Uplifting the People: Three Centuries of Black Baptists in Alabama (Religion & American Culture) PDF
Preview Uplifting the People: Three Centuries of Black Baptists in Alabama (Religion & American Culture)
Uplifting the People religion and american culture Series Editors David Edwin Harrell Jr. Wayne Flynt Edith L. Blumhofer Uplifting the People Three Centuries of Black Baptists in Alabama Wilson Fallin Jr. The University of Alabama Press ■ Tuscaloosa Copyright © 2007 The University of Alabama Press Tuscaloosa, Alabama 35487-0380 All rights reserved Manufactured in the United States of America Typeface: Minion ∞ The paper on which this book is printed meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information Sciences-Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI Z39.48-1984. Library of Congress Cataloging- in- Publication Data Fallin, Wilson, 1942– Uplifting the people : three centuries of Black Baptists in Alabama / Wilson Fallin, Jr. p. cm. — (Religion and American culture) Includes bibliographical references (p. ) and index. ISBN-13: 978-0-8173-1569-6 (cloth : alk. paper) ISBN-10: 0-8173-1569-1 1. African American Baptists— Alabama— History. 2. Alabama State Missionary Baptist Convention— History. I. Title. BX6444.A6F35 2007 286′.176108996073—dc22 2006038420 Contents List of Illustrations vii Preface ix Part 1 / Slavery and Reconstruction, 1701–1874 1. Slaves, Afro-Baptist Faith, and Black Preachers 3 2. God’s Gift of Freedom 29 Part 2 / Post-Reconstruction, 1874–1900 3. Church Life, Expansion, and Denominational Concerns 57 4. Education, Black Nationalism, and Sociopolitical Concerns 79 5. Theology and Leadership 97 Part 3 / The Progressive Era, 1900–1917 6. Protest, Growth, and Revivalism 117 7. Urbanization and Economic Self-Help 137 Part 4 / Before and after World War II, 1917–1954 8. Between the Wars 165 9. Rising Militancy 193 Part 5 / The Civil Rights Movement and Beyond, 1954–2000 10. Protest and Reorganization 221 11. Continuity, Preservation, and Challenge 246 Conclusion: Serving the Needs of the People 263 Notes 265 Bibliographical Essay 275 Bibliography 287 Index 301 Illustrations 1. C. O. Boothe 157 2. Rev. L. S. Steinback 157 3. St. Louis Street Baptist Church in Mobile, Alabama 158 4. Stone Hall, Selma University 158 5. Dr. William R. Pettiford 159 6. Mrs. Dinah Smith Jordan 159 7. Mrs. Rebecca Pitts 160 8. Faculty of Birmingham-Easonian Baptist Bible College 160 9. Mrs. Ethel Fallin and Mrs. A. M. Wilson 161 10. Alabama Women’s State Convention 161 Preface H istorians and other scholars of the African American experience agree that the church has played a vital role in African American life in the United States. Primarily a religious institution, it became much more because of restrictions imposed on African Americans. The African American church served many purposes: refuge in a hostile world; promoter of business; sponsor of education; and dispenser of benevolence. The church was also the major pre- server of African American culture. In the 1950s and 1960s the African American church and its pastors led the civil rights movement that overturned legal segre- gation in the United States. The African American church experience has been documented in various forms. Several general studies provide an overall view of the black religious ex- perience. Monographs on particular areas of black church life such as music, slavery, and culture have enriched our knowledge as well. Biographical stud- ies on important fi gures such as Henry McNeal Turner, James W. C. Penning- ton, and Martin Luther King Jr. supplement other works. In recent times, histo- rians have completed studies on the black church in local communities. In 1997 Garland Press published my book A Shelter in the Storm: The African American Church in Birmingham, Alabama, which documented the story of the African American Church in Birmingham from 1815 to 1963. One of the most prominent and frequent ways that black churchmen have sought to document their history has been through denominational studies. This is not surprising since denominations have been a vital part of black reli- gious life since blacks separated from white churches following the Civil War. Immediately, they formed conferences, conventions, and associations, which continue to the present day. Although at certain times, denominations prohib- ited blacks from speaking with one voice when they needed to do so, denomi- national histories are probably the richest source for understanding religion in
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