Jackie Robinson: a spiritual biography: the faith of a boundary-breaking hero

226 Pages·2017·4.936 MB·English

by  Long, Michael G.;Robinson, Jackie

“We know Jackie Robinson for his athletic prowess and his courageous breaking of the
color barrier in baseball. Little did we know how deep was the bedrock conviction that
the presence of God in his life was strong enough to see him through the darkest nights J
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or the fi ercest storm. How this faith was etched into his spirit and how it helped him c
overcome unbelievable odds is told chapter after chapter in such a riveting manner that k
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the reader becomes more sensitive to his or her own spirituality. This book could become e

a textbook for how our nation can break down the remaining barriers that still divide us.” R
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—JAMES A. FORBES JR., President and Founder of the Healing of the Nations b
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Foundation and Senior Minister Emeritus of the Riverside Church in New York City n
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“A masterly exploration of the neglected religious side of Jackie Robinson. Required read- n

ing about a man who Martin Luther King Jr. lauded as ‘a sit-inner before the sit-ins, a ★
freedom rider before the freedom rides.’”
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—LEE LOWENFISH, author of the award-winning biography
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Branch Rickey: Baseball’s Ferocious Gentleman p
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r
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“Michael G. Long and Chris Lamb provide an illuminating retelling of the Jackie Robinson t
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story with a keen eye to faith dimensions that are often overlooked or de-emphasized in a
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the telling we usually hear. Readers are sure to draw inspiration and encouragement from
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this book, as well as new insight on how the way of Jesus played out so powerfully in i
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Robinson’s work for civil rights and a just society—and could do so in our society today g
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if given the chance.” a
p Jackie Robinson
—TOM KRATTENMAKER, author of Onward Christian Athletes and h
Confessions of a Secular Jesus Follower y

Jackie Robinson believed in a God who sides with the oppressed and who calls us to see
one another as sisters and brothers. This faith was a powerful but quiet engine that drove
and sustained him as he shattered racial barriers on and beyond the baseball diamond.
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Jackie Robinson: A Spiritual Biography explores the faith that, Robinson said, carried O
him through the torment and abuse he suffered for integrating the major leagues and N A Spiritual Biography
drove him to get involved in the civil rights movement. Marked by sacrifi ce and service, G ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
inclusiveness and hope, Robinson’s faith shaped not only his character but also baseball A
and America itself. N THE FAITH OF A BOUNDARY-BREAKING HERO
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MICHAEL G. LONG is Associate Professor of Religious Studies and Peace and Con-
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fl ict Studies at Elizabethtown College and is the author or editor of several books on
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civil rights, religion and politics, and peacemaking in mid-century America, including First
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Class Citizenship: The Civil Rights Letters of Jackie Robinson, which was named a best
book of the year by Publishers Weekly.
CHRIS LAMB is Professor of Journalism at Indiana University–Purdue University at
Indianapolis and is the author or editor of several books, including Blackout: The Untold
Story of Jackie Robinson’s First Spring Training and Conspiracy of Silence: Sportswrit-
ers and the Long Campaign to Desegregate Baseball, which was called one of the best
nonfi ction baseball books of all time by the Huffi ngton Post and was named the Best
Book on Journalism and Mass Communication History by the Association for Education
in Journalism and Mass Communication in 2013.
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ISBN-13: 978-0-664-26203-7
MICHAEL G. LONG CHRIS LAMB
AND
www.wjkbooks.com
Jackie Robinson
A Spiritual Biography

Jackie Robinson
A Spiritual Biography
The Faith of a Boundary-Breaking Hero
M G. l c l
ichael onG and hris aMb
© 2017 Michael G. Long and Chris Lamb
First edition
Published by Westminster John Knox Press
Louisville, Kentucky
17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26—10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any
means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage
or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. For information, address
Westminster John Knox Press, 100 Witherspoon Street, Louisville, Kentucky 40202-1396.
Or contact us online at www.wjkbooks.com.
Excerpts from various documents located in the Jackie Robinson Papers at the Library of Congress
are used by permission of Rachel Robinson. All rights reserved. Excerpts from interviews with
Lee Lowenfish are used by permission. All rights reserved.
Every effort has been made to determine whether texts are under copyright. If through an oversight
any copyrighted material has been used without permission, and the publisher is notified of this,
acknowledgment will be made in future printings.
Book design by Drew Stevens
Cover design by Marc Whitaker / MTWdesign.net
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Long, Michael G., author.
Title: Jackie Robinson : a spiritual biography : the faith of a
boundary-breaking hero / Michael G. Long and Chris Lamb.
Description: Louisville, KY : Westminster John Knox Press, 2017. |
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2016052017 (print) | LCCN 2016056614 (ebook) | ISBN
9780664262037 (pbk. : alk. paper) | ISBN 9781611648010 (ebk.)
Subjects: LCSH: Robinson, Jackie, 1919-1972. | Robinson, Jackie,
1919-1972--Religion. | African American baseball players--Biography. |
Discrimination in sports--United States--History--20th century. |
United States--Race relations--History--20th century.
Classification: LCC GV865.R6 L66 2017 (print) | LCC GV865.R6 (ebook) |
DDC 796.357092 [B] --dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2016052017
printed in the united states of aMerica
The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of the American National
Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials,
ANSI Z39.48-1992.
Westminster John Knox Press advocates the responsible use of our natural resources. The text paper
of this book is made from 30% post-consumer waste.
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For Bob, Karin, and Sharon,
who guided me through the night.
—MGL
For Jean Lamb (1925–2016),
whose faith inspired me to write this book.
—CL
The Good Lord has showered blessings on me and this country
and its people, black and white, have been good to me.
But no matter how rich or famous I might become,
no matter what luxuries or special privileges I might achieve,
no matter how many powerful friends I might make,
I would never be the man I want to be until my humblest brother, black
and white, becomes the man he wants to be.
So I must be involved in our fight for freedom.
—Jackie robinson
Contents
Acknowledgments ix
Introduction
“ God Is with Us in This, Jackie”: The Meeting
of the Methodists 1
Part One: The Exodus
1. “I Put My Trust in God and Moved”: The Active Faith
of Mallie Robinson 13
2. “To Seek to Help Others”: The Spiritual Influence
of Karl Downs 27
3. “You Are a Child of God”: Refusing the Back of the Bus 39
Part Two: A Boundary-Breaking Faith
4. “I Have Kept My Promise”: Branch Rickey
and the Push for Integration 51
5. “God Has Been Good to Us Today”:
Integrating the Minors 69
6. “I Get Down on My Knees and Pray”:
Integrating Major League Baseball 87
Part Three: Fighting for Freedom
7. “Hoeing with God”: An Impatient Faith 107
8. “Do You Know What God Did?”:
For King, against Malcolm 127
9. “The Good Lord Has Showered Blessings on Me and
This Country”: From Freedom National Bank to Vietnam 141
10. “I Guess the Good Lord Has a Job for Me”: Heading Home 161
Notes 179
Index 199
Excerpt from Peaceful Neighbor, by Michael G. Long 207

Acknowledgments
We are deeply grateful to the following individuals and institutions:
Rachel Robinson, who kindly met with Michael to talk about her hus-
band’s faith; Lee Lowenfish, author of Branch Rickey: Baseball’s Fero-
cious Gentleman, for his valuable comments on the manuscript; the staff
at the Manuscripts Division of the Library of Congress; the National
Baseball Hall of Fame; the Special Collections Department staff at
Ohio University Western Libraries; Tim Tanton, executive director of
global voices, news, and information at United Methodist Communi-
cations; the microfilm staff at Pattee and Paterno Library of the Penn-
sylvania State University; Sylvia Morra and the staff of High Library
at Elizabethtown College; Dean Fletcher McClellan of Elizabethtown
College; Tom Davis, dean of the School of Liberal Arts, and Jonas
Bjork, chair of the Department of Journalism and Public Relations
at Indiana University–Purdue University, Indianapolis; Sharon Herr;
Karin, Jackson, and Nate Long; Lesly and David Lamb; and the won-
derful staff at Westminster John Knox Press, especially Jessica Miller
Kelley and Julie Tonini.
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