SEEKING SALVATION: BLACK MESSIANISM, RACIAL FORMATION, AND CHRISTIAN THOUGHT IN LATE TWENTIETH CENTURY BLACK CULTURAL TEXTS by Deidre Lyniece Wheaton A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (American Culture) in The University of Michigan 2008 Doctoral Committee: Associate Professor Angela D. Dillard, Co-Chair Associate Professor Joshua L. Miller, Co-Chair Associate Professor Tiya Miles Professor Ifeoma Nwankwo, Vanderbilt University But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Matthew 6:33 Copyright Deidre L. Wheaton 2008 Dedicated To Jerry Wheaton and Janet Wheaton I love you and appreciate you more than you know. ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Someone once said that although dissertations are written in solitude, Ph.D.s are not earned alone. Having reached the end of this process, I understand the truth in this statement. I could not have completed this dissertation on my own, and I am so grateful that I did not have to try to do so. During the past seven years, I have been abundantly blessed to have all the support I needed to achieve the goal of earning a graduate degree. My prayer is that these words of acknowledgement will adequately express the depth of my gratitude for all that has been done to help me along the way. I must begin by thanking the University of Michigan, the Rackham Graduate School, and the Program in American Culture. This institution’s commitment to excellence in graduate education created a great space for me to develop as a scholar. The Rackham Merit Fellowship, the One Term Dissertation Fellowship, and the opportunities to teach my own courses provided me with much needed financial support and teaching experience. The Program in American Culture, in particular, provided a great intellectual environment. The faculty and students really were a community of scholars and friends. You all made being a graduate student a pleasant experience. And, I am sure that I am not alone when I say that American Culture would simply not be the same without Marlene Moore. Marlene you are a wonderful Graduate Student Assistant, and I am so thankful for your open door policy and for your extensive knowledge, which you share so freely. iii Intellectually, the people who have influenced me most during the planning and writing of this dissertation have been my advisors—Angela Dillard, Joshua Miller, Ifeoma Nwankwa, and Tiya Miles. Joshua and Ifeoma you were a part of this project from the very beginning, when it was only a vague sketch of an idea. Through the many, many changes to the topic, you remained receptive to all my transformations. More than anything else, I thank you both for encouraging me not to shy away from engaging religion in this project. You understood my apprehensions and gave me the support I needed to research the topic I was passionate about. Angela, the depth and breath of your knowledge astonishes me. And the care with which you use your knowledge to offer comments on various drafts of the chapters presented here made this dissertation a better and much stronger study than it would have been without you. I appreciate you most for your ability to see the seeds of would be fruitful ideas and challenge me to dig a little deeper. I do not know if I would have progressed as quickly as I did in the writing process were it not for you being my personal deadline setter. Thank you for giving me some discipline when I did not have the ability to do it for myself. Tiya, though our personal contact has been limited, you were there during the very early stages of the dissertation. I take away from our interactions and conversations a much better understanding of what it means to embrace the challenges that come along with being a woman of color and a scholar/teacher in addition to having a family. The quality of your scholarship lets me know it is possible to wear many hats and wear them well. Thank you Tiya, Angela, Ifeoma, and Joshua for being such amazingly bright beacons of light along this intellectual journey. iv When insights and feedback from my advisors was not enough and I needed to vent in a way that only seems to resonate with other people in the same situation, members of my cohort, particularly Justine Pas and Rachel Peterson, were the people I called. They graciously read early drafts of my chapters, gave insightful feedback, listened to me complain, and called me out when I was procrastinating. Thank you both so much for forming a writing group with me. Thank you for your encouragement and understanding. I have to give a very special thank you to Justine for all of those study sessions at Sweetwaters, and especially for passing along the job at Albion College to me. This dissertation would not be what it is without the support I received from my fellow graduate students and advisors, but my graduate school experience extended far beyond the University of Michigan. Before classes officially began, I attended my first worship service as the Second Baptist Church of Ann Arbor. The church was without a pastor at the time, but within a few months the Lord sent Rev. Mark J. Lyons to the congregation. Under his leadership I came to understand what it means to be a Christian and I grew spiritually and personally as a result of the Christian education I received. More than anything else, as my personal relationship with God developed, the emphasis Rev. Lyons placed on doing the work of the church outside the walls of the building, totally transformed my thinking regarding the duties of Christian discipleship. Knowing that my Savior had placed a special calling on my life altered the way that I thought not only about my personal spiritual growth but also about the role that my scholarship could play in the building of the Kingdom of God. In many implicit ways Rev. Lyons’ spiritual fingerprints can be found throughout this dissertation. His teachings about who Christ is and what he calls Christians to do influenced my thinking about the black messiahs v discussed in the chapters that follow. So I have to say: “Thanks Reverend for allowing the Lord to use you to teach and preach and educate me about what it means to have a Christ centered consciousness.” Beyond pastoral leadership, the love I received from members at Second Baptist gave me the strength I needed to get through some of the most academically stressful, emotionally distressing, and spiritually taxing years of my life. The space I have here does not allow me to mention everyone, but I must recognize a few people by name, because as I look at the completed chapters I know that they simply would not have been written as quickly as they were had God not used these individuals to encourage and support me when I did not have the wherewithal to support myself. First, the Townsel, Dye, Ransom crew. You all have a very special place in my heart. You welcomed me into your family. You loved me in spite of me, and I won’t ever forget that. Chuck (Charles Ransom) thank you so much for being my personal research assistant. Whenever I couldn’t find what I needed in the library you were always there to lend your skills. Robbie, thanks for all those free lunches and impromptu discussions in your office. When I was going through tough patches you took the time to talk with me and encourage me. You never seemed to doubt that I could finish the dissertation. Your confident assurance in my ability to complete this project gave me confidence on those days when I was doubtful. I look forward one day to having the opportunity to return the favor and help you get through your own Ph.D. I appreciate you all very much. As is the case in everyone’s life, the past seven years have had ups and downs. When I should have been focusing on writing the dissertation, my attentions were vi divided, the affections of my heart were misplaced, and I was just on the verge of losing my mind. Thankfully God sent Deacon John Hardin, Sherita Wilson, and Salena Whitfield into my life to help me grow, heal, and remain focused during the final stages of the writing process. You all know better than anyone the challenges I faced the past two years, and in the midst of knowing how my own disobedience and unwise choices were the root of my problems you never judged. Deacon Hardin, your voice was the first one I heard when I walked into Second Baptist for the very first time. I sat in your Sunday school class and laughed more than I ever had in church. After my first session of Sunday school I knew I had found the church home for me. The warmth of your spirit spoke to me that day, and although it took you over a year to learn my name, I knew very early on you had a special place in my heart. I appreciate your willingness to tell me the truth even when it is not what I want to hear. I am so bless that you have shared so much of your wisdom with me, and more than anything else I am so grateful that you are concerned about me and love me without expectations. When I was distracted by the circumstances and situations of my life, you noticed.