Review by Choice Review
Growing out of a course Raboteau (emer., Princeton) taught to a generation of students, American Prophets narrates a landscape of 20th-century prophetic voices. Written in lucid prose, Raboteau's seven luminous biographical sketches of such figures as Abraham Joshua Heschel, Martin Luther King Jr., Fannie Lou Hamer, and Thomas Merton tell a radical story. Part of this story is theological. Raboteau insists that prophetic voices cannot be understood separate from their capacity for "divine pathos," in which a deep sympathy with God translates into bonds of fellowship with human suffering. Raboteau illuminates the historical and social connections that his radicals had with one another. Dorothy Day, A. J. Muste, and Howard Thurman were all in dialogue through the Fellowship of Reconciliation. Heschel, King, and Merton corresponded and referenced one another intimately. Raboteau's account runs against conventional accounts of the prophetic mantle as lonely. He presents the office of the prophet as profoundly social and communal, working toward building coalitions of activists ready to work for change. That the sites of prophetic struggle during the 20th century--racialized injustice--persist in the 21st century is sobering. Raboteau's book forces a question: is there an emerging tradition of 21st-century prophets riveted by divine pathos and a collective endeavor of justice? Summing Up: Essential. Lower-division undergraduates through faculty; general readers. --Jonathon Kahn, Vassar College
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Booklist Review
African American studies pioneer Raboteau collects his lectures on seven American religious leaders who gave the greatest impetus to religiously based movements for social and political change. The twentieth century determined the thrusts of their work for political equality and against war. Three Dorothy Day, the soul of the Catholic Worker movement; Martin Luther King Jr., who rose up to lead the black civil rights movement; and Fannie Lou Hamer, the singing heart of the Mississippi Freedom Project to register black voters in 1964 remain household names. But Trappist monk and writer Thomas Merton, Jewish theologian and philosopher Abraham Joshua Heschel, Christian pacifist organizer A. J. Muste, and African American theologian of nonviolence Howard Thurman get a welcome boost from Raboteau's profiles. The subjects knew one another and participated, often shoulder-to-shoulder, in events like the great southern civil rights marches and the anti-Vietnam War demonstrations of the 1960s. As important, they wrote, spoke, and guided the movements. Let the study of them together start with these concise yet weighty appraisals.--Olson, Ray Copyright 2016 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Brief studies of 20th-century Americans whose deep faith led them to challenge injustice are offered by Raboteau (Slave Religion), a scholar of African-American religious history and professor emeritus of religion at Princeton University. Beginning with the work of Jewish philosopher Abraham Joshua Heschel, who described a prophet as "one who is impelled to speak because he feels the divine pathos like a 'fire in the bones,'" Raboteau then explores the prophetic lives of six Christian activists, some famous (Dorothy Day, Martin Luther King Jr., Thomas Merton) and others perhaps less well known to the general reader (Fannie Lou Hamer, A. J. Muste, Howard Thurman). His concise, skillful analyses show how each of these individuals, drawing inspiration from biblical sources as well as modern exemplars like Mahatma Gandhi, addressed poverty, racism, and militarism. Raboteau draws connections throughout between these "religious radicals," who addressed common causes during 20th-century America's tumultuous history. In his afterword, remembering the nine African-American churchgoers murdered in Charleston in 2015, Raboteau asks-and leaves for the reader to answer-whether last century's prophets for social justice can provide models for future action. This scholarly yet accessible primer to the role of faith in the lives of American activists challenges contemporary notions of the role of religion in politics and argues that empathy is a critical first step in addressing the suffering of others. (Oct.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Library Journal Review
Raboteau (religion, Princeton Unv.; Slave Religion) presents seven biographical sketches from the 20th century that show the diversity and unity of the prophetic call. Included for consideration are theologian Abraham Heschel and philospher Howard Thurman; monk and mystic Thomas Merton; Dorothy Day, cofounder of the Catholic Worker Movement; clergyman and activist A.J. Muste; and civil rights leaders Martin Luther King Jr. and Fannie Lou Hamer. Across diverse backgrounds, temperaments, and religious perspectives, one finds in these examples an overwhelming passion for justice and seemingly infinite capacity for compassion. This is demonstrated in a unified voice relating to issues of war, peace, poverty, and human rights. Another illuminating feature of these individuals is that not only did they make a stand and work toward admirable goals, they also identified with the marginalized, stood in their place, and became their voice. In doing so, these American prophets risked their own lives. VERDICT Raboteau offers inspiring and challenging examples of embodied faith in the modern world.-JW © Copyright 2016. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
