Radical Disciple

October 15, 2010
Reverend Michael Pfleger, the blond-haired, blue-eyed pastor of a Catholic church in a black neighborhood in Chicago, has spent 26 years defying the archdiocese and angering conservative Catholics with his unorthodox style and passionate pursuit of social justice. Inspired by seeing Martin Luther King Jr., Pfleger was determined to pursue his career as a Catholic priest in the inner-city parish of St. Sabina, a neighborhood plagued by drug trafficking and prostitution. During his tenure, the church has achieved financial stability and aggressively challenged issues from the sale of drugs to billboard advertisements for cigarettes and liquor to gun control. The church has invested in the redevelopment of the community, providing housing, schools, and social services. Journalist McClory, himself a former Catholic priest at St. Sabina, describes the churchs three-hour services as a blend of Roman Catholicism and black Baptist tradition as Pfleger has sought to adopt Afrocentrism in d'cor, music, and preaching style. Pfleger has defied the archdiocese by adopting three boys and inviting as speakers controversial figures, including Louis Farrakhan, head of the Nation of Islam. A fascinating look at a radical priest.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2010, American Library Association.)