Free at Last?: The Gospel in the African-American Experience [Paperback]

Carl F. Ellis Jr. (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0830816879 | ISBN-13: 978-0830816873 | Publication Date: December 20, 1995 | Edition: Print-On-Demand Edition

"Free at last!" It has been more than thirty years since Martin Luther King Jr. shouted those words to a crowd gathered in Washington, D.C. His speech, "I Have a Dream," is now familiar, even famous. But has his dream been realized? In Free at Last? Carl Ellis offers an in-depth assessment of the state of African-American freedom and dignity within American culture today. Updating and expanding his examination (previously published as Beyond Liberation) for a new generation of readers, Ellis stresses how important it is for African-Americans to know who they are and where they have been. So he begins by tracing the growth of Black consciousness from the days of slavery to the present, noting especially the contributions of King and Malcolm X. He also pays particular attention to traces of a "theological soul dynamic," an authentic manifestation of Christianity in Black culture, which runs through American history. It is this dynamic faith, says Ellis, that promises true freedom--the realization of King's dream--for African-Americans today.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Carl F. Ellis (M.A., Westminster Theological Seminary) is president of Project Joseph, a ministry dedicated to equipping the church for today's challenges.

Product Details

• Paperback: 285 pages
• Publisher: IVP Books; Print-On-Demand Edition edition (December 20, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0830816879
• ISBN-13: 978-0830816873
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.7 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #711,041 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Interesting Perspective, November 3, 2007

By 

Robert W. Kellemen "Doc. K." (Crown Point, IN United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Free at Last?: The Gospel in the African-American Experience (Paperback)

Though a little dated (over a decade old), "Free at Last" by Carl Ellis, Jr. provides an interesting and needed perspective on African American Christianity. A major premise contrasts militant secular approaches to black self help with Christian religious approaches to spiritual help. One of the most helpful connections made is between Frederick Douglass' view of Christianity and the needed modern view of Christianity. As a "patron saint" of African American history, Douglass shrewdly distinquished between the Christianity of the Bible/Christ and the hypocritical Christianity of the white slave owners. Ellis makes the astute observation that black secularist have been unable to make this same distinction and that failure led to the secularization of a large segment of reactionary black leaders. Not all may agree with Ellis' comparison, but all should ponder his penetrating insights.

Reviewer: Bob Kellemen, Ph.D., is the author of Beyond the Suffering: Embracing the Legacy of African American Soul Care and Spiritual Direction.

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars BIBLICAL BALANCE BETWEEN ULTRACONSERVATISM AND LIBERALISM, November 27, 1996

By A Customer

This review is from: Free at Last?: The Gospel in the African-American Experience (Paperback)

CARL, A MAN WHO LOVES GOD AND SEEKS TO OBEY HIM, TAKES A HARD LOOK AT THE PRACTICE OF AMERICAN CHRISTIANITY. HE LEVELS NEEDED CRITICISM AND INSTRUCTION. HE MAKES A CLEAR DISTINCTION BETWEEN THE PRACTICE OF CHRISTIANITY AS A RELIGION AND FOLLOWING CHRIST AS A BELIEVER. IF CARL'S PROPHETIC VOICE IS HEEDED, WE WILL HAVE A STRONGER BODY WHICH WILL BRING GLORY TO GOD RATHER THAN CAUSE HIM TO HANG HIS HEAD IN SHAME BECAUSE OF OUR HYPOCRISY AND DIVISION.

5 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Left somewhat bewildered and confused, May 27, 2004

By 

Kevin Hutchison (Pittsburgh, PA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Free at Last?: The Gospel in the African-American Experience (Paperback)

Mr. Ellis retraces the efforts of African Americans to achieve freedom and dignity, in a Christian context. Each of these efforts have lacked something: the key to true deliverance. Unfortunately Mr. Ellis brings us to this realization and leaves us at the threshold of understanding the key to true deliverance.

And here is where we remain. From our reading of the work, we could not grasp what the key was or would be that would open the door and take us across the threshold. It is a complicated issue and in this work we did not find a sense of how it could be corrected, just a deepening sense of division.

As readers, we were left somewhat bewildered and confused by the work as a whole. In any event, he is to be congratulated for his efforts to provide leadership on such a difficult and troubling subject. Few have had the courage to do so.