The Hip-Hop Church: Connecting With the Movement Shaping Our Culture.

The Hip-Hop Church: Connecting With the Movement Shaping Our Culture by Efrem Smith and Phil Jackson InterVarsity Press, December 2005 $14, ISBN 0-830-83329-3

These authors analyze the power of hip-hop and encourage churches not to denounce it but to embrace it as a tool for reaching today's youth. The writers explain in great detail the components of hip-hop, its origins and its potential for bringing young people closer to God. Because they are both pastors, Jackson and Smith offer credible firsthand information on the growing relationship between hip-hop and the church. They can directly relate to their targeted audience.

To strengthen their argument, the authors connect what they experienced while striving to incorporate hip-hop into religion to what the Apostle Paul experienced during biblical times. They also note respectable hip-hop artists such as Common, Mos Def and Talib Kweli, which allows the reader to see hip-hop in a positive light and step away from the frequent misconceptions that connect hip-hop directly with foul language, drugs, crime and disrespect of women.

The authors skillfully divide the book into three gripping parts, each one fundamental to the comprehension of the next: "Why Should the Church Care About Hip-Hop?" "Understanding Hip-Hop Culture" and "Bringing Hip-Hop Into Your Church."

The Hip-Hop Church is an extraordinary book, and I would definitely recommend it as a reference tool to pastors and other church leaders looking for a unique way to reach the youth in their congregations. The book is full of interesting facts and ideas, including a detailed appendix that fists additional sources of information.

--Reviewed by Deja Leshaun Mathews Deja Leshaun Mathews is a freshman at Georgia State University in Atlanta, Georgia.