Maria W. Stewart

Maria Stewart (Maria Miller) (1803 – December 17, 1879) was an African American public speaker, abolitionist, and feminist.

Life and career

She was born in Hartford, Connecticut, in 1803. At the age of five she became an orphan and was sent to live with a minister and his family. Until she was fifteen, Maria was a servant in the home where she resided and was deprived of an education. When Maria turned twenty, her life took a turn for the better. Maria began to attend Sabbath School, where she learned new and exciting things. During her early adulthood, while attending school, Maria worked as a domestic servant for a living. On August 10, 1826, Maria Miller and James Stewart exchanged vows before the pastor of the African Meeting House (Rev. Thomas Paul) in Boston, Massachusetts. Their marriage only lasted three years; he died in 1829. After her husband's death, Stewart started to give speeches in order to support herself. The inheritance left by her husband was taken away by white businessmen.

Stewart was the first black woman to lecture about women’s rights — particularly the rights of black women — religion, and social justice among black people. She was influenced by David Walker, who wrote a very controversial piece on race relations called David Walker’s Appeal (1829). In 1830, Walker was found dead outside of his shop, just one year after the death of Stewart's husband.

In 1831, before embarking on her public speaking career, Stewart published a small pamphlet entitled Religion and the pure principles of Mortality, the Sure Foundation on which We Build. In 1832, Stewart published a collection of religious mediations called The Meditation from the pen of Mrs. Maria Stewart. She wrote and delivered four speeches between 1832 and 1833. While her speeches were not well-received, William Lloyd Garrison, a dear friend and the central figure of the anti-slavery movement, published all four of them in his newspaper The Liberator.

Stewart’s public speaking career lasted three years. She delivered her farewell addresses on September 21, 1833, in the school room of the African Meeting House, known then as the Belknap Street Church, and parzt of The Black Heritage Trail. When she left Boston, she moved to New York, where she published her collected works in 1835. She taught school and participated in the abolitionist movement, as well as literary organization. She moved from New York to Baltimore and then to Washington, D.C., where she also taught school. While in Washington D.C., she became Matron of Freedom’s Hospital, known as Howard University. She continued to reside in Washington, D.C. until her death. She died in December 1879.^[1]

Speeches

Her most famous speech was probably Religion and the pure principles of Morality The sure Foundation on which We Must Build, in which she asked God to grant patience, peace, courage and strength.

HER SPEECH

“I hope my friends will not scrutinize these pages with too severe eye, as I have not calculated to display either elegance or taste in their composition, but merely written the mediation of my heart as far as my imagination led; and have presents them before you in order to arouse you exertion, and to enforce up on your minds the great necessity of turning your attention to knowledge and improvement.

"The country is crying out for liberty and equality. Every man and woman has the right to express his/her opinions. Many of our brothers and sisters still feel that because of our complexion we are an inferior race of people; but God does not consider us as such. God has made us the way we are because we are special people. 'He hath formed and fashioned you in His won image, and hath bestowed up on you reason and strong powers of intellect. He hath made you to have dominion over the beast of the field, the fowls of the air, and the fish of the sea (Genesis 1:26.) He hath crowned you with glory and honor; hath made you but a little lower than the angels (Psalms 8:5)'. Even the Declaration of Independence says that all men are free and equal. 'It is not the color of the skin that makes the man but it is the principles formed within the soul.' The only thing you need to do is trust in God who will protect you from your enemies who are seek to destroy you.

To Respected Friends

I feel as though I can not speak to you and sometimes I have been ready to give in, 'O that my head were waters, and my eyes a fountain of tears, that I might weep day and night (Jeremiah 9:1), for the transgression of the daughters of my people.' I pray that the chains of oppression, discrimination, and segregation will never stop us from being united as one through our struggle for social justice. 'O, ye daughters of Africa, awake! Awake! Arise! No longer sleep nor slumber, but distinguish yourselves.' Raise up our children in the right way, the way of the almighty and King. Their souls will become fired with the truth of freedom. They will become enlightened to distinguish themselves among other people. They will become proud to show their telnets. Knowledge and wisdom would begin to follow through the land. 'O virtue! How scared is thy name! How pure are thy principles! Who can find a virtuous woman? For her price is far above rubies (Proverbs|proverbs 31:10.)'

Many of my friends say that I talk religion too seriously and it is the only focus of my conversation. I hope that my religious enlightenment will make me a woman of my words; and that it will constitute our happiness here on earth. 'O then, do not trifle with God and your own souls any longer.' Make your presence known unto God and he will overflow your heart with wisdom and knowledge..

“Come, turn to God, who did thee make

And at his presence fear and quake

Remember him now in thy youth

And let thy soul take

Religion should be pure and new, It should be something that is worth living for and something that you feel passionate enough to die for. The day is coming when we will see men walking in the fear of the Lord and not trying to balance the world in one hand and religion in the other. We will be crying up on the walls of Zion saying to our brothers and sisters who walk by,” How every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he hath no money; yea, come and buy wine and milk without money and without price (Isaiah 55:1).”

Praying

O Lord my God, please sanctifies thy goodness upon the men of this earth. Purify our hearts and grant us to be peaceful with ourselves and each other. Help us to continue to walk upright and not with the lowly. Give us the patience to wait on your word before speaking falsehood, and grant us the courage and strength to do so. In the name of our Father who art in Heaven. Amen.

Lately I have been observing American people, and I see that they are striving in the arts, science, and literary worlds. Their highest aim is to excel in the political, moral, and religious aspects of life. But they will not acknowledge the accomplishments of our black brothers and sisters. We are the ones who enriched the soils of America with our blood and tears. There are few willing to promote our cause and to encourage the talents of our people. I am happy to say that there are a number of us who are very talented and those names might be recorded in the history books, but the rest of us are so busy saying “I can’t” when we should be saying “I can” and “I will”. WE shouldn’t let our pride get in the way of trying to do good in this world. We are only hurting ourselves in the end. 'Righteousness exath a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people [proverbs 14:34].' Why is it that our minds have been overcome by ignorance? Why is that our churches are in so much turmoil? Why is it that God has taken away some of our most prized possession? It is because of sin! Why do we look down upon one another? Why do we spread gossip about one another? Why do we hurt one another?, not just physically but mentally? Why do we let petty situations take over our lives? It is because of sin!!! We need to bow down to the good Lord and ask for forgiveness. 'The arm of the Lord is not shortened, that it can not save; neither is his ear heavy; that it can not hear; but it is your iniquities that have separated you from me, saith the Lord. Return, O ye backsliding children, and I will return unto you and ye shall be my people, and I will be your God.' (Jeremiah 3:22)

To the mother of my people, you have a great responsibility lying upon you. You have souls under your care that you must bring up in the right way. It will require strict and hard laboring on your part. You have a duty to create in the mind of the little boys and girls a thirst for knowledge, a love for mankind, a motivation to move on, and strength to maintain a pure heart. Do not say that you can not do this task, but say with the assistance of God you will try. Do not leave your child alone and accept him to know how to do this in his own. Help him! Teach him! Give him the motivation to follow in the right path! It is not use in saying that you can not do this and you can not do that. When judgment day comes, you will not say these things to your maker. Children imitate what their parents and other adult do. Be careful what you do and say around your children.

Finally, I hope and pray to God that a change will occur in our communities. Our minds have been soiled with ignorance and sin for too long. Take hold of teaching of the almighty God. 'Come let us turn unto the Lord our God, with all our heart and soul, and put away every unclean and unholy things from among us, and walk before the Lord our God, with a perfect heart, all the days of our lives: then shall we be a people with whom God shall delight to dwell; yea, we shall be happy people whose God is Lord.'

I believe that the day when we unite as one, with our heart and soul, will be the day when nations of the earth will cease from committing falsehood and will turn to the word of truth. It is no use for us to sit around with our leads hung down low and our arms folded like a child who has just gotten punished. The time has come when we need to learn how to respect one another and ourselves.

It seem as though white people of this country have everything and we have nothing. They raise money to get what they want. Is it terrible of us to want those same things and opportunities? Why can’t we do something to distinguish ourselves from everyone else? Is it that we don’t know how? Or is it that we are too lazy to do it? If we took the time to raise the money we could have the schools, and shopping centers of our own. We as a people are always spending unnecessary money. We spend it on expensive clothes with labels that we can not pronounce, big cars that we can not afford, and nice, huge homes with space we really don’t need. The money spent on these things could be used to build the things we need. We have never had a time in history where we could display our true talents; therefore the world thinks we know little.

The white Americans have always been ahead of everyone else and we have done their dirty work. Isn’t it time that we start doing some clean work? I believe it is time! But remember we can not do these things without God’s help. God is the Maker of all things. “That day we, as a people, hearken unto the voice of the Lord, our God, and walk in his ways and ordinances, and become distinguished for our ease, elegance and grace, combined with other virtues, that day the Lord will raise up, and enough aid and befriend us, a specie your souls are now discouraged s of mere animals, but we possess the same intelligence and pride as anyone else.

I have come to the conclusion that many of you have been deprived of the advantages of mankind and that your mind is now darkened, your souls are now discouraged, and you aspire to do and be nothing. But I am here to tell you that there is help for you. You need to turn your attention to knowledge and improvement. And believe that God will be able to fill your mind, heart, and soul with His wisdom and power. Put your trust in the living God. Walk in the path of the righteous. Let nothing and no one pull you down. Just wait on the Lord and He will answer your payers.

I have not written this to fill my ego, but I have done it raise you self esteem. And I have done this to promote the goodness of the Lord. Remember my people: Trust in the Lord, wait on Him, and He will strengthen thy heart and mind."

Veneration

Stewart is honored together with William Lloyd Garrison with a feast day on the liturgical calendar of the Episcopal Church (USA) on December 17.

See also

Saints portal

References

1. ^ Marilyn Richardson, Maria. W. Stewart. Oxford Companion to African American Literature. Oxford University Press, 1997.

Further reading

Works by Stewart

• Meditations from the pen of Mrs. Maria W. Stewart: presented to the First African Baptist Church and Society, in the city of Boston. Boston: Printed by Garrison and Knapp, 1832.
• A lecture at the Franklin Hall, Boston, September 21, 1832. Reprinted in: Dorothy Porter, ed. Early Negro writing, 1760-1837. Black Classic Press, 1995; p.136+
• An address delivered at the African Masonic Hall, Boston, February 27, 1833. Reprinted in: Dorothy Porter, ed. Early Negro writing, 1760-1837. Black Classic Press, 1995; p.129+

Works about Stewart

• Marilyn Richardson, Maria. W. Stewart. Oxford Companion to African American Literature. Oxford University Press, 1997.

External links

• WorldCat
• National Park Service
• (or http://www.nps.gov/boaf/mariastewart.htm) NPS biography
• African History
• Blackseek.com
• New York Public Library

Persondata
Name	Stewart, Maria
Alternative names
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Date of birth	1803
Place of birth
Date of death	December 17, 1879
Place of death