Friday, June 12, 2026

It is the 12th of June 2026. Welcome to the Christian History Almanac, brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org; I’m Dan van Voorhis.

 

One of the sometimes uncomfortable stories in modern church history involves imperialism dressed up as missionary work. Too often, the pretense was “spreading the Gospel” (with the unfortunate use of the word “civilizing”) when the issue was land and natural resources.

And so I am heartened when I come across the stories of those who- despite the crooked plans and faulty governments of men- press on with the Gospel. Today, across the Episcopalian community, they are remembering a man called Enmegahbowh (En-meh-GAH-boe)- sometimes called “John Johnson” for Anglo tongues- but let’s use the proper name. En-meh-GAH-boe was the first ordained native American priest in the Episcopal church and has a story that echoes the Biblical prophets.

He was born around 1820, the son of an Ojibwa chief near Rice Lake in Ontario, Canada. He was invited to join the family of an Anglican minister and missionary for a 3-month excursion- En-meh-GAH-boe would get homesick and go home. There he was trained by his grandfather to be a medicine man for the tribal religion… but the young man- ever trepidatious- abandoned that training as well.

That same year, he joined a Methodist Episcopal missionary to Sault St. Marie, in Ontario, on the border of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. He would soon be an interpreter and catechist with the Methodists. He would come to live amongst the Ojibwa Chief Hole-in-the-Day. He would marry the chief's niece- Iron Sky Woman- and was adopted by Hole-in-the-Day.

But with the Methodists abandoning that region and increased skirmishes between native tribes, he and his wife decided to hop a boat on Lake Superior and flee for a new life. But two storms caused the ship to return to its port. En-meh-GAH-boe would report a vision he had of the prophet Jonah, who was unsuccessful in fleeing from God’s call. As the ship was being tossed two and from, he realized that he was like the prophet- fleeing the work to which he was called for an easier and quieter life. This parallel convinced him that he was to remain in missions amongst his people. The Methodists had left, but he would remain.

He would meet the Episcopal priest Ezekiel Gear at Fort Snelling, who would introduce him to the Reverend James Breck. This led En-meh-GAH-boe to join the Episcopalians, and he would be ordained as a deacon. They would establish missions and churches despite the threat of native uprisings.

In 1862, amidst local uprisings and the Dakota War (this, of course, during the Civil War), En-meh-GAH-boe heard that his adopted brother, now Chief Hole-in-the-Day II, was colluding with the Sioux to kill white settlers. En-meh-GAH-boe warned the settlers, and for this, he would have to live under the protection of the settlers. He would be ordained as a deacon back in 1859, but was formally ordained a priest in the Episcopal church in 1867. His name means “he who stands before his people” and he would do so as a priest for over the next 3 decades. Despite threats from Hole-in-the-Day II, he continued to build missions and churches. He would settle at White Earth in modern North West Minnesota.

With the assassination of Hole in the Day II by his own people in 1868, En-meh-GAH-boe was able to help negotiate a peace between the Sioux and Ojibwe- the peace that ended over 130 years of warfare. The last third of his life was spent as a priest and missionary to native peoples. He would lobby the Episcopal church and the government on behalf of the natives, who were often mistreated and not treated according to their peace treaties with the state. One memorable occasion had his people, hungry, served bad meat- over 300 people were said to have died as a result of this food, and it led to some reform. En-meh-GAH-boe himself would go to Washington, D.C. to lobby for native rights and fair treatment, and was able to meet numerous American Presidents.

The Bishop who ordained him- Bishop Whipple would write of En-meh-GAH-boe, who was a man with a temper, but also humanity and faithfulness in the face of difficult times. He would serve his people from his ordination in 1867 until his death on this day in 1902- En-meh-GAH-boe, the first native American ordained in the Episcopal church.

 

The Last word for today comes from the daily lectionary and Psalm 116- a Psalm which might have some of you humming a specific tune:

What shall I return to the Lord
 for all his goodness to me?

13 I will lift up the cup of salvation
 and call on the name of the Lord.

14 I will fulfill my vows to the Lord
 in the presence of all his people.

15 Precious in the sight of the Lord
 is the death of his faithful servants.

16 Truly I am your servant, Lord;
 I serve you just as my mother did;
 you have freed me from my chains.

17 I will sacrifice a thank offering to you
 and call on the name of the Lord.

18 I will fulfill my vows to the Lord
 in the presence of all his people,

19 in the courts of the house of the Lord—
 in your midst, Jerusalem. Praise the Lord.

 

This has been the Christian History Almanac for the 12th of June 2026, brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org.

The show is produced by a man very suspicious of the Upper Peninsula (aren’t we all), he is Christopher Gillespie.

The show is written and read by a man who now knows all about the Toledo War and why Michigan comes in two parts… I’m Dan van Voorhis.

You can catch us here every day- and remember that the rumors of grace, forgiveness, and the redemption of all things are true…. Everything is going to be ok.