Divided by Faith: Evangelical Religion and the Problem of Race in America (edit title)

Shelfari edited the description of Divided by Faith: Evangelical Religion and the Problem of Race in America Wednesday, August 5 2009.

• Through a nationwide telephone survey of 2,000 people and an additional 200 face-to-face interviews, Michael O. Emerson and Christian Smith probed the grassroots of white evangelical America. They found that despite recent efforts by the movement's leaders to address the problem of racial discrimination, evangelicals themselves seem to be preserving America's racial chasm. In fact, most white evangelicals see no systematic discrimination against blacks. But the authors contend that it is not active racism that prevents evangelicals from recognizing ongoing problems in American society. Instead, it is the evangelical movement's emphasis on individualism, free will, and personal relationships that makes invisible the pervasive injustice that perpetuates racial inequality. Most racial problems, the subjects told the authors, can be solved by the repentance and conversion of the sinful individuals at fault. Combining a substantial body of evidence with sophisticated analysis and interpretation, the authors throw sharp light on the oldest American dilemma. In the end, they conclude that despite the best intentions of evangelical leaders and some positive trends, real racial reconciliation remains far over the horizon.

Shelfari edited the contributors of Divided by Faith: Evangelical Religion and the Problem of Race in America Thursday, July 30 2009.

• Added a contributor: Christian Smith: (Primary Author)
• Added a contributor: Michael O. Emerson: (Primary None)

Shelfari edited the first sentence of Divided by Faith: Evangelical Religion and the Problem of Race in America Thursday, July 16 2009.

• While I was sitting at a stoplight a few blocks from my <Emerson's> home in Minneapolis, reflecting on the recent rash of drive-by shootings in the area, three African-American teens clad in the urban uniform of the day-baggy pants and shirts, jewelry, and Fila basketball shoes-crossed the street in front of me.