Fast Facts:

Books: The Souls of Black Folk by W.E.B. DuBois; The Christian Imagination: Theology and the Origins of Race by Willie James Jennings; Redeeming Mulatto: A Theology of Race and Christian Hybridity by Brian Bantum

Genre: Race relations, history of race, Christian theology and ethics, black history, sociology

Worth the read?: Yes, with the caveat that the content is heavy and sometimes deeply theological

Books 39-41: Race and Christian theology

I didn’t mean to take so long to write the rest of my 2018 book reviews. I never imagined the last 15+ book posts would spill into 2019, but alas, here I am, nearly two weeks into the new year and just now sharing about books I finished reading four months ago. Yikes.

I clumped these three reads into one post because I read them for the same purpose—my senior honors research project, where I explored black/white race relations in the U.S. from historical, sociological and ethical perspectives. I completed my paper, which was more than 35 pages long, about five weeks ago and presented my research in an open session the last week of classes in December. The dean of my school even came to my presentation, which was both exciting and terrifying. In the end, I was able to breathe a huge sigh of relief and close the book on that particular part of college. And then, less than a week later, I closed the entire book on college and became a graduate!

Now toting along a bachelor’s degree in Bible and religion (with a minor in journalism), I am qualified to tell you that these books are engaging, albeit exhausting, reads.

“The Souls of Black Folk”

DuBois’ classic work, The Souls of Black Folk, is by far the most recommendable read, as it is comprised of historical and sociological essays that could probably appeal to an audience as young as high school. It was also the most foundational piece of my research, from which I borrowed my guiding question, “How does it feel to be a problem?” DuBois was a gifted writer and communicated his message with clarity and nuance. His writing shook me to my core and illuminated historical realities in America that are still present today. This is an important book for all Americans. I wish I had read it sooner.

“The Christian Imagination”

By comparison, The Christian Imagination by Willie Jennings is not an easy read. If I had read this book within a classroom setting, guided by discussion and a professor, I probably would have gleaned more from its pages. I read it as part of my independent study, so I did discuss it with my professor afterward, but by then most of the parts I hadn’t grasped fully had escaped my brain, never to recovered again. This is neither a light read nor a book I would recommend to someone just beginning to wonder about the origins of race, but it is a valuable theological text that helped form my research in a significant way (even though most of the book ended up falling outside the scope of my paper).

“Redeeming mulatto”

Bantum’s book, Redeeming Mulatto, falls somewhere between DuBois and Jennings’ books on the difficulty scale. I think the average person looking to increase their awareness of race in America could probably read this book without much issue. Some of the theological language is a bit weighty, but it is nothing in comparison to Jennings. I still don’t think I’d recommend someone start with this book, but it could easily be worked up to.

Final thoughts

I am so thankful for the research I was able to do to conclude my undergraduate career, and these books were vital to the process. They taught me a lot about myself, my biases, and the life experiences of nonwhite Americans. They serve not as a final resting place for me, but a jumping-off.

May you, too, find a jumping-off point this year in the pursuit of deeper understanding!

Nikki