Alain Locke: Faith and Philosophy

Studies in the Babi and Baha’i Religions, Volume 18

Kalimát Press, First Edition. 

One of the towering figures of African American history is Alain Locke–first black Rhodes Scholar, Harvard Ph.D., professor at Howard University, dean of the Harlem Renaissance. Many books have been written about his contributions to black art and culture in the United States.

These books have generally ignored the fact that Locke was a Baha’i. This book fills in that missing link, telling the story of Locke’s services to the Cause from 1918 until his death in 1954.

Christopher Buck’s recent book, Alain Locke: Faith and Philosophy, is a welcome addition to the literature on early twentieth-century American and African American culture. But, perhaps more important, Buck’s study is a significant contribution to scholarship on the history of the Bahá’í Faith in the United States. … Any future study of Locke must necessarily make its way through Christopher Buck’s Alain Locke: Faith and Philosophy. The scholar forcefully proves his thesis that, in Locke’s thinking, philosophy and religious belief operated as synergistic terms. He has shown that the Bahá’í Faith was integral to Locke’s life and ideology. … Yet, after reading Buck’s work, it is difficult to imagine Locke the philosopher rapt in prayer. Of course, this is not a shortcoming of the book. Rather it is an indication that, while he may have wanted to portray a more pious figure, Buck maintains the vow he made in his introduction to Alain Locke: Faith and Philosophy “to constrain any grandiose claims on Locke as a Bahá’í.

From a review by Derik Smith published in World Order in 2008

But the jewels in this book are unmistakable. … Clearly, Buck has given voice to the men and women who not only put the Bahá’í faith first in their lives, but also left key documents, personal letters, notes, and memoranda related to the life of philosopher Alain LeRoy Locke for future research-ers to ponder and use for years to come.

From a review by M. Anthony Fitchue published in Journal of African American History, 2007

Both of these books [Lights of the Spirit and Alain Locke: Faith and Philosophy] go a long way toward correcting the historians’ failure to note the important role played by the Bahá’í Faith and prominent African-American Bahá’ís in the struggle for racial equality in the United States.

From a review by William P. Collins published in Insights (Library of Congress Professional Association Newsletter) in 2006