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African indigenous religion in contemporary Africa struggles to maintain its legal tone and identity in the face of the forces of Islam and Christianity, especially radicalized forms. But ‘African religions today’ shows that while African traditional religions are engaged in a battle for their lives on the African continent, they and their sister African diaspora religions are thriving elsewhere in the world—particularly in the Americas and in Europe. African diaspora and immigrant religions are discussed and a new wave of African religions, such as Rev. Sunday Adelaja's Embassy of God church in Ukraine, described. ...Less

Augustine did not find that he could provide answers to all the questions that troubled him while at Thagaste. In 391, on a visit to Hippo Regius, he was forcibly ordained presbyter for a small Catholic congregation. ‘Vocation’ charts Augustine's time at the Hippo house and how his views were shaped by the people he met there. The Hippo house proved to be a magnet for some of the most unfortunate casualties of life. People who became monks or nuns but who left the monastery were a deep disappointment to him. Augustine regarded penitence of heart as part of the regular pattern of all authentic spiritual life. Discipline became a strong force in his life at this point. ...Less

The majority of African Americans are Christian. Black Christianity has played a critical role in the history of African American responses to white supremacy in the United States. ‘African American Christianity and Its Early Phase (1760–1863)’ is the first of four chapters that examine this complex history and introduce key moments and personalities, as well as the importance of black churches over the course of three historical periods. The early phase covers the period when the economy of slavery dominated political matters up to the Emancipation Proclamation and the end of the plantation regime. Slavery defined the contours, even among free black populations, of black Christianity during this period. ...Less