Diverse Worship: African-American, Caribbean and Hispanic Perspectives

by Pedrito U. Maynard-Reid

Let the nations sing. What are the universal constants of Christian worship? What are the unique elements that arise out of diverse local contexts? How do we appropriately respect and honor both the constancy and the diversity? In Diverse Worship Pedrito U. Maynard-Reid explores the multiethnic dimensions of worship by looking at three specific cultural contexts--African-American, Caribbean and Hispanic. After surveying worship and culture through history, he devotes a section of his book to each of these three cultural context for worship. Maynard-Reid colorfully describes and characterizes each worship tradition, and he explores its historical development and change. Throughout this engaging and enlightening book, we gain new perspective on what it means to worship God.

259 pages, Paperback

First published March 31, 2000

Reviews

[Alex]

Only read pp 1 - 108 for a course on Worship. Not recommended.

[Don Harton]

I liked this book - some parts more than others. The sections I especially enjoyed were The Introduction, Chapter 6 on The Spoken Word in African American Worship, the Fiesta section in Chapter 11, Chapter 12 on Hispanic Music, and parts of the Conclusion. I want to reread Chapter 6.

Throughout Maynard-Reid has drawn together beautiful insights into aspects of diverse worship. He includes lots of lengthy quotes from a wide variety of sources. The breadth of his research is astonishing; his bibliography should be a great starting point for many different types of research.

The parts where I got bogged down may be useful for others: more detailed historical analysis of the growth of various religious groups, in the US and in the Caribbean.