Daddy Grace: A Celebrity Preacher and His House of Prayer

“This edgy and resourceful analysis” of the early twentieth century preacher “expands our understanding of a critical period in the black church experience” (Shayne Lee, author of T. D. Jakes: America's New Preacher).

In 1919, Charles Manuel “Sweet Daddy” Grace founded the United House of Prayer for All People—long regarded as one of the most extreme Pentecostal sects in the country. The flamboyant Grace wore purple suits with glitzy jewelry, purchased high profile real estate, and conducted baptisms in city streets with a fire hose. He was also reputed to accept massive donations from his poverty-stricken followers and use the money to live lavishly.

Though Grace appeared to be the glue that held this church together, it has continued to thrive long after his death in 1960. After a period of restructuring and streamlining, the House of Prayer remains active with a national membership in the tens of thousands. In Daddy Grace, Marie W. Dallam offers both a religious history of the House of Prayer and an intellectual history of its colorful and enigmatic leader.

Dallam examines the religious nature of the House of Prayer, the dimensions of Grace’s leadership strategies, and the connections between his often ostentatious acts and the intentional infrastructure of the church itself. Furthermore, woven through the text are analyses of the race, class, and gender issues manifest in the House of Prayer structure under Grace’s aegis.

© 2023 NYU Press (Ebook): 9780814720233

Release date

Ebook: 21 November 2023