Whether sung liturgically, privately, or performed in concert, the Spirituals are a truly unique American music genre, steeped and founded in the Black Church experience with longevity and relevance for our lives today.  Let’s take a brief look at the history, development, and praxis of the Spirituals—oh, and have a little church in the process!

--Meyer Chambers, campus minister for liturgical arts, Boston College, and Rev. Oscar Pratt, pastor, St. Katharine Drexel Parish, Dorchester, MA