Old Ship of Zion : The Afro-Baptist Ritual in the African Diaspora (Religion in America)

This is a major new study of the African origins of African-American forms of worship, based on the author's fieldwork in black Baptist churches in rural Texas. Through historical comparisons and linguistic analysis, Pitts uncovers striking parallels between "Afro-Baptist" services and the religious rituals of Western and Central Afric, as well as other African-derived rituals in the Caribbean, Brazil etc.