When the colonial slave trade; and then slavery itself; were abolished early in the 19th century; the British empire brazenly set up a new system of trade using Indian rather than African laborers. The new system of "indentured" labor was supposed to be different from slavery because the indenture; or contract; was written for an initial period of five years and involved fixed wages and some specified conditions of work. From the workers' point of view; the one redeeming feature of the system was that most of their workmates spoke their language and came from the same area of India. Because this allowed them to develop some sense of community; by the end of the initial five years most of the Indian laborers chose to stay in the land to which they had been taken. In time that land became the place in which they joined with others to build a new homeland. In this fieldwork-based study; Paul Younger looks at the present day descendents of these workers and their post-indenture societies in Mauritius; Guyana; Trinidad; South Africa; Fiji; and East Africa. He finds that they still cling to the fact that it was an arbitrary British decision that took them there and made the society pluralistic. This plurality seems to require them to search their memory for a distinctive religious tradition that they can pass on to their children. They know that there was a loss of culture involved in their move to these locations and consider it important to recover from that loss. But they are also intensely proud of their new identity; and insist that they have established a new religious tradition in their new homeland. For generations; says Younger; these people had struggled in their situation and now they had come up with a sense of community and purpose and were prepared to make the historical claim that they had developed an appropriate religious tradition for their specific community.
#1302924 in Books D Michael Lindsay 2008-10-29Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 5.70 x .80 x 8.80l; 1.15 #File Name: 0195376056352 pagesFaith in the Halls of Power How Evangelicals Joined the American Elite
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Five StarsBy Sarah H LorimerGood book - eye opening perspective on the rise of evangelicals into prominent leadership roles.1 of 2 people found the following review helpful. Parsing the Role of Evangelicals in American SocietyBy Alan L. ChaseBefore he was named President of Gordon College; D. Michael Lindsay was a member of the sociology faculty at Rice University. During his time there; he launched a comprehensive project of interviewing hundreds of self-proclaimed evangelicals who are leaders in industry; government; entertainment; academia; church and parachurch ministries. The results of this research are cataloged in this in depth study of "How Evangelicals Joined the American Elite." In his research and his writing; Lindsay stands on the shoulders of Mark Noll; whose 1994 book; "The Scandal of the Evangelical Mind;" served as a prod to many evangelical Christians to take a hard look in the mirror and be honest about their failings as thought leaders able to influence the broader culture.In this book; Lindsay offers a clear definition of and paints a full-color portrait of the American evangelical microcosm as it exists at the beginning of the 21st Century. Evangelicals of often misunderstood and mislabeled -even within the Body of Christ - so the author's clear and unambiguous definition sets the stage beautifully for his treatment of some of the movement's key leaders and influencers:"I define an evangelical as someone who believes (1) that the Bible is the supreme authority for religious belief and practice; (2) that he or she has personal relationship with Jesus Christ; and (3) that one should take a transforming; activist approach to faith." (Page 4)Among the men and women (the author points out clearly the paucity of women in leadership positions within the evangelical world) profiled in this far-reaching study and analysis; I have been privileged to know several dozen of them; so I am able to personally affirm the conclusions that the Lindsay has drawn about their character and breadth of their influence. The point of the list that follows is not to engage in "name dropping;" but rather to add my own small individual voice to that of Dr. Lindsay in corroborating the influence that I have observed these individuals have had and continue to have on society. I have observed them to be committed men and women of God.Rick Warren was a classmate of mine in a doctoral program at Fuller Theological SeminaryChuck Colson was head of Prison Fellowship during the 10 years I worked for him.Max DePree was a professor of mine at Fuller.I have sat under the preaching and teaching of Bill Hybels; Tony Campolo; Eric Metaxas and Tim KellerI spent two weeks with President Jimmy Carter on a Habitat for Humanity project in ChicagoNancy DeMoss was a gracious hostess and benefactor for many programs at Prison Fellowship.My point is that these strong evangelical leaders have had a profound personal impact on me; and I am pleased to see that Dr. Lindsay has taken the time to share with the readership of his book their stories. He chronicles with great care the individual and collective roads traveled to bring evangelicals into the "Halls of Power." He also very careful differentiates the progressive evangelical leaders from the populist fundamentalist figures often see on TV. Top the outside world; the differences may be subtle or even invisible; but within the family of believers; the difference are significant.Implicit throughout much of this book is the questions: "What are evangelical leaders doing with their new-found access to the halls of power? Are they handling that power as wise stewards?" One of the most enlightening observations comes near the conclusion of the book when Lindsay discusses the phenomenon of "convening power":"Public leaders wield a particular kind of power; one that comes from their location within these influential networks. Convening power is the ability to bring disparate people together; like introducing a congressional staffer to a senior media executive. It is the ability to set agendas and to coordinate activity. Sociologist Harold Kerbo argues that elite power is the power over social networks; and this certainly proved true among the leaders I studied. Convening power is what this structural strength gives leaders. It enables them to marshal resources; to share information; and to deflect criticism. Elite power is the power to convene; and it is through their privileged positions within various social networks that leaders exercise it; bringing people together wand then introducing and recruiting others to join their causes. (Page 215)Certainly; this book will be of interest and of value to anyone who proudly claims the label of "evangelical." It will be of equal interest and value to those outside of the evangelical circle who seek to understand its history and mission.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Five StarsBy RP XMDenjoyed this book. Looking forward to a sequel. Well designed and well thought out research.
