Synopses & Reviews
When the Supreme Court declared in 1954 that segregated public schools were unconstitutional, the highest echelons of Protestant, Catholic, and Jewish religious organizations enthusiastically supported the ruling, and black civil rights workers expected and actively sought the cooperation of their white religious cohorts. Many white southern clergy, however, were outspoken in their defense of segregation, and even those who supported integration were wary of risking their positions by urging parishioners to act on their avowed religious beliefs in a common humanity. Those who did so found themselves abandoned by friends, attacked by white supremacists, and often driven from their communities.
Michael Friedland here offers a collective biography of several southern and nationally known white religious leaders who did step forward to join the major social protest movements of the mid-twentieth century, lending their support first to the civil rights movement and later to protests over American involvement in Vietnam. Profiling such activists as William Sloane Coffin Jr., Daniel and Philip Berrigan, Abraham Joshua Heschel, Eugene Carson Blake, Robert McAfee Brown, and Will D. Campbell, he reveals the passions and commitment behind their involvement in these protests and places their actions in the context of a burgeoning ecumenical movement.
Review
The essence of a redeeming era in America's civil and religious history.
The Rev. John B. Morris, founding director, Episcopal Society for Cultural and Racial Unity
Review
Students in political science, American studies and, especially, religious studies will be soundly rewarded in reading this book.
Choice
Review
[D]ocuments in a clean, readable style replete with fascinating anecdotes a critical decade of history.
The Right Reverend Paul Moore Jr.
Review
"[D]ocuments in a clean, readable style replete with fascinating anecdotes a critical decade of history.
The Right Reverend Paul Moore Jr."
Review
Michael Friedland captures the passion and poignancy of a deeply shared communal commitment that changed many lives.
Malcolm Boyd, poet-in-residence, Episcopal Cathedral Center, Los Angeles
Synopsis
A collective biography of several influential white religious leaders who actively protested segregation and American involvement in Vietnam despite opposition from their congregations.
Synopsis
[An] ambitious synthesis, written with grace.
Journal of Southern History Students in political science, American studies and, especially, religious studies will be soundly rewarded in reading this book.
Choice The essence of a redeeming era in America's civil and religious history.
The Rev. John B. Morris, founding director, Episcopal Society for Cultural and Racial Unity [D]ocuments in a clean, readable style replete with fascinating anecdotes a critical decade of history.
The Right Reverend Paul Moore Jr. Michael Friedland captures the passion and poignancy of a deeply shared communal commitment that changed many lives.
Malcolm Boyd, poet-in-residence, Episcopal Cathedral Center, Los Angeles
Table of Contents
Contents
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Chapter 1. Prophets Without Honor: The Travails of the Southern Clergy, 1954-1960
Chapter 2. Going South: Northern Clergy and Direct-Action Protests, 1960-1962
Chapter 3. The Call to Battle: The Churches and Synagogues Enter the Civil Rights Struggle, 1963
Chapter 4. Bringing Good News to the Oppressed: Clerical Organization in the North and South, 1964
Chapter 5. Flood Tide: Bearing Witness in Alabama, 1965
Chapter 6. Going Against the Grain: Clergy and the Antiwar Movement, 1963-1965
Chapter 7. A Voice for Moderation: Clergy and the Antiwar Movement, 1966-1967
Chapter 8. The Escalation of Dissent: The Antiwar Movement, 1967-1968
Chapter 9. The Costly Peace: The Antiwar Movement, 1968-1973
Epilogue
Notes
Bibliography
Index