Carved in Ebony
Lessons from the Black Women Who Shape Us
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- $11.99
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
Elizabeth Freeman, Nannie Helen Burroughs, Maria Fearing, Charlotte Forten Grimké, Sarah Mapps Douglass, Sara Griffith Stanley, Amanda Berry Smith, Lucy Craft Laney, Maria Stewart, and Frances Ellen Watkins Harper
These names may not be familiar, but each one of these women was a shining beacon of devotion in a world that did not value their lives. They worked to change laws, built schools, spoke to thousands, shared the Gospel around the world. And while history books may have forgotten them, their stories can teach us so much about what it means to be modern women of faith.
Through the research and reflections of author Jasmine Holmes, you will be inspired by what each of these exceptional women can teach us about the intersections of faith and education, birth, privilege, opportunity, and so much more. Carved in Ebony will take you past the predominantly white, male contributions that seemingly dominate history books and church history to discover how Black women have been some of the main figures in defining the landscape of American history and faith.
Join Jasmine on this journey of illuminating these women--God's image-bearers, carved in ebony.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Educator and essayist Holmes (Mother to Son) employs her love for storytelling, history, and her Christian religion in this enlightening collection of portrayals that showcase "the inherent dignity and worth of women," as a direct reproach to America's "shabby record of acting in good faith toward its Black residents." Each chapter focuses on a different historical woman, such as Sara Griffith Stanley (1837–1918), a dedicated abolitionist who affirmed that "the image of God in the body of the Negro"; and Amanda Berry Smith (1837–1915), a minister who preached even to white audiences in the U.S. and England and established a legacy working with orphans in India and Africa. Holmes doesn't shy away from contrary opinions on figures whose ideologies she disagrees with, such as Booker T. Washington or Nannie Helen Burroughs (whom she criticizes for teaching Black people they can only be respected by earning respect), though she also recognizes Burroughs's challenging of how white people placed "all kinds of barriers in the way of the progress of the Negro race." Holmes trains a spotlight on notable Black women who lived life as she and others of faith wish to—through personal empowerment and religious devotion. It's crucial reading for anyone studying the intersections of feminism and race, with or without a religious lens.
