Brother Elijah

Brother Elijah

A story of a Brother I will tell,

Born as a slave upon the Southern fields,

Escaping, through the railroad, North to dwell,

To become the first colored man in Gospel yields,

Named for Elijah, mighty priest of Old,

And named for Abel, Adam’s beloved son,

This steadfast brother, by Joseph Smith was told,

To go forth and preach the Word to everyone,

A priest, an Elder, and a Seventy,

Elijah Abel walked strong and true, upright,

And he was not alone, nor had to be,

As a brother walking in God’s holy light,

For Walker Lewis, and Joseph Freeman too,

Held power of God on the Earth to do,

His will, His works and preach His wisdom true,

This sacred trust that by no means was new,

For Jethro, Moses’ good-father did hail,

From Africa, and Tzipporah, his wife,

Long dwelt in the horn of that land round which ships sail,

And was black of countenance and full of life,

This steadfast brother, ever strong remained,

For even when adversity did call,

Elijah never lost his sacred claim,

Alone, against his foe, he did not fall,

In time, Elijah’s story will see light,

And prove in God’s eyes, that black is pure as white.