About the Author

William Yoo is Associate Professor of American Religious and Cultural History and Director of the MDiv Program at Columbia Theological Seminary in Decatur, Georgia. He is the author of American Missionaries, Korean Protestants, and the Changing Shape of World Christianity, 1884–1965,and the editor of The Presbyterian Experience in the United States: A Sourcebook.

Reviews

"In What Kind of Christianity, William Yoo narrates a devastating history of self-interested and self-justifying white Presbyterians using their wealth, intellect, and even Scripture itself to defend slavery and define Black persons as racially inferior. Yoo’s focus is on the long run up to emancipation, and for every brave abolitionist in his story, there are tens of slavery apologists and enthusiasts. Still, this retelling of history is liberating in its clear-eyed view of the truth of the past, with outstanding attention to its subjects’ words, motivations, and institutional contexts placed within a fluid grasp of the best of contemporary scholarship on race and slavery." —James Hudnut-Beumler, Anne Potter Wilson Distinguished Professor of American Religious History, Vanderbilt Divinity School,

"This is a compelling read. William Yoo deftly and powerfully reveals the active participation and complicity in Black enslavement and anti-Black racism of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). Although some Presbyterians were brave, Yoo also shows how a minority of Black and white Presbyterians proved incapable of achieving abolition and dislodging anti-Blackness; and ultimately, the PCUSA succumbed to sectionalism on the eve of the Civil War. By debunking persisting myths, What Kind of Christianity offers the necessary balm for institutional reconciliation and repair in the present." —Hilary N. Green, Professor of Africana Studies, Davidson College

"Yoo’s book is a powerful, well-written, and carefully researched narrative of a tragic chapter in the history of American Christianity. Beyond that, it shows that the events of that time were so deeply connected with the capitulation of the church to American interests and values that contradict the very core of Christianity, making it not enough just to feel shame and remorse for what happened in the past. In the end, Yoo’s book is nothing less than a call for the reformation of all American Christianity." —Justo L. González, author of The Story of Christianity and A History of Early Christian Literature"What Kind of Christianity is an unflinching indictment of mainstream Presbyterianism in America for its historical support of slavery and its persistent failure to confront its complicity head-on. Through his meticulous research of the past, Yoo highlights a way forward for all Christians committed to addressing systemic racism with eyes wide open." —Kirk Nolan, Professor of Religion, Presbyterian College"In the global reckoning of Black Lives Matter, this timely book, which teases out the multiple strands of the relationship between the Presbyterian Church and slavery, is indispensable for understanding America’s painful past, addressing anti-Blackness in the present, and imagining a different, possible future. I have learned a great deal from the book and highly recommend it." —Kwok Pui-lan, Dean’s Professor of Systematic Theology, Candler School of Theology, Emory University "Yoo provides us not only with a compelling, harrowing, and comprehensive history of the Presbyterian Church in nineteenth-century America but also with a powerful deconstruction of the comforting and deceitful illusions we have harbored for centuries as white Presbyterians. What Kind of Christianity is a necessary call to repentance for each of us, compassionately reminding us that we are yet more than conquerors according to the Reformed faith. This sometimes-excruciating text invites us to come to terms with our complicity toward the oppressive system(s) of white supremacy embedded in our own beloved Church, contributing to our perversion of the imago Dei both in our neighbor and in ourselves." —Catherine Knott, Ball Family Chaplain, Hanover College

"Don't be misled by the word, Presbyterian, in the title. This riveting book by Dr. William Yoo is about more than the Presbyterian church's complicity with slavery in the 18th and 19th centuries. It depicts how the most religious and learned people justify what they know as evil. The book has the depth of a historian who knows all the nooks and crannies of the debate over slavery. But what I like the most about it is that it is so engaging to read. It's a page-turner because it's full of jaw-dropping anecdotes, letters, and vivid portraits of leaders on both sides of the slavery debate. I've read plenty of books about the lead-up to the Civil War. This is one of the best. The author packed so much emotion and narrative drive into a slim book. Yoo's book is a gem." —John Blake, Senior Writer, CNN Digital