The Encyclopedia of World Religions

6 S African-American religions

Traditional Christianity did not meet the needs of all African Americans in the United States. Some rejected it because of its connection with the for mer slave owners. African nationalist movements provided one important alternative. After Emanci pation some African Americans called for a return to Africa. In the early 20th century, Marcus Garvey (1887–1940) emphasized black separatism and pride. The best known black nationalist movement is the Nation of Islam ( see I SLAM , N ATION OF ). It was organized in the 1930s by Wallace Fard and Elijah Muhammad. Until a visit to Mecca in 1964, M AL COLM X was its most effective spokesperson. Ras tafarianism, a movement from Jamaica, is famous for its music, reggae. It saw the former emperor of Ethiopia, Haile Selassie (1892–1975), as a sav ior for African Americans. Before his coronation, Haile Selassie was called Ras Tafari. Other African-American alternatives to tradi tional Christianity have also emerged. J UDAISM has attracted some African Americans. They identified with the story of the E XODUS , in which the Hebrew slaves were freed from captivity in Egypt. Some have founded Jewish sects. Other African-Ameri can movements have borrowed and adapted ele ments from Christianity. A good example is Father Divine ( c. 1880–1965), who used elements of tradi tional Christianity while preaching that he himself was God. African Americans have also found reli gious inspiration in traditional African religions. A good example is K WANZAA . Created in 1966, it is a year-end festival that celebrates family values from an African perspective. Further reading: Taylor Branch, Parting the Waters: America in the King Years, 1954–63 (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1988); Taylor Branch, Pillar of Fire: America in the King Years, 1963–65 (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1998); Eric C. Lincoln, The Black Muslims in America, 3d ed. (Grand Rapids, Mich.: W. B. Eerdmans, 1993); Albert J. Raboteau, Canaan Land: A Religious History of African Americans (New York: Oxford University Press, 2001); Cornel West and Eddie S. Glaude, Jr., eds., African American Religious Thought: An Anthology (Louisville, Ky.: Westminster John Knox, 2003).

Many traditional religions interact loosely with R OMAN C ATHOLICISM . Those who practice them WOR SHIP African deities and spirits in conjunction with Catholic SAINTS . All traditional religions expect the deities and spirits to help with problems and diffi culties in everyday life. The deities and spirits may reveal themselves through a medium. Worshippers may also seek advice from a diviner. The religions of African Americans in the United States developed differently. There the dominant religious tradition was P ROTESTANTISM . Unlike Catholicism, Protestantism does not vener ate saints who can be identified with African gods and spirits. (In Africa, the high god is usually dis tant and as a result not worshipped.) In addition, African Americans enslaved in the United States often did not have the opportunity to form their own relatively isolated communities, as they did in the Caribbean and South America. By 1800 many African Americans in the United States were turning to Protestantism. They tended to favor forms that emphasized conversion experiences rather than a LITURGY . As a result, they became Methodists and Baptists ( see M ETHODISM and B APTIST CHURCHES ). On occasion these African Americans founded their own denominations. For example, several black Methodist congregations formed the American Methodist Episcopal Church in 1816. In smaller numbers, African Americans in the United States also joined the more liturgical churches, such as the E PISCOPALIAN or A NGLICAN and Catholic churches. African Americans obviously benefited greatly from the movement to abolish slavery. Black as well as white ministers were abolitionists. After the Civil War and Emancipation, African Ameri cans participated in the Holiness movements. Like prewar Baptists and Methodists, these movements emphasized religious experience. Then, at the turn of the century, African Americans were instrumen tal in forming P ENTECOSTALISM . Gospel music is a well-known product of these movements. In the mid-20th century, the Southern Christian Leader ship Conference, led by a Baptist minister, Martin Luther K ING Jr., helped end legal segregation in the southern United States.