Book Review: My Soul Is a Witness

Book Review: My Soul Is a Witness by Marsha Hansen

Disclaimer:  I received this book as a Goodreads giveaway on the premise that I would review it.

Marsha Hansen is a concert vocalist and inspirational speaker who sings and teaches about African-American sacred music.  This book is an extension of that, writing about spirituals and their messages.

Because of slavery, those kidnapped and sold from Africa and their descendants had a very different experience of Christianity than their purchasers and enslavers.  They identified strongly with Job and the Israelite slaves in Egypt.  (Indeed, some white people who preached to slaves deliberately skipped the Exodus story, or changed the ending to have the Israelites voluntarily going back into slavery.)

Since literacy among slaves was discouraged (and in some states illegal), music was one of the few ways they could express their religion, and the songs sung at camp meetings became the spirituals we know of today.

The book comes with a CD of Ms. Hansen, her friends and family performing many of the songs discussed.  Several were recorded at family gatherings, with the rest being done in a more formal studio setting.  Some of the home recordings are a bit rougher than is to my taste, with the drum drowning out bits of the lyrics.  Those of you who prefer an “authentic” sound may like those tracks better.

The writing is stirring, explaining the significance and emotional resonance of each song.   I found it moving.  This book would be best appreciated, I think, by those with a fondness for spirituals, but anyone with an interest in Christian music will probably enjoy it.  There’s also a discussion of slavery in the Bible and how verses were taken to justify cruel oppression.  We now interpret those passages differently, and so our understanding grows.

There is a balm in Gilead

To make the wounded whole

There is a balm in Gilead

To heal the sin-sick soul