Mighty Like a River: The Black Church and Social Reform (Hardcover)

~ Andrew Billingsley (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Billingsley (sociology/African American studies, Univ. of South Carolina) has written a short book on a mighty theme: the black church as a major influencing factor in the black community for promoting the general good and a driving force for equality and righteousness. It is amazing how much ground he covers. Part historical document, part sociological study, part journalistic reporting with numerous case studies, his book transcends time and place to present a narrative that is both compelling and fascinating. Billingsley begins with the many antebellum black churches and their periodic battles against the overwhelmingly powerful advocates of slavery, then carries this story to the modern-day black church and its nearly constant battles to secure political and economic rights for the black community. He then effortlessly ties together the tasks of both churches, showing how they are actually the same. The book reaches another level at the end as it calls for continued and relentless black church activism to tackle the enduring problems of modern American society. Recommended for all libraries.AGlenn Masuchika, Chaminade Univ. Lib., Honolulu
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Billingsley draws on C. Eric Lincoln's dialectical model of the black church, especially its historic combination of communal and personal orientations, to organize his study. In the book's first part, Billingsley examines two black churches with antebellum roots, one in Savannah, Georgia, and the other in Richmond, Virginia. This most obviously sociohistorical section of the book traces the role of specific churches as ongoing communities of support and resistance to oppression, in which private salvation and communal practice have seldom been mutually exclusive. The second part explores specific congregations in other regions and examines global denominational differences. Billingsley describes three types of black churches: conservative, moderate, and activist. He is an engaged scholar who sees the black church in the future, as in the past, actively participating in the sociopolitical life of its community. The black church has been the cradle and the bedrock of some of the most important U.S. progressive movements, and Billingsley's accessible study provides scholarly support for the hope that it will continue to play that role. Steven Schroeder

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA; 1st edition (June 24, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0195106172
• ISBN-13: 978-0195106176
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.2 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,369,601 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fine scholarship, November 17, 2000

By A Customer

This certainly rates more than the single star given by another reviewer. Billingsley's book is a fine work of scholarship!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A good outline of Black church history, December 14, 2004

By	M. Wilson "mzike" (Alexandria, VA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Mighty Like a River: The Black Church and Social Reform (Paperback)

This is a good foundation. Since the first slave ship arrived to the USA, we have been active in our liberation. As to the previous reviewer "a reader". It always amazes me how muslims can put down Christianity when they do NOTHING in our communities but talk tough. Please read YOUR history and learn that when the europeans came to power they used the slave routes of muslims who were the first to enslave continental africans(which still goes on! BTW, the koran is an edited book that has been rewritten several times. At least read your own history before speaking on others. PEACE

0 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars I am Actually a muslim and I want to give my opinion, August 27, 1999

By A Customer

I would like to say something about christianity. For centuries white christians have surpressed and enslaved other races or religions.Why would I want to convert myself to a religion that didn't even have laws that inspired people from all races and beliefs to live in harmony and friendship.One advice.Read de koran:You won't be disappointed About the book then.Does the author even now that the Bible during the roman occupation was forged(just like the juish book the thora)