The Abundant Life Prevails: Religious Traditions of Saint Helena Island

Rating:
Summary: Class is still in session at the Penn School
Review: This past spring, Dr. Michael Wolfe-a United Methodist minister in the South Carolina Conference-published his first book entitled: The Abundant Life Prevails-religious traditions of Saint Helena Island. Having earned his doctorate in historical theology from the University of Virginia and spent over two years in research, Wolfe demonstrates remarkable expertise in his analysis of the faith-community that developed on the island and its subsequent impact on the world outside. While other writers have focused primarily on the unique linguistic culture of the islands off the Carolina coast known as Gulla, this book proves to be the first to deal exclusively with the religious tradition represented there. Saint Helena island is located off of the southern end of South Carolina's coast-line. Able to trace its history back to the native Americans and the early Spanish explorers, Saint Helana soon became the home of plantation owners and the hundreds of African slaves who labored there. This all changed, however, during the Civil War as Union naval ships set sail for Charleston and the surrounding areas, liberating all Confedrate-held property. Within a matter of months, and with the aid of Northern missionaries, Saint Helena island entered into the phase of its life that would soon prove to be its most famous (and useful). It is into this arena that Wolfe begins that history. Overall, I thought this book to be a solid, well-documented work that disspelled many of the myths that have arisen and been proposed by other writers about this time period and region (specifically, concerning the motive of the islander's religious practices and the amount of influence the island had during the civil rights movement and the origin of its concern). Going to great lengths to "back-up" his proposals, Wolfe demonstrates (through historical accounts and first-person interviews) the true origins of the religious life that arose on the island and which contributed so much to the islander's education and the island's influence. Covering over a century of history, this book deals with everything from the islander's faith, to the educational model the Penn School came to represent, to the island's critical role in the civil-rights movement during the 1960's. It cannot be over-stated how much of a disproportional impact Saint Helena island is shown to have made on the world outside of it. Stepping out into unventured territory, The Abundant Life Prevails lives up to its name as it beautifully demonstrates what the faith of a people can accomplish amidst oppression, poverty, calamity, and isolation. It is a lesson begun a hundred years ago on a remote island and one that can still be learned today.