"Let Us Keep the Feast": The History of Christ Episcopal Church, Tuscaloosa, Alabama, 1828-1998

By Henry Walker. Tallahassee, Fla.: Sentry Press, 2000. xvi, 320 pp. $30.00. ISBN 1-889574-08-2.

As a historian of Baptist churches in Alabama, I read the history of an Episcopal church in Tuscaloosa with a great deal of interest. In many respects, the histories of the two denominations are very similar. They experienced periods of growth and development that coincided, and they responded to the Civil War and Reconstruction in similar fashion. By the early 1880s, both groups had recovered ground lost since the outbreak of war. For much of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, Episcopalians and Baptists struggled to meet monthly bills and stay solvent. The Great Depression and two world wars affected both denominations in much the same way. Above all, their congregations always found it hard to get along with their pastors.

Christ Episcopal Church of Tuscaloosa is one of the oldest Episcopal congregations in the state, having been founded in 1828. Henry Walker accomplishes his goal of placing this congregation in its proper historical setting. The story of Christ Church is developed against a background both of Tuscaloosa history and of proximity to the University of Alabama. Its position in the Alabama diocese of the Episcopal church is well documented, and its history is set against national developments. The author has avoided daily minutiae and the listing of many names of church lay members. Instead, he follows several themes that run throughout the church's history. These include regular reports on numbers of communicants, the size of annual budgets, the story of the building programs, and the relationship with students and faculty at the University. Significant attention is paid to the growing role and influence of women in the congregation. One brief chapter is devoted to the church's response to the civil rights tensions of the 1960s. The most significant development in recent decades is the inauguration of multiple social ministries.

The only quibble I have with this book is that the author does not give adequate biographical sketches of the rectors. Particularly lacking is information on what happened to these men after leaving Christ Church. Churches are but "the lengthened shadows" of their pastors, and a more detailed study of these rectors might have shed more light on their years in Tuscaloosa.

Walker, a trained historian, lists among his sources at least forty-five collections of personal papers; all available church records, including those of the diocese; and formal interviews with a dozen key people. His most valuable sources were vestry records, which were complete for all years except 1884-99. This volume is attractively printed and illustrated with both black and white and color photographs. A floor plan for each addition to the building makes the discussions of expansion easy to understand. There are lists of rectors, curates, and members who have been ordained in the ministry. A convenient roll of the bishops of the Diocese of Alabama is valuable because of the role played by the church within the diocese. A lengthy list of memorials is accompanied by a brief description of each. About twenty-five pages are devoted to an outline of the music program of Christ Church. Some of this information is also included in the main text.

Beyond the church's membership, the book should appeal to historians of Tuscaloosa, the University of Alabama, and other Episcopal churches. Descendants of the clergy and lay leaders may want to own a copy out of family pride. Historians of religion will find that this book provides a sharp delineation of trends.

LEE N. ALLEN

Samford University

Copyright University of Alabama Press Jan 2003
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