There is a Balm in Gilead [Paperback]

Lewis V. Lewis (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Lewis (religion, Vanderbilt Univ.) has written a competent, if uncritical and derivative study of the origins of King's philosophy and civil rights activism. He focuses on three major influences: sense of place (the South), idea of community, and Christian optimism. To Lewis, King was far more deeply affected by the Southern black church than by any higher theological studies in the North. Lewis sees his work as a corrective to studies which overemphasize formal theology and underplay culture. In fact, works on King by scholars like David Garrow ( Bearing the Cross: Martin Luther King Jr. & the Southern Leadership Conference, 1955- 1968 , Morrow, 1986), Stephen Oates ( Let the Trumpet Sound: The Life of Martin Luther King Jr. , LJ 7/82), and Taylor Branch ( Parting the Waters: America in the King Years, 1954-63 , LJ 1/89) have emphasized the importance of Southern black religion in King's life and career, presenting a balanced view of King's roots. Lewis gives us a useful summary rather than a major contribution. Recommended primarily for large university and public libraries.
- Anthony O. Edmonds, Ball State Univ., Muncie, Ind.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Paperback: 364 pages
• Publisher: Fortress Press (January 5, 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0800624572
• ISBN-13: 978-0800624576
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,064,820 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Lewis V. Baldwin is professor of religious studies at Vanderbilt University and an ordained Baptist minister. An expert on black-church traditions, he is author of The Voice of Conscience: The Church in the Mind of Martin Luther King, Jr.; There Is a Balm in Gilead: The Cultural Roots of Martin Luther King, Jr.; and Never to Leave Us Alone: The Prayer Life of Martin Luther King, Jr.