History

The Black Church

An intimate four-hour series from Henry Louis Gates, Jr., The Black Church: This Is Our Story, This Is Our Song will explore the 400-year-old story of the black church in America, the changing nature of worship spaces, and the men and women who shepherded them from the pulpit, the choir loft, and church pews.

Episode 2

1h 49m

Discover how the Black church expanded its reach to address social inequality and minister to those in need, from the Jim Crow South to the heroic phase of the civil rights movement and the Black church’s role in the present.

Episodes

  • Episode 2: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Episode 2

    S1 E2 - 1h 49m

    Discover how the Black church expanded its reach to address social inequality and minister to those in need, from the Jim Crow South to the heroic phase of the civil rights movement and the Black church’s role in the present.

  • Episode 1: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Episode 1

    S1 E1 - 1h 50m

    Henry Louis Gates, Jr. explores the roots of African American religion beginning with the trans-Atlantic slave trade and the extraordinary ways enslaved Africans preserved and adapted their faith practices from the brutality of slavery to emancipation.

Extras + Features

  • The History Of Black Religion in America: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    The History Of Black Religion in America

    S1 - 58s

    Off the coast of Georgia, you can find some of the deepest traces of Christianity, as well as Islam. Over time, the traditions of the separate religions slowly merged, fusing the two different worlds.

  • First Black Run Institutions: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    First Black Run Institutions

    S1 - 2m 14s

    The First African Baptist Church in Savannah, Georgia, was founded in 1773 and is one of the first Black run institutions on record in the United States.

  • Fisk Minstrel Show: asset-mezzanine-16x9

    Fisk Minstrel Show

    S1 - 1m 36s

    The spiritual arrangements of the 1870s, like the ones performed by the Fisk Jubilee Singers, were quite different from the simple folk songs that had a single melody.

Schedule

  • The Black Church: This Is Our Story, This Is Our Song: TVSS: Iconic

    The Black Church

    Sunday
    Dec 1

    3 Hours

    The roots of Black religion, from the trans-Atlantic slave trade to the ways enslaved Africans preserved and adapted faith practices from slavery to emancipation.
  • The Black Church: This Is Our Story, This Is Our Song: TVSS: Iconic

    The Black Church

    Monday
    Dec 2

    3 Hours

    The roots of Black religion, from the trans-Atlantic slave trade to the ways enslaved Africans preserved and adapted faith practices from slavery to emancipation.
  • The Black Church: This Is Our Story, This Is Our Song: TVSS: Iconic

    The Black Church

    Monday
    Dec 2

    3 Hours

    The roots of Black religion, from the trans-Atlantic slave trade to the ways enslaved Africans preserved and adapted faith practices from slavery to emancipation.
  • The Black Church: This Is Our Story, This Is Our Song: TVSS: Iconic

    The Black Church

    Monday
    Dec 2

    3 Hours

    The roots of Black religion, from the trans-Atlantic slave trade to the ways enslaved Africans preserved and adapted faith practices from slavery to emancipation.

Local Black Church Connections

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Learn More on Boundary Stones

From the pulpit to politics to building community, African American churches have played in integral role in shaping the history of the Washington, D.C. region. Learn more on our Boundary Stones local history blog.

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