The Talking Book: African Americans and the BibleA striking narrative of the Bible’s central role in African-American history from the early days of slavery to the present The Talking Book casts the Bible as the central character in a vivid portrait of black America, tracing the origins of African-American culture from slavery’s secluded forest prayer meetings to the bright lights and bold style of today’s hip-hop artists. The Bible has profoundly influenced African Americans throughout history. From a variety of perspectives this wide-ranging book is the first to explore the Bible’s role in the triumph of the black experience. Using the Bible as a foundation, African Americans shared religious beliefs, created their own music, and shaped the ultimate key to their freedom—literacy. Allen Callahan highlights the intersection of biblical images with African-American music, politics, religion, art, and literature. The author tells a moving story of a biblically informed African-American culture, identifying four major biblical images—Exile, Exodus, Ethiopia, and Emmanuel. He brings these themes to life in a unique African-American history that grows from the harsh experience of slavery into a rich culture that endures as one of the most important forces of twenty-first-century America. |
From inside the book
Results 1-5 of 86
... Christianity, and those who did often gained little more than a vague assurance of blessedness in the afterlife. The ... Christ's death on the cross; they claimed for themselves and their hear- ers dramatic, direct access to God's grace ...
... Christ as their only Saviour; and are Christians indeed.” Davies's testi- mony is echoed in the recollections of other Evangelical preachers as well.6 Evangelical Christianity was and remains a formidable force in African- American ...
... Christianity . " And though Baptists and Methodists would later be divided over abolition , the aggressive proselytizing ... Christian conscience , that slavery was beyond the jurisdiction of any religious society , and that the proper ...
... Christians were fitfully consolidating their own leadership. This florescence of autonomy was accompanied by a res- tive, sometimes insurgent reinterpretation of Evangelical Christianity and with it Evangelical Christianity's Book ...
... Christian slave revolts of the first third of the nineteenth century the incendiary potential of uncensored religious instruction in the slave quarters , and slave owners became even more determined to prevent the spread of literacy ...
Contents
1 | |
21 | |
41 | |
49 | |
5 Exodus | 83 |
6 Ethiopia | 138 |
7 Emmanuel | 185 |
Postscript | 240 |
Notes | 247 |
Subject Index | 275 |
Scripture Index | 284 |