The Subversive Pulpit

“This is the book we have been waiting for! Delgado shows that offering any womanist interpretation of Black Christianity in America involves centering Pentecostal Bishop Ida B. Robinson. This book taps into a legacy of black women’s religious world-making that is historically rich, theologically complex, and astute to the economic and political forces that have shaped it. This book will be read for generations to come.”

—Keri Day, Princeton Theological Seminary

“The Subversive Pulpit introduces readers to the remarkable story of Bishop Ida Bell Robinson: a groundbreaking religious innovator, media maker, entrepreneur, and overlooked architect of the Pentecostal movement. With sharp insight and narrative verve, Delgado traces Robinson’s call to ‘loose the women,’ revealing a bold leader who championed a radical vision of gender equity that opened new social and economic possibilities for Black women. The result is a compelling account of race, gender, religion, industrialization, and urban life - essential reading for anyone interested in religion in modern America.”

—Leah Payne, Professor of American Religious History at Portland Seminary and author of God Gave Rock & Roll to You: A History of Contemporary Christian Music

“In The Subversive Pulpit, Dara Coleby Delgado offers a powerful new history of Black Pentecostalism through the remarkable life of Bishop Ida Bell Robinson, founder of the Mount Sinai Holy Church of America. Recovering a largely forgotten chapter of the nation’s religious past, Delgado shows how Bell, who was part of the Great Migration of Black Southerners to the urban North, built a groundbreaking church in Philadelphia in 1924 that centered Black women as religious leaders and visionaries. Through its school, radio ministry, and national newsletter, it expanded rapidly across the country. Blending painstaking research with compelling prose, Delgado reveals the key role of Black women Pentecostals in shaping modern American religion, making this book essential reading for scholars and general readers alike.”

—John Giggie, University of Alabama

Dara Coleby Delgado is Assistant Professor of American Religion at the University of North Carolina Wilmington.

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