Henry Louis Gates, Jr. on the Black Church
By Dan Clendenin
This past February 16 and 23, 2021, PBS debuted its four-hour (in two parts) mini-series called The Black Church: This Is Our Story, This Is Our Song. The documentary is narrated by Dr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr. of Harvard, and explores the 400-year history and culture of the Black church. “Our series is a riveting and systematic exploration of the myriad ways in which African Americans have worshipped God in their own images, and continue to do so today, from the plantation and prayer houses, to camp meetings and store-front structures, to mosques and mega-churches,” says Dr. Gates. “This is the story and song our ancestors bequeathed to us, and it comes at a time in our country when the very things they struggled and died for — faith and freedom, justice and equality, democracy and grace — all are on the line. No social institution in the Black community is more central and important than the Black church.”
On April 13, 2021, Terry Gross of NPR’s Fresh Air interviewed Gates about the mini-series, the book that Gates wrote to accompany the film, and his own Christian faith journey in the black church. It’s called “Henry Louis Gates Jr. on ‘The Black Church’ and His Own Bargain with Jesus.” See here:
Dan Clendenin: dan@journeywithjesus.net
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