Louisiana AHGP
Part of the American History and
Genealogy Project
John Tully Barrett
Brother Barrett served as pastor of our church in 1893, in the middle of the tenure of C. B. Hollis. Obviously, there was some disagreement about how many Sundays per month he would be able to preach. Both the church and Brother Barrett appear to have tried to work out their differences, but this was not possible. J. T. Barrett was known for his promotion of Sunday Schools, having started nineteen of them in various churches. He was a strong supporter of the infant Sunday School Board and of its literature. He became the missionary secretary of the Louisiana Baptist Convention in 1889 and was in charge when the budget for missions was increased by over fifty percent.
He was an early supporter of the rights of women in the church
and enthusiastically encouraged the participation of female
messengers to the Southern Baptist Convention in 1888. He said,
'Unused, unguessed possibilities for Christ's glory lie hid
today in the women of Louisiana. We must all stand amazed at the
revelations of woman's work for Christ in two decades. This
latent power for good must be utilized.'
He suggested the State Convention appoint an organizer of
women's societies and held twelve such meetings himself in 1888.
He, with G. M. Harrell and E. O. Ware, started an early seminary
for the training of ministers in Louisiana. This was situated in
the Valence Street Baptist Church in New Orleans. (Of interest
to church members, this was the home church of Warren and Margie
Miller. Warren served as Minister of Music and Senior Adults
while at Homer.) This training facility offered month long
courses in various ministerial disciplines. 24
Biographical Sketches| Claiborne Parish | AHGP
Source: Author's Notice: I hereby give permission for the free dissemination of any and all material included within the book and permit any non profit use of that material. Should any agency wish to use the material in a profit context, permission must be secured from the church body of First Baptist Church, Homer, LA 71040. By Barbara Smith, Homer, Louisiana.
