"Contrary to some misguided perceptions about the religion of black folk, African-American spirituality plays a vital role in the formation and practice of black freedom in America. While social and political freedom are important quests in the African-American experience of freedom, black Americans have managed to create a unique experience of freedom that embraces black spirituality and black culture as essential elements for building personal identity, consolidating community and determining their destiny. This freedom has also created a unique cultural archive of the black culture soul which shapes the consciousness and values of black Americans as a people of God of inherent worth and power who have surmounted the relentless storms of adversity." "Black spirituality affirms, negates and transcends aspects of Anglo-American culture, creates and sustains African-American culture and establishes psychological and spiritual relocation in response to oppression and various systems of devaluation in American society."--Jacket