in the eyes of his followers.
I went to Charlotte because I wanted to experience Daddy
(36:57):
Grace's Church for myself during the most vibrant time convocation.
I also thought, as a non member, it might be
easier for me to blend in in such a big crowd.
Charlotte is home to one of the largest congregations in
the country, and of the nine churches which are called houses,
(37:18):
none is greater than the Mother House. It's an impressive building.
The main sanctuary fits a couple thousand people, and it
has a splendid baptismal pool. The entrance is huge, with
white doors and two statues of lions flanking the stairs.
(37:39):
Tall golden steeples reached to the sky. It's a serious place,
a magnificent place, but a serious place.
Speaker 2 (37:49):
Here's a confession.
Speaker 1 (37:51):
I've been familiar with Daddy Grace for most of my life,
the legends, his legacy, the food. But I've never attended
a single service, never even stepped inside the sanctuary. My
family always told me it was forbidden to enter. Here's
another thing. I almost didn't make it to Charlotte. My
(38:13):
trip happened to coincide with Hurricane Ian, and I was
certain it'd be canceled. But now here I was in
the parking lot looking up at the doors of the motherhouse.
Hearing the last of the rain splatter against the roof
of my car, I was glad I'd arrived, but I
also felt like I was doing something taboo, something my
(38:36):
family would not approve of. Despite the bright red thread
of doubt running through me, I knew I had to
find out for myself.
Speaker 2 (38:46):
I had to get closer to Daddy Grace.
Speaker 1 (38:48):
So I reached for the door handle with one hard yank,
tugged it open, and I stepped inside. It's probably pretty
obvious I'm not from here, so it was interesting to
have people ask me, you know, like, hey, who are
you and what are you doing here? And I explained
(39:12):
that I was visiting. I'm from New Jersey, but I
grew up in Massachusetts and New Bedford and that, you know,
Daddy Grace is one of my ancestors. And the woman
I was talking to, she was just like, we, you know,
have to have a special seat for you at the convocation.
We're going to have you sit right up in front.
And I'm like, oh my god, you know, like, wow, okay,
(39:35):
that's a lot, but okay, it's just I was just like,
what did I just get myself into? And then a
few of the other folks came out and they started
kind of whispering, Oh my God, welcome, and they were like,
you even look like Daddy Grace, Like we can tell
you're his family. My first time ever in a house
(39:58):
of prayer, I was treated as family. I was welcomed
in as a grace. That stirred something inside of me,
something I couldn't stop thinking about even after the service ended.
Like as many mysteries, this one is mine or perhaps
it is ours to share. So it is now almost
(40:24):
four o'clock. I feel completely overwhelmed emotionally. The church service
was actually really soul filling and you know, hearing words
I needed to hear, feeling music that really moves me. Yeah,
(40:52):
I danced, I cried, I got my hands as saying
long and I did feel the spirit move in that place,
which was pretty incredible. I felt the love, I felt
the goodness. I've spent a lot of time with Daddy Grace,
(41:15):
especially if you consider that he died twenty years before
I was born. The man has been a presence in
my life, from overhearing those family whispers as a kid
to now outside of his church in Charlotte on that
blustery fall day. The last of the hurricane passed overhead
in the end, more of a rainstorm than a catastrophic landfall.
(41:39):
I sat by myself in my car, trying to make
sense of what I felt, what I'd experienced. I came
to convocation, not knowing what to expect, anxious about what
I might experience in the church, but being here, I think.
Speaker 2 (41:55):
I get it.
Speaker 1 (41:57):
I feel Daddy Grace's presence, his light, and his love
in the church, in the city, in the hurricane itself.
One of my favorite quotes from Daddy Grace is when
he says I.
Speaker 2 (42:12):
Came from the land beyond the sea. I understand that quote.
I could have said that quote myself.
Speaker 1 (42:20):
Now, having finally set foot inside and seeing his church
for myself, experiencing the music and once again tasting the food,
I felt much closer to Daddy Grace, even more connected,
if not by blood, then most definitely by spirit. But
I couldn't help to still feel conflicted, still not understanding
(42:45):
the disdain my family had for this man. I believe
Daddy Grace was driven to serve and spread God's word.
That was his mission, and I felt that in Charlotte,
But not everyone feels the same way. That's next time.
(43:06):
Sweet Daddy Grace is a production of iHeart Podcasts and Force,
a Media group. This show is hosted by Me Marcy Depina.
It's written and produced by Marissa Brown and Me. Our
story editors are Darryl Stewart, Duncan Riedel, and Zarren Burnett. Editing,
sound design and theme music by Jonathan Washington. Original music
(43:31):
by Enrique Silva of Acasia Mayor. Show cover art by
Viviana Salgado of Studio Creative Group. Fact checking by Austin Thompson.
Our executive producers are Marcy Depina and Jason English. Special
thanks to Will Pearson, Nikki Ettore, Ali Perry, Tamika Campbell,
(43:55):
and Lulu Phillip of iHeartMedia and all of my family
members who talked to me for this show, my ancestors,
the United House of Prayer for All People, and the
countless number of people who shared their memories of Sweet
Daddy Grace with me. Thanks also to doctor Marie Dollam
and doctor Danielle brun Sigler, whose academic work on Sweet
(44:18):
Daddy Grace has been incredibly helpful. And finally, I want
to thank Bishop Grace himself for choosing me to tell
his story. For more information on Bishop Charles M. Grace,
check out the website Sweet Daddy Grace and follow me
at Marcy Depina on all social platforms
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