United by Faith

In the last four decades, desegregation has revolutionized almost every aspect of life in the United States: schools, businesses, government offices, even entertainment. But there is one area that remains largely untouched, and that is the church. Now comes a major new call for multiracial congregations in every possible setting—a call that is surprisingly controversial, even in the twenty-first century. In United By Faith, a multiracial team of sociologists and a minister of the Church of God argue that multiracial Christian congregations offer a key to opening the still-locked door between the races in the United States. They note, however, that a belief persists—even in African-American and Latino churches—that racial segregation is an acceptable, even useful practice. The authors examine this question from biblical, historical, and theological perspectives to make theircase. They explore the long history of interracialism in the church, with specific examples of multiracial congregations in the United States. They cite examples ranging from the abolitionist movement to an astonishing 1897 camp meeting in Alabama that brought together hundreds of whites and blacks literally intothe same tent. Here, too, is a critical account of the theological arguments in favor of racial separation, as voiced in the African-American, Latino, Asian-American, Native-American, and white contexts. The authors respond in detail, closing with a foundation for a theology suited to sustaining multiracial congregations over time. Faith can be the basis for healing, but too often Christian faith has been a field for injury and division. In this important new book, readers will glimpse a way forward, a path toward once again making the church the basis for racial reconciliation in our still-splintered nation.

"An important book that guides believers toward a post-racial form of worshipping and living together. I look out to my multiracial congregation on Sunday mornings and see that it is beautiful, that it works, and that it is a paradigm for the society we must strive to build in the 21st Century. May this volume increase the places we discover that in Christ there is no East or West."—The Rev. Dr. James A. Forbes, Jr., Senior Minister, Riverside Church, New York, "A beautifully explosive exposé of the power of true Christianity to break down any and all barriers of segregation and usher in the new creation of the Spirit wherein no one will be excluded-a courageous, visionary and realistic blueprint for congregations of the 3rd millennium."—Fr. Virgilio Elizondo, Mexican American Cultural Center, San Antonio, and University of Notre Dame, "Finally, we have a reasoned and hopeful response to Martin Luther King, Jr.'s oft-quoted indictment of Christianity in America, that 'eleven o'clock is America's most segregated hour'; a clear and powerful articulation of Jesus' vision of the church as a 'house of prayer for all nations,' projecting a compelling vision for the North American church in the 21st century—racially inclusive, culturally diverse, fully invested in the principle and practice of Christian unity. Together with its companion volume, Divided by Faith, United by Faith demonstrates how Christians can enhance our witness to the world by rejecting racism and modeling reconciliation in our own congregations." —Cheryl J. Sanders, Professor of Christian Ethics, Howard University School of Divinity, and Senior Pastor of the Third Street Church of God, Washington, D.C.

Curtiss Paul DeYoung is an Associate Professor of Reconciliation Studies at Bethel College, St. Paul, MN, and an ordained minister in the Church of God (Anderson, IN). Michael O. Emerson is an Associate Professor of Sociology at Rice University, and is the co-author of Divided by Faith: Evangelical Religion and the Problem of Race in America. George Yancey is an Associate Professor of Sociology at theUniversity of North Texas. Karen Chai Kim is an Assistant Professor of Sociology at the University of Houston.