This Far by Faith: Stories From the African-American Religious Experience.Juan Williams For the Chilean naval officer see Juan Williams Rebolledo Juan Williams, National Public Radio's Senior Correspondent, is a African-American Emmy Award–winning writer, and radio and television correspondent, who has written for The Washington Post and Quinton Dixie William Morrow
abbr. International Standard Book Number ISBN International Standard Book Number ISBN n abbr (= International Standard Book Number) → ISBN m 0-060-18863-4 Anyone who believes that the black church is a monolith or that black religious leaders began and ended with Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X Malcolm X, 1925–65, militant black leader in the United States, also known as El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz, b. Malcolm Little in Omaha, Neb. He was introduced to the Black Muslims while serving a prison term and became a Muslim minister upon his release in 1952. should read This Far by Faith: Stories From the African-American Religious Experience. This volume, authored by Emmy award-winning journalist Juan Williams and Indiana University Indiana University, main campus at Bloomington; state supported; coeducational; chartered 1820 as a seminary, opened 1824. It became a college in 1828 and a university in 1838. The medical center (run jointly with Purdue Univ. Afro-American Studies Professor Quinton Dixie, combines historical research, contemporary interviews, photographs and commentary to create snapshots of black religious life in America. The first treatise to provide this level of detail, This Far by Faith is an outgrowth of a six-part PBS PBS in full Public Broadcasting Service Private, nonprofit U.S. corporation of public television stations. PBS provides its member stations, which are supported by public funds and private contributions rather than by commercials, with educational, cultural, documentary of the same title that will air nationwide in June 2003, which is produced by the makers of the memorable series Eyes on the Prize Eyes on the Prize is a 14-hour documentary series about the American Civil Rights Movement that aired in two parts. Part one, six hours long, originally aired on PBS in early 1987 as Eyes on the Prize: America's Civil Rights Years (1954-1965). . The book chronicles the development of historically African-American Christian denominations, as well as the African-American experience in predominantly white churches. It also includes a host of religious leaders, some virtual unknowns to mainstream readers, including Henry McNeal Turner Bishop Henry McNeal Turner (1834-1915) was a Bishop of the African Methodist Episcopal Church. Turner was born "free" in Georgia, United States. Instead of being sold into slavery, his family sent him to live with a Quaker family. , Father Divine, James Lawson, Albert B. Cleage and Noble Drew Ali. There is some discussion of Islam, black Jews and other religious minorities. Unfortunately, with the exception of Sojourner Truth, the contributions of women are mere footnotes, perhaps a combination of the authors' oversight and a commentary on the patriarchal perspective that has long plagued black religious life. The strength of these accounts is that they adeptly convey the impact of slavery, the Great Migration of blacks from the South, the Great Depression, the Civil Rights Movement and other social and political movements on black religious thought and practice. Even though today's story is still being told, there is a brief discussion of its current influences on hip hop and mega-ministries. While This Far by Faith tells good stories, readers who wish to use the book for quick reference may find the book's loose organization a bit frustrating. And in some instances, the pictures do not clearly correspond to the text. When African Americans have had nothing else to hold on to, we have had our faith in God. Like Eyes on the Prize, its predecessor, This Far by Faith will go a long way in preserving stories about this significant aspect of our lives. --Kathryn V. Stanley is BIBR's Faith editor living in Atlanta. |
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