Synopses & Reviews
"Lee probes far beyond the rags-to-riches tale, though Bishop Jakes'riches remain. He devotes much of the book to what he sees as Bishop Jakes' dual nature: businessman and preacher."
Dallas Morning News"A clearly written, thoughtful interrogation of the financially successful, though morally suspect, merger of business and religion achieved by this African American preacher-millionaire."
Choice, recommended
"Shayne Lee, an assistant professor of Sociology at Tulane University, has provided us with the first critical examination of the most influential African American preacher of our time. A socio-cultural biography of sorts, the author examines T.D. Jakes rise to prominence from the hills of West Virginia to multimillion-dollar religious corporate enterprise. But this book does more than follow the development of T.D. Jakes and his ministry. As the author puts it, Jakes becomes 'a prism through which the reader may learn more about contemporary American religion.' Lee contends that Jakes is an embodiment of traditional American cultural ideals and the postmodern features that inform what it means to be American in this contemporary moment."
Pop Matters
"Most of the public knows about the Bishop T. D. Jakes who graced the cover of Time magazine, preached "Woman, Thou Art Loosed!" and filled stadiums across the country with throngs of weeping fans. But how many know about the Jakes who boasted that he didn't have enough garage space for his luxury cars, said Jesus was rich, and once tried to evict the owners of a home he had just purchased though they only had a week to pay off their debts? That portrait of Jakes comes courtesy of T. D. Jakes: America's New Preacher. Shayne Lee, a sociologist and professor at Tulane University in New Orleans, asks hard questions about Jakes' ministry."
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
"Jakes has risen from poverty in the mining towns of West Virginia to a multimillion-dollar faith industry based in Dallas, benefiting from the controversial trend toward prosperity religion. Lee examines the rags-to-riches life of Jakes in the broader context of changes in how Americans view religion."
Booklist
"Lee offers an intriguing exploration of Jakes's popularity. His entrepreneurial spirit and multimedia approach have endeared him to millions, while his lavish lifestyle and focus on Christians' right to material prosperity continue to spark criticism. Lee avoids heavy jargon and effectively pares his study down to the essentials, making this an accessible portrait."
Publishers Weekly
"Places an important contemporary African American religious leader in the context of recent trends in American religion in general and also of certain traditions of the Black Church in the African American experience. Lee's description and analysis of the phenomenon that is T.D. Jakes helps us gain a greater understanding of contemporary American religion and of African American religion as at once patently distinct but also quintessentially American."
Milmon Harrison, Ph.D., author of Righteous Riches: The Word of Faith Movement in Contemporary African American Religion
T.D. Jakes has emerged as one of the most prolific spiritual leaders of our time. He is pastor of one of the largest churches in the country, CEO of a multimillion dollar empire, the host of a television program, author of a dozen bestsellers, and the producer of two Grammy Award-nominated CDs and three critically acclaimed plays. In 2001 Time magazine featured Jakes on the cover and asked: Is Jakes the next Billy Graham?
T.D. Jakes draws on extensive research, including interviews with numerous friends and colleagues of Jakes, to examine both Jakes's rise to prominence and proliferation of a faith industry bent on producing spiritual commodities for mass consumption. Lee frames Jakes and his success as a metaphor for changes in the Black Church and American Protestantism more broadly, looking at the ramifications of his riseand the rise of similar preachersfor the way in which religion is practiced in this country, how social issues are confronted or ignored, and what is distinctly "American" about Jakes's emergence. While offering elements of biography, the work also seeks to shed light on important aspects of the contemporary American and African American religious experience.
Lee contends that Jakes's widespread success symbolizes a religious realignment in which mainline churches nationwide are in decline, while innovative churches are experiencing phenomenal growth. He emphasizes the "American-ness" of Jakes's story and reveals how preachers like Jakes are drawing followers by delivering therapeutic and transformative messages and providing spiritual commodities that are more in tune with postmodern sensibilities.
As the first work to critically examine Bishop Jakes's life and message, T.D. Jakes is an important contribution to contemporary American religion as well as popular culture.
Review
“Lee probes far beyond the rags-to-riches tale, though Bishop Jakes’ riches remain. He devotes much of the book to what he sees as Bishop Jakes' dual nature: businessman and preacher.”
“A clearly written, thoughtful interrogation of the financially successful, though morally suspect, merger of business and religion achieved by this African American preacher-millionaire.”
“Shayne Lee, an assistant professor of Sociology at Tulane University, has provided us with the first critical examination of the most influential African American preacher of our time. A socio-cultural biography of sorts, the author examines T.D. Jakes rise to prominence from the hills of West Virginia to multimillion-dollar religious corporate enterprise. But this book does more than follow the development of T.D. Jakes and his ministry. As the author puts it, Jakes becomes ‘a prism through which the reader may learn more about contemporary American religion.’ Lee contends that Jakes is an embodiment of traditional American cultural ideals and the postmodern features that inform what it means to be American in this contemporary moment.”
“Lee offers an intriguing exploration of Jakes's popularity. His entrepreneurial spirit and multimedia approach have endeared him to millions, while his lavish lifestyle and focus on Christians' right to material prosperity continue to spark criticism. Lee avoids heavy jargon and effectively pares his study down to the essentials, making this an accessible portrait.”
“Most of the public knows about the Bishop T. D. Jakes who graced the cover of Time magazine, preached “Woman, Thou Art Loosed!” and filled stadiums across the country with throngs of weeping fans. But how many know about the Jakes who boasted that he didn't have enough garage space for his luxury cars, said Jesus was rich, and once tried to evict the owners of a home he had just purchased though they only had a week to pay off their debts? That portrait of Jakes comes courtesy of T. D. Jakes: America's New Preacher. Shayne Lee, a sociologist and professor at Tulane University in New Orleans, asks hard questions about Jakes' ministry.”
Review
“Engaging, expansive, and generous.”
-Sex Roles,
Review
“This well-annotated text invites the uninitiated reader to become involved, to reimagine previously held perceptions of what may be considered 'otherness,' to welcome disabilities, to access collectively other worlds and future possibilities.”
-Journal of American Studies,
Review
“The members of the Committee were especially impressed by McRuers original intervention in the area of queer studies, one that not only sheds light on the important new area of disability studies, but brings it into conversation with a variety of disciplinary perspectives, from composition studies to performance art. McRuers book combines the public and the private work of queer studies in surprisingly new ways.”
-Ed Madden,Gay and Lesbian Caucus for the MLA
Review
“McRuer charts new intersections for disability studies, queer studies, and American studies. His work is [at its] most vertiginous and rich . . . as he moves swiftly from cinema to street gangs to coming out Crip.”
-American Quarterly,
Review
“A wonderful combination of humor, theory, intellectual, and personal insights . . . A valuable and well-written study.”
-Disability Studies Quarterly,
Synopsis
A Critical examination of one of the most prolific spiritual leaders of our time, a man that
Synopsis
Examines the rise of one of the most prolific spiritual leader of modern times
T.D. Jakes has emerged as one of the most prolific spiritual leaders of our time. He is pastor of one of the largest churches in the country, CEO of a multimillion dollar empire, the host of a television program, author of a dozen bestsellers, and the producer of two Grammy Award-nominated CDs and three critically acclaimed plays. In 2001 Time magazine featured Jakes on the cover and asked: Is Jakes the next Billy Graham?
T.D. Jakes draws on extensive research, including interviews with numerous friends and colleagues of Jakes, to examine both Jakes's rise to prominence and proliferation of a faith industry bent on producing spiritual commodities for mass consumption. Lee frames Jakes and his success as a metaphor for changes in the Black Church and American Protestantism more broadly, looking at the ramifications of his rise--and the rise of similar preachers--for the way in which religion is practiced in this country, how social issues are confronted or ignored, and what is distinctly "American" about Jakes's emergence. While offering elements of biography, the work also seeks to shed light on important aspects of the contemporary American and African American religious experience.
Lee contends that Jakes's widespread success symbolizes a religious realignment in which mainline churches nationwide are in decline, while innovative churches are experiencing phenomenal growth. He emphasizes the "American-ness" of Jakes's story and reveals how preachers like Jakes are drawing followers by delivering therapeutic and transformative messages and providing spiritual commodities that are more in tune with postmodern sensibilities.
As the first work to critically examine Bishop Jakes's life and message, T.D. Jakes is an important contribution to contemporary American religion as well as popular culture.
Synopsis
T.D. Jakes has emerged as one of the most prolific spiritual leaders of our time. He is pastor of one of the largest churches in the country, CEO of a multimillion dollar empire, the host of a television program, author of a dozen bestsellers, and the producer of two Grammy Award-nominated CDs and three critically acclaimed plays. In 2001
Time magazine featured Jakes on the cover and asked: Is Jakes the next Billy Graham
T.D. Jakes draws on extensive research, including interviews with numerous friends and colleagues of Jakes, to examine both Jakess rise to prominence and proliferation of a faith industry bent on producing spiritual commodities for mass consumption. Lee frames Jakes and his success as a metaphor for changes in the Black Church and American Protestantism more broadly, looking at the ramifications of his rise—and the rise of similar preachers—for the way in which religion is practiced in this country, how social issues are confronted or ignored, and what is distinctly “American” about Jakes's emergence. While offering elements of biography, the work also seeks to shed light on important aspects of the contemporary American and African American religious experience.
Lee contends that Jakess widespread success symbolizes a religious realignment in which mainline churches nationwide are in decline, while innovative churches are experiencing phenomenal growth. He emphasizes the “American-ness” of Jakess story and reveals how preachers like Jakes are drawing followers by delivering therapeutic and transformative messages and providing spiritual commodities that are more in tune with postmodern sensibilities.
As the first work to critically examine Bishop Jakess life and message, T.D. Jakes is an important contribution to contemporary American religion as well as popular culture.
Synopsis
Crip Theory attends to the contemporary cultures of disability and queerness that are coming out all over. Both disability studies and queer theory are centrally concerned with how bodies, pleasures, and identities are represented as “normal” or as abject, but
Crip Theory is the first book to analyze thoroughly the ways in which these interdisciplinary fields inform each other.
Drawing on feminist theory, African American and Latino/a cultural theories, composition studies, film and television studies, and theories of globalization and counter-globalization, Robert McRuer articulates the central concerns of crip theory and considers how such a critical perspective might impact cultural and historical inquiry in the humanities. Crip Theory puts forward readings of the Sharon Kowalski story, the performance art of Bob Flanagan, and the journals of Gary Fisher, as well as critiques of the domesticated queerness and disability marketed by the Millennium March, or Bravo TVs Queer Eye for the Straight Guy. McRuer examines how dominant and marginal bodily and sexual identities are composed, and considers the vibrant ways that disability and queerness unsettle and re-write those identities in order to insist that another world is possible.
About the Author
Robert McRuer is an associate professor of English at The George Washington University. He is the author of
The Queer Renaissance: Contemporary American Literature and the Reinvention of Lesbian and Gay Identities (also available from NYU Press) and co-editor, with Abby L. Wilkerson, of
Desiring Disability: Queer Theory Meets Disability Studies, a special issue of
GLQ. Michael Bérubé is Paterno Family Professor in Literature at Pennsylvania State University, and the author of several books, including Whats Liberal about the Liberal Arts, The Employment of English, and Life As We Know It, which was a New York Times notable book and NPR book of the year. He is general editor of NYU Presss Cultural Front series, has contributed to numerous magazines and newspapers, and writes a popular blog, American Airspace, at michaelberube.com.