A champion of the oppressed . . . Wreath laying ceremony honours the Right Excellent Sarah Ann Gill

April 28 is commemorated annually in Barbados as National Heroes’ Day. Among the ten national heroes is our very own heroine of Methodism, the Right Excellent Sarah Ann Gill, who was laid to rest on the grounds of the James Street Methodist Church in Bridgetown.

On Sunday, April 26, 2020, we commemorated and honoured the life of this great heroine with our annual wreath laying ceremony at her grave. As we continue to celebrate over 260 years in Methodism, and as we face restrictions on public gatherings because of the global pandemic, COVID-19, we especially remember Sarah Ann Gill today, who faced restrictions of her own. Though persecuted, prosecuted, and faced with threats of death, she kept Methodism alive, educated the slaves, and promoted religious and racial tolerance.

The Right Excellent Sarah Ann Gill’s contribution must also be measured in the anti-slavery role played by the Methodist church. Empowered and emboldened by her faith, her Christian convictions, and her church’s mission, she was never intimidated by threats of physical harm or death.

In her own words, the Right Excellent Sarah Ann Gill was not “a stranger to fear.” She successfully challenged the powerful, self-serving defenders of slavery, extending religion and education to the enslaved, and she also advanced the abolition process. Were she here today, she would have undoubtedly found creative ways to worship, while maintaining physical distance and personal hygiene. The Right Excellent Sarah Ann Gill would have assured us of the power of God in Christ to redeem, restore, and save our broken world which is currently being ravaged by this disease.

The Gill Memorial Church was built at Eagle Hall in 1893 to honour her memory. It was replaced by the Ann Gill Memorial Church in Fairfield, which was opened on August 6, 1990. The Right Excellent Sarah Ann Gill’s final resting place is in the James Street church yard, which was the property she left to build the church.

On National Heroes’ Day, the Methodist Church of Barbados salutes and honours the Right Excellent Sarah Ann Gill, Heroine of Methodism and Freedom of Religion.