Books published by Mercer University Press

Frederick Douglass: A Precursor of Liberation Theology deals with the evolution of Frederick Douglass's philosophical and theological development. This book is another paradigm that expands the debate and places Douglass's thought in a more appropriate context, namely anticipating liberation theology. Since no consensus exists about Douglass's philosophical and theological development, Reginald F. Davis attempts to settle a dispute in Douglass studies that revolves around his religious odyssey and in particular the character and cause of his philosophical and theological development. The dispute among scholars is concerned with where to locate Douglass on the theological spectrum. Some scholars identify Douglass as having moved away from traditional forms of Christian millennialism, which elevates not the human agent but an omnipotent God who apocalyptically intervenes in human affairs and history. Still others interpret Douglass as having moved outside the circle of theism to enlightenment humanism. There is also an unsettled debate about the cause of Douglass's theological shift. One view attributes Douglass's shift to a psychological factor of rejection by "White Churchmen" over his support for radical policies like abolitionism. Another perspective attributes Douglass's shift to enlightenment principles of natural law and rationality. Davis utilizes selected categories from liberation theology to provide a more accurate exegesis of Douglass's study to encourage a new angle of interpretation of Douglass's philosophical and theological evolution.

President Carter's words are as relevant today as when first spoken. This first address of the Carl Vinson Memorial Lecture Series at Mercer University is a masterful assessment of the difficulties of resolving disputes. President Carter's guidelines for establishing a more stable peace in the world are concise and imaginative without sacrificing their essential practicality.

Heartbreaking and true, The Great Sea Island Storm of 1893 details human courage and perseverance in the face of the second most fatal hurricane in US history. On a Sunday evening in August 1893, a massive hurricane slammed into South Carolina and Georgia at high tide. The howling winds and pounding waters struck hardest at the Gullah communities along the coastal islands.Stunned by the sudden fury of the storm, the island dwellers took extraordinary measures to protect themselves. Clearly, they were no match for what many referred to as the "cyclone." By the time the waters ebbed and the winds subsided, 2,000 or more had drowned and tens of thousands were left homeless, hungry, and destitute. Neither the US Congress nor South Carolina's state legislature appropriated funds to assist the stricken people.Fortunately, Clara Barton, founder and president of the American Red Cross, took charge. In the first hurricane relief and recovery effort of the Red Cross, individuals and private charities sustained the survivors with grits and pork for almost a year. Rebuilding homes, food supplies, and spirits was a long arduous process. For the next sixty years, residents of one community held vigils every August, praying to be spared from such a catastrophe ever again.

This work examines the birth and maturation of Averett College, and institution of higher learning in Southside Virginia. The school's official seal--and elliptical medallion with the words "Averett College, Danville, Virginia" surrounding a lamp and cross--was emblematic of the institution's history and mission. The lamp represented learning, while the cross stood for the Southern Baptist environment in which learning took place. Yet these two symbols were never static representations. Learning in 1859, when the college was founded, was designed to produce a "finished" you lady who could model high culture while attending to hearth and community. Refinement of this curriculum during the next four decades preceded dramatic change in the early twentieth century: job-related education, and elective system, and junior college status. Pre-professional, coeducation and a baccalaureate program followed. Next came new degrees and new venues. The 1980s and 1990s brought non-traditional adult education at twenty-five sites throughout Virginia that soon eclipsed the traditional program. Just as the lamp and cross continued to be enduring motifs, the mission of the institution also reflected the purposes of education in the United States. Since colonial times, Americans have regarded education as essential to representative government. By the 1820s, Americans considered schooling essential to democracy. In the emerging industrial age of the nineteenth century as financial necessity and opportunity continually challenged traditional female roles, Americans were forced to concede the urgency of educating women. The place of Averett College in this larger educational milieu is secondary theme of thiswork.

Jimmy Morrow, a pastor and serpent handler for over a quarter of a century explores the history of serpent handling from a variety of sources, including his extensive familiarity with families whose roots are deep in Appalachia. As a native Appalachian Jimmy has access to histories unavailable to outsiders. While not formally trained as a historian, Jimmy's own narrative of the Jesus Name tradition is a unique contribution to not only Appalachian studies, but to the history of what many have prematurely thought to be a tradition whose obituary is soon to be written. Jimmy's astounding photographs and his keen insight to the power of this tradition that he proudly upholds suggests that while unlikely ever to be a dominant form of religious expression, it will continue as perhaps Americas most unique form of religion that persists in Appalachia despite laws against the practice of handling serpents. This is an extraordinary personal account of a unique form of religious devotion and dedication. It will be of interest to anyone interested in Appalachian culture or religion in the South.

An examination of an entrepreneur who saw his personal wealth as a divine trust.

In Faithful, Firm, and True: African-American Education in the South, Titus Brown traces the dual roles of the northern American Missionary Association (AMA) and the African American community of Macon, Georgia in their joint effort to provide education to blacks in central Georgia. These education pioneers faced many formidable obstacles, including poverty, disease, white hostility, low funds, and a paucity of qualified teachers. Nevertheless, they were able to establish the Ballard Normal School which served the African-American community for almost 100 years, emphasizing such moral virtues as religion, patriotism, morality, and industriousness. These qualities mirrored those advocated by Booker T. Washington in his campaign for industrial education for blacks, but Ballard did not follow Washington's overall plan. Brown places this history of African-American education in Macon in the context of the national debate over what kind of education best served the black community, and what role blacks should play in the nation's social, political, and economic life. In doing so, Brown addresses the heated ideological conflict between Booker T. Washington and W. E. B. DuBois. Faithful, Firm, and True: African-American Education in the South provides a thorough analysis of the important contributions made by early champions of black education in central Georgia and the central role played by Ballard Normal School. It is essential reading for scholars of African-American history, education, and Georgia history.

Encouraged by the Bible, Puritans banished a variety of radicals from the Puritan colonies including Baptists. Among those banished was Roger Williams, the advocate of religious liberty who established the first Baptist church in America. Williams posed a serious challenge to a colonial society in which the Bible was the paramount guide in every aspect of life, both public and private.

After considerable scouring of musty and dusty files in courtroom storage cellars, the research project in Springfield, Illinois discovered more than 70,000 documents directly linked to Abraham Lincoln's twenty-four years as a practicing lawyer. Having access to that wealth of information, A. Lincoln Esquire: A Shrewd, Sophisticated Litigator presents unique insight into Lincoln's legal career in a distinctive book that presents detailed stories about Lincoln's cases using actual trial document, uses Lincoln's cases to examine the social and political climate of the time, shows how relationships between Lincoln and his clients changed over time, and is the first book to use the newly discovered Lincoln Legal Papers primary source data.In contrast to the mythical image of Lincoln as a country lawyer, he was actually among the top leaders of the Illinois bar. This book details more than fifty of Lincoln's legal cases and activities such as assault and battery, bestiality, a wrongful dismissal, medical malpractice uncollected debts, the insanity plea in a murder case, divorce, the selection of expert witnesses, patent infringement, sexual slander, personal damages, corporate clients, and the first use of the temporary insanity plea in a US courtroom, and set the precedent for using expert witnesses. Lincoln even defended an Illinois Supreme Court justice against an impeachment charge.