Category: Religion

90th Anniversary sale now includes biography and American studies books

Our 90th anniversary sale continues with new books added in biography and American studies. Save 50% and get free shipping on orders over $75. Sale continues on select books in Civil War, literature and literary studies, African American history, women’s studies, religious studies, and art, architecture, and craft. Continue Reading 90th Anniversary sale now includes biography and American studies books

Mary J. Henold: The Leadership Conference of Women Religious is the Scapegoat for Our Disobedience

I believe, at the root of this assault on the sisters’ autonomy, is a bewilderment and anger at the hierarchy’s loss of power over laywomen. Continue Reading Mary J. Henold: The Leadership Conference of Women Religious is the Scapegoat for Our Disobedience

Jeff Broadwater: James Madison, Secular Humanist

James Madison won the presidency in a landslide in 1808, prevailed in a closer race in 1812, and left office as a revered elder statesman four years later. Among his most appealing traits was a lifelong commitment to religious freedom, but if we could raise him from the dead–never mind the Twenty-Second Amendment limiting presidents to two terms–his views on the separation of church and state might well keep him out of today’s White House. Continue Reading Jeff Broadwater: James Madison, Secular Humanist

Sa’diyya Shaikh: Finding Voices of Dissent within Islamic Tradition

For Muslims committed to social justice and feminism it is vital to highlight and expand on voices of dissent to patriarchy that exist in the plethora that is Islamic tradition. Continue Reading Sa’diyya Shaikh: Finding Voices of Dissent within Islamic Tradition

Excerpt: Into the Pulpit, by Elizabeth H. Flowers

On August 9, 1964, Watts Street Baptist Church in Durham, North Carolina, ordained Addie Davis to the gospel ministry—the first ordination of a woman by a Southern Baptist church. It came well ahead of many mainstream Protestant bodies and only one year after the publication of The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan. Continue Reading Excerpt: Into the Pulpit, by Elizabeth H. Flowers

Spring sale now includes Civil War & Literary Studies

Our 90th anniversary sale now includes selected titles in Civil War, literary studies, women’s studies, religious studies, African American history, and art/architecture/craft. Continue Reading Spring sale now includes Civil War & Literary Studies

Our Spring Sale grows: books in women’s studies and art now half off!

Our 90th anniversary sale expands this month to include select books in women’s studies and art/architecture/craft now 50% off. Free shipping on orders of $75+. Continue Reading Our Spring Sale grows: books in women’s studies and art now half off!

Excerpt: Sufi Narratives of Intimacy, by Saʿdiyya Shaikh

It is Cairo on a sweltering afternoon, and the faithful are streaming into a beautiful, simple mosque. The Friday (jumu‘a) prayers are about to begin. In the courtyard, people take their ablutions in the cool fountain water that provides welcome relief from the heat of the Cairene afternoon. A group of women sitting close together is silently reciting the Qur’ān. An old man, his face kissed gently by time, is sitting easily upright with eyes closed, meditating on the beautiful names of God. Two old friends, both returning to the city after years of travel, trade, and learning, are greeting each other with a tender embrace. A young man, hands raised in supplication, is softly murmuring his deepest yearnings into the hearing of the omniscient One. As the call to prayer is given, a hush falls over the crowd, with each person repairing to his or her private supplications before the sermon begins. Continue Reading Excerpt: Sufi Narratives of Intimacy, by Saʿdiyya Shaikh

Nadine Cohodas: Nina Simone and Israeli Folk Music

Nina Simone—the High Priestess of Soul to some, a fierce advocate of racial justice to others—would seem to be an unlikely interpreter of Israeli folk songs. Yet in 1962, as her career was taking off, Simone incorporated “Eretz Zavat Chalev” (“The Land of Milk and Honey”) into her repertoire. It proved to be an early example of her eclectic musical taste and one of her initial steps in moving beyond the traditional jazz combo–piano, bass, and drums–an evolution that would cement her place among world-renowned artists.
Continue Reading Nadine Cohodas: Nina Simone and Israeli Folk Music

UNC Press celebrates 90 years, and the gifts are for you!

In celebration of our 90th birthday, we’ll feature new disciplines reduced 50% each month. Save now on books in African American History and Religious Studies. Continue Reading UNC Press celebrates 90 years, and the gifts are for you!

Learn about and learn from Loving v Virginia

As a new documentary film about the Loving v. Virginia case appears, we look back to Fay Botham’s book for some of the religious and legal aspects of the case. Includes an excerpt from the book. Continue Reading Learn about and learn from Loving v Virginia

Marvin McAllister: Idris Elba ‘Multi-Levels’ THOR: Norse Mythology Meets Yoruba Cosmology

Historian Marvin McAllister explores the racial and mythical dimensions of casting a black British actor in the role of a Norse god in the recent film THOR. Continue Reading Marvin McAllister: Idris Elba ‘Multi-Levels’ THOR: Norse Mythology Meets Yoruba Cosmology

It’s time for our Spring ’11 titles to take the Page 99 Test–I hope they studied.

It’s been a while since we’ve put any of our books to the Page 99 Test.  Let’s make up for lost time, shall we?  Just as a refresher, the Page 99 Test follows Ford Madox Ford’s suggestion to “open the book to page ninety-nine and read, and the quality of the whole will be revealed to you.” Read on to… Continue Reading It’s time for our Spring ’11 titles to take the Page 99 Test–I hope they studied.

David W. Stowe: Coming Out of the Jesus Movement: A Conversation with Marsha Stevens-Pino

David Stowe reflects on meeting and interviewing Marsha Stevens-Pino, a popular singer in the 1970s Jesus Movement who was ostracized for coming out as a lesbian. Continue Reading David W. Stowe: Coming Out of the Jesus Movement: A Conversation with Marsha Stevens-Pino

EPIC SALE TIME!!

It’s EPIC SALE TIME! Over 700 UNC Press books are on sale! Read more about the huge deals here. Continue Reading EPIC SALE TIME!!