St. Paul AME Church in Hamilton culminated its 125th Anniversary celebrations on Sunday with an impressive morning worship service reminiscent of the old times that propelled the historic landmark as the cathedral of African Methodism in Bermuda and the epicentre of black intellectualism and power.

The service was marked by powerful preaching, and spirited congregational singing led by the combined robed choirs under organist and Director of Music Cecil Smith.

The Rt. Rev. Richard Franklin Norris, the presiding Bishop of the First Episcopal District of the far flung denomination came from his headquarters in Philadelphia to be the preacher.

He was joined in the pulpit by pastor of St. Paul, Rev. Dr Lanel D. Guyton; Rev Betty L.Furbert-Woolridge, Presiding Elder of the Bermuda Conference, recently retired Elder Rev. Malcolm Eve; Rev. Judith Gardner, Itinerant Elder/Executive Minister of St. Paul and Local Elder, Rev. Quinton Ming.

By significant coincidence Bishop Norris is a namesake of the very first of several Americans sent to Bermuda to pastor St. Paul. He was Rev. R.R. Norris, whose tenure was 1870-1877. St. Paul, until recent years, was also the seat of the Presiding Eldership with its pastors holding the administrative office.

One of the major events of the celebration was a public forum on "The Role of the AME Church In Bermuda's Modern Political Development". Especially invited back to Bermuda to be panelists were former pastor of St. Paul, the Rev. Thomas W. Foster and the Rev. John Brandon, former pastor at Allen Temple Church, Somerset and Vernon Temple, Southampton. They joined MP Dale Butler who was also the moderator, and historian Ira Philip.

Mr. Philip said at the outset that in order to more fully comprehend the significance of the AME Church in the country's modern political development it was essential to take into account the historical trail starting not long after Emancipation in 1834 when the freed blacks had little more than the clothes on their backs and their indomitable spirits; and how they built their own infrastructure.

It was in 1869 that three far-sighted men, immensely dissatisfied with the then existing racial situation in what was essentially two Bermudas, set the wheels in motion that brought African Methodism to Bermuda, with the creed of its founder Richard Allen being God Our Father, Christ our Redeemer and Man our Brother. Generations of Bermudians quick caught the spirit of Allen, and from then on the impact of the AME Church, with St. Paul at its epicentre was profound, widespread and continuing.

St. Paul was venue for political, cultural and educational forums. Two of its members in 1919 spearhead the formation of the Bermuda Union of Teachers. And its members in the 1940s sparked the Bermuda Workers Association under Dr. E.F. Gordon, out of which evolved the Bermuda Industrial Union.

In the 1960 St. Paul was the bedrock of the Progressive Labor Party, which was founded by church members.

In 1998 the PLP under Party Leader Jennifer Smith, now Dame Jennifer, a member of the AME Church, led her party in what was termed a Second Emcipation, unseating the ruling United Bermuda Party in a landslide election victory.