![]() ![]() ![]() One morning, the Crumbs prepare to go to the Peace Mission building to make sure everything is in order for Father Divine’s upcoming visit. Meanwhile, the Holy Communion Banquet is fast approaching. Ernestine is just starting to think critically about the world, she says. Lily, however, claims that she didn’t teach Ernestine anything. Because of Lily, he says, everybody thinks he’s a communist now-even his coworkers, who won’t talk to him anymore. Her teacher is not happy with the result, eventually showing it to the principal, who calls Godfrey in and lectures him about teaching his daughter communist ideas. She is a member of the Communist Party, but she mainly speaks broadly about equality, raising points that resonate with Ernestine, who decides to write a school essay about the labor movement. She often works on the dress while talking to Lily, who talks about an imminent cultural revolution. In the ensuing weeks, Ernestine starts sewing her graduation dress. But Godfrey awkwardly avoids the conversation. When Godfrey tells her that he doesn’t allow alcohol in the house, she tries to reminisce with him about their past, insinuating that they used to get drunk in bars together and become romantic with each other. She, for her part, likes to drink alcohol, listen to jazz, and go dancing. Godfrey doesn’t seem happy about this, particularly when Lily pokes fun of him for becoming so devoutly religious. She expresses her regret that she was unable to be present for her sister’s death, but she claims that she promised her mother-Ernestine and Ermina’s grandmother-that she would come look after Godfrey’s daughters now that her sister is gone. It soon becomes clear that Lily intends to stay with Godfrey and his daughters. When Godfrey enters the room and sees Lily, he seems taken aback and hesitant to welcome her, though he later admits that he tried to find her in Harlem when he first arrived in New York City. She explains that she buys her clothes from the same stores where white women shop, suggesting to her niece that that looking better than white women is a good way to stand up against racism and discrimination. Her name is Lily, and she’s dressed in a style Ernestine has never seen a Black woman wear-that is, she’s dressed like a stylish white woman. Godfrey will be Godfrey Goodness, Ernestine will be Darling Angel, and Ermina will be Devout Mary-a name she hates.Īround this time, a woman comes to the apartment and introduces herself as Ernestine and Ermina’s aunt. ![]() After writing in his notepad, Godfrey is elated to discover that he has received a response from Father Divine, in which Divine urges him to be strong in the face of hardship and gives Godfrey and his daughters new names. When he asks why she didn’t tell him before, though, she hints that she did, and he embarrassedly jots something down in his notepad-something he does frequently throughout the play, explaining at one point that he’s writing down questions to ask Father Divine when he finally sees him at the Holy Communion Banquet later that year. She will be the first person in the family to finish high school, so Godfrey is incredibly proud. Ernestine will use the fabric to make herself a graduation dress, the sisters explain to Godfrey, who’s astounded to hear that his daughter will be graduating. ![]() When the mail finally comes, Ermina flips through it and is excited to find a sample of fabric that she and her sister ordered. One day, Godfrey eagerly awaits the mail, hoping he’ll receive a letter from Father Divine, whom he has written to many times. Ermina, on the other hand, is eager to spend time with boys her own age, but she rarely has the chance to do so. Other than going to the movies, Ernestine doesn’t do much, instead focusing on her studies. On other days, the sisters go to the movies, which helps them grieve the loss of their mother, since they feel like they can openly cry in the theaters while watching dramatic storylines unfold before them. He also doesn’t let them listen to the radio on Sunday. Godfrey keeps a protective watch over Ernestine and Ermina (who’s 15), especially trying to impress on them the importance of celibacy, which is one of Father Divine’s most important teachings. Now the Crumbs live in a small apartment in a mostly Jewish neighborhood, where Godfrey works in a bakery. Wanting to be closer to Father Divine (who claims he’s God), Godfrey moved his daughters-Ernestine and her sister, Ermina-to Brooklyn, only to discover that Father Divine had relocated to Philadelphia. When her mother died, her father, Godfrey, was unable to do anything but mourn his wife-until he discovered the teachings of Father Divine, the leader of the Peace Mission Movement. Seventeen-year-old Ernestine Crumb addresses the audience and explains that grief laid her family flat. ![]()
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