Today is the first day of Black History Month…
Although we should be reading more books by black authors, and about black history, throughout the year, February is a good reminder of this, and an opportunity to be more intentional in our efforts to read diversely.
Looking for a book on black history to read this month?
Here are 15 important ones that might be of interest. Although not all of these would be categorized by libraries / bookstores as history books, they are all saturated with the history of the black experience in the United States. All of these (with one noted exception) were written by black authors. We’ve tried to focus on stories from black history that may not be as familiar as the MLK and Malcolm X ones from the civil rights era.
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Slave Religion: The “Invisible Institution” in the Antebellum SouthAlbert Raboteau
Twenty-five years after its original publication, Slave Religion remains a classic in the study of African American history and religion. In a new chapter in this anniversary edition, author Albert J. Raboteau reflects upon the origins of the book, the reactions to it over the past twenty-five years, and how he would write it differently today. Using a variety of first and second-hand sources– some objective, some personal, all riveting– Raboteau analyzes the transformation of the African religions into evangelical Christianity. He presents the narratives of the slaves themselves, as well as missionary reports, travel accounts, folklore, black autobiographies, and the journals of white observers to describe the day-to-day religious life in the slave communities. Slave Religion is a must-read for anyone wanting a full picture of this “invisible institution.”
Fortress Intro Black Church HistoryAnne Pinn / Anthony Pinn
A brief history of black Christian churches in the United States has long been needed. Larger sociological and historical studies have enhanced the picture of the historically black denominations. At the same time, black-church members need a handy introduction to their own religious homes, as do college students of American history and religion. This volume, co-authored by a black minister and a black theologian, provides an overview of the shape and history of major black religious bodies: Methodist, Baptist, and Pentecostal. It introduces the denominations and their demographics before relating their historical development from the eighteenth century to the end of the Civil Rights Movement into the groups we know today. A final chapter sketches the state of the black Christian church bodies today and their ongoing contributions to a more just American society.
The Cross and the Lynching TreeJames Cone
The cross and the lynching tree are the two most emotionally charged symbols in the history of the African American community. In this powerful new work, theologian James H. Cone explores these symbols and their interconnection in the history and souls of black folk. Both the cross and the lynching tree represent the worst in human beings and at the same time a thirst for life that refuses to let the worst determine our final meaning. While the lynching tree symbolized white power and black death, the cross symbolizes divine power and black life God overcoming the power of sin and death. For African Americans, the image of Jesus, hung on a tree to die, powerfully grounded their faith that God was with them, even in the suffering of the lynching era. In a work that spans social history, theology, and cultural studies, Cone explores the message of the spirituals and the power of the blues; the passion and of Emmet Till and the engaged vision of Martin Luther King, Jr.; he invokes the spirits of Billie Holliday and Langston Hughes, Fannie Lou Hamer and Ida B. Well, and the witness of black artists, writers, preachers, and fighters for justice. And he remembers the victims, especially the 5,000 who perished during the lynching period. Through their witness he contemplates the greatest challenge of any Christian theology to explain how life can be made meaningful in the face of death and injustice. |
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