Spring cleaning, spiritual healing - faith - spiritual journeys and African American literature - Editorial

Black Issues Book Review, May-June, 2002 by Sharita Hunt

It's time for a seasonal roundup of some of the eclectic titles that have come in during the year. The thing about spring cleaning, which is how I think of book roundups, is that more often than not unless you're a compulsive neat-freak it can be a transforming experience.

Spring cleaning usually means making a last-ditch effort at getting organized. Once you start cleaning, you usually find things that you've been looking for, along with items that end up being given or thrown away. Sometimes it becomes too difficult to begin the process because of what you're afraid you might find: an unpaid bill, a picture that has deep sentimental value or recalls long-buried hurt, even a church bulletin scribbled with notes. Regardless of what it is, ultimately you simply have to roll up your sleeves and get to work.

In the spiritual realm you can do some cleansing as well. Every so often, you have to sit down, or sometimes kneel, and take inventory of your heart, your soul and your mind. Identify the good things in your life and keep them; build on them and help them grow. Identify those negatives in your life and get rid of them.

The folks who write the books that come through the office of Black Issues Book Review have traveled many troubled roads. In reading the introductions to these books about faith, you begin to understand the authors' stories and their spiritual purpose. I marvel at the number of writers in our community who share their experiences, and ingeniously show readers that through the Word they can be stronger and more loving, and that our spirit, as a people, is indomitable.

Out of Death Came Life by Barbara Monroe, J&M Publishing, September 2000, $16.95 ISBN 0-970-08760-8

A woman's journey back from the emotional and spiritual turmoil after the sudden death of her husband is an inspiring story in light of the September 11 attacks, especially since we all suffered a sudden loss as a nation.

How to Get Out of Debt ... And Into Praise by Reverend James T. Meeks, Moody Press, July 2001 $9.99, ISBN 0-802-42993-9

A biblical approach to getting out of debt that includes practical steps to help you live debt-free. "In these pages you will meet people from the Bible and from contemporary America. These people, who for various reasons, seemed trapped in a hopeless quagmire of indebtedness. But they all had one thing in common they believed God's promises about canceling debt," writes Reverend Meeks. "They discovered firsthand that God can do miraculous things in our financial lives if we will just hand over the anxiety (and credit cards) to Him. I don't care how much you owe. I don't care to whom you owe. I don't care how long you've owed them ... nothing is too hard for God."

Being Black-Zen and the Art of Living with Fearlessness and Grace by Angel Kyodo Williams, Viking Press, September 2000 $23.95, ISBN 0-670-89268-8

In a quiet and gentle way, Ms. Williams reveals the wisdom of Buddhism. "Black Folks have arrived. Just as we are widely diverse as a people, with a range of interests and experiences, our spiritual needs have also branched out and diversified," writes Angel Kyodo Williams.

"We now have the ability and, more important, the sense of entitlement, to explore beyond our own immediate traditions and look at what the world has to offer us to help resolve the questions that are critical to our spirits."

Stony the Road We Trod-African American Biblical Interpretation edited by Cain Hope Felder Fortress Press, July 1991, $20.00 ISBN 0-800-62501-3

Stony the Road offers a fresh challenge to all Bible interpreters--a challenge that intends to be thoroughly constructive as a preliminary bridge to celebrating not `his-story' alone, but all of `our-stories' as the people of God. How can the Bible break down the `dividing walls of hostility' (Ephesians 2:14) that recent centuries of Eurocentric biblical translations have, however unwittingly in some cases, erected between us? The book attempts to provide some answers to that question.

Down, Up, and Over-Slave Religion and Black Theology by Dwight N. Hopkins, Fortress Press, December 1999, $20.00 ISBN 0-800-62723-7

The book's title comes from a quote by a former slave, Reverend Reed, who said, "I am no mathematician, no biologist, neither grammarian, but when it comes to handling the Bible I knocks down verbs, break up prepositions and jumps over adjectives." The book looks at the evolution of black theology and "the struggle for liberation and freedom" in Protestantism and American culture.

Mothers of Pearls, Mothers of Zion-A Book of Testimony, Poetry, and Photography featuring Harlem Church Mothers by Deborah Burns, Photographs by Chester Higgins, Jr. Laser Light Communications, Inc. 2001 $12.95, ISBN 0-970-99350-1

Mothers of Pearls helps preserve the voice and wisdom of our elders. It is a testament to the women who are the "silent giants" of our church and community. The book is a collection of "the precious pearls of wisdom held in the hearts" of Harlem Church Mothers.