Joseph Freeman (Mormon)
Joseph Freeman, Jr. | |
---|---|
Born | July 24, 1952 | (age 71)
Nationality | American |
Occupation(s) | Religious leader, minister, author |
Joseph Freeman Jr. (born July 24, 1952) is the first man of
Biography
Freeman was born in Vanceboro, North Carolina, to Rose Lee Smith and Joseph Freeman, Sr.[3] His paternal great-grandparents, William and Ellen Freeman, were slaves in Craven County, North Carolina, who gained their freedom by escaping to Brushton, North Carolina, during the American Civil War, where they received help from Union soldiers until finding land to settle.[4]
At the age of ten, Freeman was baptized and became a member of the Holiness Church, the faith his father's family had supported for at least three generations. After graduating from high school he obtained an evangelist's license fulfilling his childhood dream of becoming a lay minister in the faith.[5]
In 1972, at age 19, Freeman enlisted in the
On June 8, 1978 the LDS Church's
On June 10, 1978, at a stake priesthood meeting, Freeman's name was presented and received unanimous approval for ordination to the Melchizedek priesthood.[9] On June 11, 1978, three days after the announcement of the revelation, Freeman was ordained to the office of elder in the Melchizedek priesthood. The ordination was performed by his bishop, Jay Harold Swain.
Typically, men are ordained to the office of a
On July 23, 1978,[11] Freeman was sealed to his wife and their two sons, Alexander and Zechariah, in the Salt Lake Temple and thereby became one of the first men of black African descent to receive this ordinance.[12] Thomas S. Monson, then a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, officiated at the ceremony.
In 1986, Freeman moved to
In 1993, Freeman adopted his daughter's son, J.J. Freeman. J.J. lived with Freeman for the next seven years.
After moving back to the Salt Lake Valley in 2001, Freeman served for a time as an LDS Church bishop.
Publications
- Freeman, Joseph Jr. (1979). In the Lord's Due Time. Salt Lake City, Utah: Bookcraft. OCLC 5800205.
See also
- Elijah Abel
- Black people and Mormonism
- Official Declaration 2
Notes
- Aaronic priesthood prior to Freeman.on 18 July 2011. Retrieved 10 March 2011.
"Joseph Freeman, Jr". Genesis Group. Archived from the original - Tanner, N. Eldon (November 1978). "Revelation on Priesthood Accepted, Church Officers Sustained". Ensign: 16. Retrieved 10 March 2011.
- ^ Freeman 1979, pp. 7–8
- ^ Freeman 1979, pp. 18–19
- ^ Freeman 1979, pp. 21, 36
- ^ Freeman 1979, p. 38
- ^ Freeman 1979, pp. 47, 48, 65, 81
- ^ "Official Declaration—2". Doctrine and Covenants. LDS Church.
- ^ Freeman 1979, p. 4
- OCLC 54487437.
- ^ Freeman 1979, p. 110
- ^ "Mormonism Enters a New Era". Time. 1978-08-07. Archived from the original on February 28, 2007. Retrieved 10 March 2011.
- Denver Post, p. A-01, Archive Article ID: 1153738 (NewsBank)
- ^ Darrick Evenson. "Some Prominent Black Mormons". The Black Mormon Homepage. Archived from the original on 28 June 2011. Retrieved 10 March 2011.
- The Church News, December 7, 2020.
References
- Freeman, Joseph Jr. (1979). In the Lord's Due Time. Salt Lake City, Utah: Bookcraft. OCLC 5800205.
- Torkelson, Jean (1998-05-29). "Black man a pioneer in Mormon priesthood: Joseph Freeman has served LDS Church for 20 years". Rocky Mountain News. Denver.