Women and Religion in the African Diaspora

This book is truly groundbreaking. Future scholars will view it as a pioneering effort to develop an interdisciplinary, transnational approach to understanding women and religion. Griffith and Savage have assembled a talented group of scholars to herald the creation of a new field within the study of women and religion. -- Catherine Brekus, University of Chicago This monumental text is the definitive examination of the rich and complex doings and sufferings of religious women of African descent. It brings together the most sophisticated thinkers-with diverse methodologies and perspectives-on the crucial reflections and lived experiences of Black religious women. -- Cornel West, Princeton University 2006

This volume's transnational mixture, along with its use of creative analytical approaches, challenges existing paradigms and summons new models for studying women, religions, and diasporic shiftings across time and space.This landmark collection of newly commissioned essays explores how diverse women of African descent have practiced religion as part of the work of their ordinary and sometimes extraordinary lives. By examining women from North America, the Caribbean, Brazil, and Africa, the contributors identify the patterns that emerge as women, religion, and diaspora intersect, mapping fresh approaches to this emergent field of inquiry. The volume focuses on issues of history, tradition, and the authenticity of African-derived spiritual practices in a variety of contexts, including those where memories of suffering remain fresh and powerful. The contributors discuss matters of power and leadership and of religious expressions outside of institutional settings. The essays study women of Christian denominations, African and Afro-Caribbean traditions, and Islam, addressing their roles as spiritual leaders, artists and musicians, preachers, and participants in bible-study groups. This volume's transnational mixture, along with its use of creative analytical approaches, challenges existing paradigms and summons new models for studying women, religions, and diasporic shiftings across time and space.