The Black Church: This Is Our Story, This Is Our Song
The Black Church: This Is Our Story, This Is Our Song
Overview
Description
Editorial Reviews
--Minneapolis Star Tribune
"Engaging. . . . In Gates's telling, the Black church shines bright even as the nation itself moves uncertainly through the gloaming, seeking justice on earth--as it is in heaven."
--Jon Meacham, New York Times Book Review
"Gates's thoughtful, comprehensive survey . . . examines the political as well as the spiritual role of the Black Church, and the way it has both shaped and been shaped by the world outside the walls of individual churches."
--Columbus Dispatch
"Sweeping, vivid. . . . The eminent Harvard historian and connoisseur of American lives [Henry Louis Gates, Jr.] turns his compassionate gaze to the black church, illuminating a pantheon of good shepherds who brought a fierce social conscience to the Lord's work. Sojourner Truth, Martin Luther King, Jr., Jesse Jackson, Barbara Hale, recently-elected Georgia Senator Raphael Warnock: all spring to life as spiritual visionaries and carpenters of the arc of justice." --
Oprah Magazine
"Gates combines reflections on his childhood with centuries of history in his thoughtful examination of the Black church in America. Blending research, interviews with scholars and insights from his own life, Gates illuminates the central role of the Black church in the movement for social justice and the support network it has been for a community often in need of safe spaces. . . . [
The Black Church] is as comprehensive as it is celebratory." --
Time
"Fascinating . . . Meticulously researched,
The Black Church spans more than 400 years of Black ecclesiastical history in the United States States--beginning with Catholic enslaved people brought by the Spaniards and continuing all the way to John Legend's take on the essential role the church played in his early life."
--Shelf Awareness
"Readers of American religious and African American history will not want to miss this title."
--Library Journal
"[An] invaluable illumination of the many ways the Black church has been an ongoing epicenter of inspiration and action."
--Booklist (starred)
"Through meticulous research and interviews . . . Gates paints a compelling portrait of the church as a source of 'unfathomable resiliency' for Black ancestors as well as the birthplace of so many distinctly African American aesthetic forms. . . . Powerful, poignant, and ultimately celebratory. Let the church say, 'Amen!'"
--Kirkus (starred review)
"A brisk and insightful look at how the Black church has succored generations of African Americans against white supremacy. . . . Punctuated by trenchant observations from Black historians and theologians, Gates's crisp account places religious life at the center of the African American experience."
--Publishers Weekly
"Henry Louis Gates, Jr., has once again delved deep into the doings and sufferings of Black people in the USA! This time he gives us a rich story and riveting song of the profound forms of spirituality and musicality that sustained Black sanity and dignity. Although Gates rightly highlights the centrality of the ambiguous legacy of the Black Church, he also explores the crucial realities of Islam and other non-Christian religious practices. And the last powerful and playful chapter on his personal dance with an elusive Holy Ghost lays bare his own signifying genius grounded in a genuine love of Black people and culture!"
--Cornel West
"Absolutely brilliant--a book that should spark a very rich conversation within the field and echo far beyond it. Its reckoning with the Holy Ghost in the context of Gates's own childhood is extraordinary. More than a wonderful synthesis of a deep literature about Black Christendom, it is a necessary reminder of where the Black community has found its strength to persevere, and to fight, and where it must find it still. Not least, Gates shows us that sacred music has never just been music; it is a taproot and a through-line across all of American history. A necessary and moving work."
--Eddie S. Glaude, Jr., author of Begin Again
"A brilliant book: while I've spent some years studying this topic, I was enriched by how much new still is to be learned. Gates's insights into the role of the Holy Ghost in the Black Church are particularly revelatory. This is a rich and absorbing survey of the people, ideas, institutions, and expressions that have formed Black American history, and indelibly imprinted all of American history. You'll learn a lot about the past, and understand more about the present. Absolutely marvelous."
--Paul Harvey, Professor of History, University of Colorado, Colorado Springs, author of Through the Storm, Through the Night: A History of African American Christianity
"A path-breaking book: Henry Louis Gates approaches the Black Church as a subversive cultural system, opening up a vital cross-disciplinary conversation about the true import of this pillar of the African American community, so central to our history, our identity, and our movements for social justice. As engaging as a compelling novel yet brimming with important contemporary scholarship,
The Black Church sheds brilliant new light on the problem of religion and race in America, and the critical role of Black Christians in achieving equity, justice, and the 'healing of the nation.'"
--Cheryl Townsend Gilkes, Assistant Pastor, Union Baptist Church; John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Professor, African American Studies and Sociology, Colby College "If you want to understand the long arc of black struggle, hope and resilience, read Gates'
The Black Church. It is a concise and compelling history of the significance of black churches in American society."
--Marla Frederick, PhD, Asa Griggs Candler Professor of Religion and Culture, Emory University, Candler School of Theology
About the Author
Finding Your Roots. His six-part PBS documentary,
The African Americans: Many Rivers to Cross, earned an Emmy Award, a Peabody Award, and an NAACP Image Award. This series and his most recent PBS documentary series,
Reconstruction: America after the Civil War, were both honored with the Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Award.
Condition Guidelines
Books - New and Used
The following guidelines apply to books:
- New: A brand-new copy with cover and original protective wrapping intact. Books with markings of any kind on the cover or pages, books marked as "Bargain" or "Remainder," or with any other labels attached, may not be listed as New condition.
- Used - Good: All pages and cover are intact (including the dust cover, if applicable). Spine may show signs of wear. Pages may include limited notes and highlighting. May include "From the library of" labels. Shrink wrap, dust covers, or boxed set case may be missing. Item may be missing bundled media.
- Used - Acceptable: All pages and the cover are intact, but shrink wrap, dust covers, or boxed set case may be missing. Pages may include limited notes, highlighting, or minor water damage but the text is readable. Item may but the dust cover may be missing. Pages may include limited notes and highlighting, but the text cannot be obscured or unreadable.
Note: Some electronic material access codes are valid only for one user. For this reason, used books, including books listed in the Used – Like New condition, may not come with functional electronic material access codes.
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- Stevens Books offers FREE SHIPPING everywhere in the United States for ALL non-book orders, and $3.99 for each book.
- Packages are shipped from Monday to Friday.
- No additional fees and charges.
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The usual time for processing an order is 24 hours (1 business day), but may vary depending on the availability of products ordered. This period excludes delivery times, which depend on your geographic location.
Estimated delivery times:
- Standard Shipping: 5-8 business days
- Expedited Shipping: 3-5 business days
Shipping method varies depending on what is being shipped.
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All orders are shipped with a tracking number. Once your order has left our warehouse, a confirmation e-mail with a tracking number will be sent to you. You will be able to track your package at all times.
Damaged Parcel
If your package has been delivered in a PO Box, please note that we are not responsible for any damage that may result (consequences of extreme temperatures, theft, etc.).
If you have any questions regarding shipping or want to know about the status of an order, please contact us or email to support@stevensbooks.com.
Returns & Refunds
You may return most items within 30 days of delivery for a full refund.
To be eligible for a return, your item must be unused and in the same condition that you received it. It must also be in the original packaging.
Several types of goods are exempt from being returned. Perishable goods such as food, flowers, newspapers or magazines cannot be returned. We also do not accept products that are intimate or sanitary goods, hazardous materials, or flammable liquids or gases.
Additional non-returnable items:
- Gift cards
- Downloadable software products
- Some health and personal care items
To complete your return, we require a tracking number, which shows the items which you already returned to us.
There are certain situations where only partial refunds are granted (if applicable)
- Book with obvious signs of use
- CD, DVD, VHS tape, software, video game, cassette tape, or vinyl record that has been opened
- Any item not in its original condition, is damaged or missing parts for reasons not due to our error
- Any item that is returned more than 30 days after delivery
Items returned to us as a result of our error will receive a full refund,some returns may be subject to a restocking fee of 7% of the total item price, please contact a customer care team member to see if your return is subject. Returns that arrived on time and were as described are subject to a restocking fee.
Items returned to us that were not the result of our error, including items returned to us due to an invalid or incomplete address, will be refunded the original item price less our standard restocking fees.
If the item is returned to us for any of the following reasons, a 15% restocking fee will be applied to your refund total and you will be asked to pay for return shipping:
- Item(s) no longer needed or wanted.
- Item(s) returned to us due to an invalid or incomplete address.
- Item(s) returned to us that were not a result of our error.
You should expect to receive your refund within four weeks of giving your package to the return shipper, however, in many cases you will receive a refund more quickly. This time period includes the transit time for us to receive your return from the shipper (5 to 10 business days), the time it takes us to process your return once we receive it (3 to 5 business days), and the time it takes your bank to process our refund request (5 to 10 business days).
If you need to return an item, please Contact Us with your order number and details about the product you would like to return. We will respond quickly with instructions for how to return items from your order.
Shipping Cost
We'll pay the return shipping costs if the return is a result of our error (you received an incorrect or defective item, etc.). In other cases, you will be responsible for paying for your own shipping costs for returning your item. Shipping costs are non-refundable. If you receive a refund, the cost of return shipping will be deducted from your refund.
Depending on where you live, the time it may take for your exchanged product to reach you, may vary.
If you are shipping an item over $75, you should consider using a trackable shipping service or purchasing shipping insurance. We don’t guarantee that we will receive your returned item.
Overview
Description
Editorial Reviews
--Minneapolis Star Tribune
"Engaging. . . . In Gates's telling, the Black church shines bright even as the nation itself moves uncertainly through the gloaming, seeking justice on earth--as it is in heaven."
--Jon Meacham, New York Times Book Review
"Gates's thoughtful, comprehensive survey . . . examines the political as well as the spiritual role of the Black Church, and the way it has both shaped and been shaped by the world outside the walls of individual churches."
--Columbus Dispatch
"Sweeping, vivid. . . . The eminent Harvard historian and connoisseur of American lives [Henry Louis Gates, Jr.] turns his compassionate gaze to the black church, illuminating a pantheon of good shepherds who brought a fierce social conscience to the Lord's work. Sojourner Truth, Martin Luther King, Jr., Jesse Jackson, Barbara Hale, recently-elected Georgia Senator Raphael Warnock: all spring to life as spiritual visionaries and carpenters of the arc of justice." --
Oprah Magazine
"Gates combines reflections on his childhood with centuries of history in his thoughtful examination of the Black church in America. Blending research, interviews with scholars and insights from his own life, Gates illuminates the central role of the Black church in the movement for social justice and the support network it has been for a community often in need of safe spaces. . . . [
The Black Church] is as comprehensive as it is celebratory." --
Time
"Fascinating . . . Meticulously researched,
The Black Church spans more than 400 years of Black ecclesiastical history in the United States States--beginning with Catholic enslaved people brought by the Spaniards and continuing all the way to John Legend's take on the essential role the church played in his early life."
--Shelf Awareness
"Readers of American religious and African American history will not want to miss this title."
--Library Journal
"[An] invaluable illumination of the many ways the Black church has been an ongoing epicenter of inspiration and action."
--Booklist (starred)
"Through meticulous research and interviews . . . Gates paints a compelling portrait of the church as a source of 'unfathomable resiliency' for Black ancestors as well as the birthplace of so many distinctly African American aesthetic forms. . . . Powerful, poignant, and ultimately celebratory. Let the church say, 'Amen!'"
--Kirkus (starred review)
"A brisk and insightful look at how the Black church has succored generations of African Americans against white supremacy. . . . Punctuated by trenchant observations from Black historians and theologians, Gates's crisp account places religious life at the center of the African American experience."
--Publishers Weekly
"Henry Louis Gates, Jr., has once again delved deep into the doings and sufferings of Black people in the USA! This time he gives us a rich story and riveting song of the profound forms of spirituality and musicality that sustained Black sanity and dignity. Although Gates rightly highlights the centrality of the ambiguous legacy of the Black Church, he also explores the crucial realities of Islam and other non-Christian religious practices. And the last powerful and playful chapter on his personal dance with an elusive Holy Ghost lays bare his own signifying genius grounded in a genuine love of Black people and culture!"
--Cornel West
"Absolutely brilliant--a book that should spark a very rich conversation within the field and echo far beyond it. Its reckoning with the Holy Ghost in the context of Gates's own childhood is extraordinary. More than a wonderful synthesis of a deep literature about Black Christendom, it is a necessary reminder of where the Black community has found its strength to persevere, and to fight, and where it must find it still. Not least, Gates shows us that sacred music has never just been music; it is a taproot and a through-line across all of American history. A necessary and moving work."
--Eddie S. Glaude, Jr., author of Begin Again
"A brilliant book: while I've spent some years studying this topic, I was enriched by how much new still is to be learned. Gates's insights into the role of the Holy Ghost in the Black Church are particularly revelatory. This is a rich and absorbing survey of the people, ideas, institutions, and expressions that have formed Black American history, and indelibly imprinted all of American history. You'll learn a lot about the past, and understand more about the present. Absolutely marvelous."
--Paul Harvey, Professor of History, University of Colorado, Colorado Springs, author of Through the Storm, Through the Night: A History of African American Christianity
"A path-breaking book: Henry Louis Gates approaches the Black Church as a subversive cultural system, opening up a vital cross-disciplinary conversation about the true import of this pillar of the African American community, so central to our history, our identity, and our movements for social justice. As engaging as a compelling novel yet brimming with important contemporary scholarship,
The Black Church sheds brilliant new light on the problem of religion and race in America, and the critical role of Black Christians in achieving equity, justice, and the 'healing of the nation.'"
--Cheryl Townsend Gilkes, Assistant Pastor, Union Baptist Church; John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Professor, African American Studies and Sociology, Colby College "If you want to understand the long arc of black struggle, hope and resilience, read Gates'
The Black Church. It is a concise and compelling history of the significance of black churches in American society."
--Marla Frederick, PhD, Asa Griggs Candler Professor of Religion and Culture, Emory University, Candler School of Theology
About the Author
Finding Your Roots. His six-part PBS documentary,
The African Americans: Many Rivers to Cross, earned an Emmy Award, a Peabody Award, and an NAACP Image Award. This series and his most recent PBS documentary series,
Reconstruction: America after the Civil War, were both honored with the Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Award.
Condition Guidelines
Books - New and Used
The following guidelines apply to books:
- New: A brand-new copy with cover and original protective wrapping intact. Books with markings of any kind on the cover or pages, books marked as "Bargain" or "Remainder," or with any other labels attached, may not be listed as New condition.
- Used - Good: All pages and cover are intact (including the dust cover, if applicable). Spine may show signs of wear. Pages may include limited notes and highlighting. May include "From the library of" labels. Shrink wrap, dust covers, or boxed set case may be missing. Item may be missing bundled media.
- Used - Acceptable: All pages and the cover are intact, but shrink wrap, dust covers, or boxed set case may be missing. Pages may include limited notes, highlighting, or minor water damage but the text is readable. Item may but the dust cover may be missing. Pages may include limited notes and highlighting, but the text cannot be obscured or unreadable.
Note: Some electronic material access codes are valid only for one user. For this reason, used books, including books listed in the Used – Like New condition, may not come with functional electronic material access codes.
Shipping & Delivery
Shipping Fees
- Stevens Books offers FREE SHIPPING everywhere in the United States for ALL non-book orders, and $3.99 for each book.
- Packages are shipped from Monday to Friday.
- No additional fees and charges.
Delivery Times
The usual time for processing an order is 24 hours (1 business day), but may vary depending on the availability of products ordered. This period excludes delivery times, which depend on your geographic location.
Estimated delivery times:
- Standard Shipping: 5-8 business days
- Expedited Shipping: 3-5 business days
Shipping method varies depending on what is being shipped.
Tracking
All orders are shipped with a tracking number. Once your order has left our warehouse, a confirmation e-mail with a tracking number will be sent to you. You will be able to track your package at all times.
Damaged Parcel
If your package has been delivered in a PO Box, please note that we are not responsible for any damage that may result (consequences of extreme temperatures, theft, etc.).
If you have any questions regarding shipping or want to know about the status of an order, please contact us or email to support@stevensbooks.com.
Returns & Refunds
You may return most items within 30 days of delivery for a full refund.
To be eligible for a return, your item must be unused and in the same condition that you received it. It must also be in the original packaging.
Several types of goods are exempt from being returned. Perishable goods such as food, flowers, newspapers or magazines cannot be returned. We also do not accept products that are intimate or sanitary goods, hazardous materials, or flammable liquids or gases.
Additional non-returnable items:
- Gift cards
- Downloadable software products
- Some health and personal care items
To complete your return, we require a tracking number, which shows the items which you already returned to us.
There are certain situations where only partial refunds are granted (if applicable)
- Book with obvious signs of use
- CD, DVD, VHS tape, software, video game, cassette tape, or vinyl record that has been opened
- Any item not in its original condition, is damaged or missing parts for reasons not due to our error
- Any item that is returned more than 30 days after delivery
Items returned to us as a result of our error will receive a full refund,some returns may be subject to a restocking fee of 7% of the total item price, please contact a customer care team member to see if your return is subject. Returns that arrived on time and were as described are subject to a restocking fee.
Items returned to us that were not the result of our error, including items returned to us due to an invalid or incomplete address, will be refunded the original item price less our standard restocking fees.
If the item is returned to us for any of the following reasons, a 15% restocking fee will be applied to your refund total and you will be asked to pay for return shipping:
- Item(s) no longer needed or wanted.
- Item(s) returned to us due to an invalid or incomplete address.
- Item(s) returned to us that were not a result of our error.
You should expect to receive your refund within four weeks of giving your package to the return shipper, however, in many cases you will receive a refund more quickly. This time period includes the transit time for us to receive your return from the shipper (5 to 10 business days), the time it takes us to process your return once we receive it (3 to 5 business days), and the time it takes your bank to process our refund request (5 to 10 business days).
If you need to return an item, please Contact Us with your order number and details about the product you would like to return. We will respond quickly with instructions for how to return items from your order.
Shipping Cost
We'll pay the return shipping costs if the return is a result of our error (you received an incorrect or defective item, etc.). In other cases, you will be responsible for paying for your own shipping costs for returning your item. Shipping costs are non-refundable. If you receive a refund, the cost of return shipping will be deducted from your refund.
Depending on where you live, the time it may take for your exchanged product to reach you, may vary.
If you are shipping an item over $75, you should consider using a trackable shipping service or purchasing shipping insurance. We don’t guarantee that we will receive your returned item.
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