John Jea facts for kids

Quick facts for kids John Jea
Born	c. 1773 Akwa Akpa
Died	unknown
Occupation	Farmer sailor preacher
Notable work	The Life, History, and Unparalleled Sufferings of John Jea, the African Preacher. (1811)
Parents	Hambleton Robert Jea (father) Margaret Jea (mother)

John Jea (born around 1773 – died after 1817) was an African-American writer, preacher, and sailor. He was also an abolitionist, meaning he worked to end slavery. He is most famous for his autobiography, The Life, History, and Unparalleled Sufferings of John Jea, the African Preacher, published in 1811. John Jea was enslaved when he was very young. After he became free in the 1790s, he traveled and preached in many places.

Early Life and Enslavement

We know most of what we do about John Jea from his autobiography. He wrote The Life, History, and Unparalleled Sufferings of John Jea, the African Preacher in 1811.

Jea said he was born in Africa in 1773. His birthplace was near Calabar in the Bight of Biafra. He claimed that he, his parents (Hambleton Robert Jea and Margaret Jea), and his siblings were kidnapped. They were sold into slavery in New York City when he was only two and a half years old. Some historians wonder if parts of this story might have been changed. It was very rare for an entire family to survive being captured and the difficult journey across the ocean. It was also rare for them to be sold to the same owner.

A Dutch couple named Oliver and Angelika Triebuen bought John Jea. They were part of a strict church called the Dutch Reform Church. At that time, this church was often against teaching Christianity to enslaved people. John's master first sent him to church as a punishment. But John became a very religious Christian. He was baptized in the 1780s.

Before he became Christian, John hated the religion. He saw it linked to his master's cruelty. His master claimed to be a good Christian, but he was still very mean. This showed how unfair it was for someone to be a Christian and own slaves. John's hatred was so strong that he would rather get "a hundred lashes" than go to church.

However, the minister's words about "salvation" really captured his attention. This led to his new strong belief in Christianity. As he learned more about the religion, John saw how his Christian slave master was being a hypocrite. He found parts of the Bible that went against his master's ideas. For example, his master used a Bible quote to say enslaved people should thank him for their punishments. John used other Bible verses, like "God is love," to question his master's cruelty.

When John was a teenager, his master told him that enslaved people had no souls. He said John would die "like the beasts that perish." But John used the Bible to prove his master wrong. He also thanked God for his food, even though his master wanted to be thanked instead. John declared that only God would guide him.

Finding Freedom

John Jea had several different slave owners. He eventually convinced his last owner that he should be freed. He argued that his strong faith and baptism as a Christian meant he deserved freedom. His enslaver at first did not want to follow the court's order.

Before this, his former owner tried to make John keep working for him. He said the Bible told him that John should remain his slave. John put the Bible to his ear, trying to hear it speak, but he heard nothing. So, John prayed very hard in his room for six weeks. One night, his room filled with light. An angel and the Holy Bible appeared beside him. He said the book spoke to him. It told him it would teach him to read the Bible in both English and Dutch. John's strong faith was supported by his ability to read the first chapter of The Gospel of John. The judges also said that "no man could read in such a manner, unless he was taught of God."

John believed his conversion to Christianity led to his freedom. However, the judges only confirmed his baptism and faith. They also worried that John might teach other enslaved people about Christianity. This fear of him sharing his new ability to read with other enslaved people was a real reason for his freedom. John showed how being able to read was a key part of gaining freedom.

Later Life and Travels

John Jea tried to convince his family to seek their freedom, just as he had. He was not successful with his own family. Instead, he shared his story of Christianity and freedom with another enslaved person. This person then gained their freedom, much like John had. John saw this as a sign from God to continue being a minister.

In the 1790s, Jea traveled a lot. He went to places like Boston, New Orleans, New Jersey, South America, and many European countries. He worked as a traveling preacher and also as a sailor and ship cook. When he first started as a traveling preacher, he went from place to place sharing God's word. He worked with other preachers, taking turns each week.

After three years in Boston, Jea went back to New York. He wanted to see his mother, siblings, and friends. While in New York, he decided to marry a Native American woman named Elizabeth. He later said she was executed for killing their child. John believed "temptation and sin" were the cause of this tragedy. He then married a Maltese woman named Charity, who later died.

Between 1801 and 1805, he lived and preached in Liverpool, England. Jea often used a Methodist style of preaching. He was careful not to include strong anti-slavery messages. He feared violence from people who supported slavery. He then worked as a cook on ships. These ships traveled around North America, the East and West Indies, South America, and Ireland. He worked to earn money, but he also used his travels to preach the gospel.

During his time in Europe in the 1810s, Jea published his autobiography and a hymnbook. He also married an Irishwoman named Mary. They planned to travel together and join a Methodist mission trip to Nova Scotia. However, Mary became ill and had to stay behind when they reached Portsmouth. Mary died soon after John's book was published.

In 1811, John Jea's travels stopped for a while. His ship was captured by French forces. He had a chance to leave his imprisoned state by joining the American consul. However, John was a pacifist, meaning he was against war. He decided not to work on a US warship and preach there. This went against his Christian beliefs. John traveled around northern France for four years. He was finally released when the Napoleonic Wars ended. He returned to England and settled in Portsea around 1815.

Later, John Jea married his fourth wife, Jemima Davis, in 1816. They had a child named Hephazabah, who was baptized in an Anglican church. Not much is known about John Jea's death.

Published Works and Legacy

John Jea was one of the first African-American poets to write an autobiography. He wrote his autobiography in Portsea between 1815 and 1816. However, it was largely unknown until it was found again in 1983.

Historian Henry Louis Gates Jr. says that Jea's autobiography is a "missing link." It connects slave stories from the 1700s, which focused on religious salvation, with later stories from the 1800s, which argued for ending slavery. Religious ideas are very important in Jea's autobiography. He even says he learned to read because an angel visited him and taught him the Gospel of John. But ideas about politics are also mixed in. The book always argues that slavery is deeply unfair and must be ended. Gates calls Jea's work "the last of the great black ‘sacred’ slave autobiographies."

Jea's story uses many references to the Bible. It also fits with Henry Louis Gates' idea of the "talking book." In this idea, formerly enslaved people could hear God's words from the Bible, as if the book was speaking to them. This idea appears in Jea's story when he learned to read after praying for six weeks. This happened after his master and mistress scolded him for being baptized. However, this "talking book" idea became less common later on. People started to prefer more worldly explanations to make the stories seem more believable.

Jea also published a hymnbook called A Collection of Hymns. Compiled and Selected by John Jea, African Preacher of the Gospel (1816). This book has 334 songs. Twenty-nine of these songs seem to have been written by Jea himself.

Throughout his story, hymns, and sermons, Jea often mentioned Lazarus. Before one of Jea's church meetings, an English preacher tried to insult Jea. He compared Jea to Lazarus, especially to Lazarus's poor state before he died. One writer, Pierce, connects Lazarus's death to John Jea's past condition of being "dead in his sins." Lazarus was a poor man not known by many people. John Jea was formerly enslaved and at first disliked Christianity. These similarities helped John understand that even the most humble people can find "salvation and eternal life" through God.

On one of John Jea's trips across the Atlantic Ocean, a terrible storm hit. Two men on the ship were struck and killed by lightning. Jea said their deaths happened because they had insulted God. They had made fun of Jea for praying and threatened to throw him overboard. Both men were also treated badly by their shipmates. They prayed for calmer waters. This created similarities between Jea and Jonah from the Bible. However, there was a big difference: Jonah tried to disobey God, while Jea obeyed Him and went to preach in England as he was told. In the same event, Pierce also compared Elisha to Jea. This was because people around them faced God's punishment for making fun of Christ's work. In Elisha's story, people mocked him for being bald. Forty-two children who mocked him were then attacked by two bears. Similarly, the two shipmates who mocked Jea for praying quickly died.

After John Jea became Christian, his story changed. It became a collection of "mini-sermons" that he connected to his own life. He called this new way of speaking and writing Canaan.

At the end of his story, John Jea said that he did not write the narrative himself. However, he made sure it showed his life accurately. He did not allow the printers to change anything.