Martin Luther King: A Religious Life (Library of African American Biography)

"[Sh]ould take a prominent place on the shelf of literature about the man who changed 20th century America." Publishers Weekly, Starred Review In this new biography, distinguished historian Paul Harvey examines Martin Luther King's life through his complex, emerging religious lives. Harvey introduces many readers, perhaps for the first or only time, to the King of diverse religious and intellectual influences, of an increasingly radical cast of thought, and of a mélange of intellectual influences that he aligned in becoming the spokesperson for the most important social movement of twentieth-century American history. Not only does Harvey chronicle King's metamorphosis and its impact on American and African American life, but he seeks to explain his "afterlives"-how in American culture King became transformed into a mainstream civil saint, shorn of his radical religious critique of how power functioned in America. Harvey's concise biography will allow readers to see King anew in the context of his time and today. In the first In the first biography of Martin Luther King to look at his life through the prism of his evolving faith, distinguished historian Paul Harvey examines Martin Luther King's life through his complex, emerging, religious lives. Harvey will introduce many readers, perhaps for the first or only time, to the King of diverse religious and intellectual influences, of an increasingly radical cast of thought, and of a m�lange of intellectual influences that he aligned in becoming the spokesperson for the most important social movement of twentieth-century American history. Not only does Harvey chronicle King's metamorphosis and its impact on American and African American life, but he seeks to explain his "afterlives"--how in American culture King became transformed into a mainstream civil saint, shorn of his radical religious critique of how power functioned in America. Harvey's concise biography will allow readers to see King anew in the context of his time and today. Introduction. The redemptive power of Martin Luther King -- Growing up King -- The young preacher in Boston and Montgomery -- The Montgomery uprising -- Montgomery and SCLC -- The dream, the letter, and the nightmare -- Struggling in Selma and Chicago -- Shot rings out in the Memphis sky -- Epilogue. The irrelevance of sainthood : the afterlives of King "In the first biography of Martin Luther King to look at his life through the prism of his evolving faith, distinguished historian Paul Harvey examines Martin Luther King's life through his complex, emerging, religious lives. Harvey's concise biography will allow readers to see King anew in the context of his time and today"-- Provided by publisher Contents Acknowledgments Introduction 1 Growing Up King 2 The Young Preacher in Boston and Montgomery 3 The Montgomery Uprising 4 Montgomery and the SCLC 5 The Dream, the Letter, and the Nightmare 6 Struggling in Selma and Chicago 7 Shot Rings Out in the Memphis Sky Epilogue Bibliographic Essay Index