Charles Eric Lincoln (June 23, 1924 – May 14, 2000) was an American scholar.Eric V. Copage

in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', May 17, 2000.Penne J. Laubenthal
"C. Eric Lincoln"
Encyclopedia of Alabama, June 14, 2011. He was the author of several books, including sociological works such as ''The Black Church Since Frazier'' (1974) and ''Race, Religion and the Continuing American Dilemma'' (1984), as well as fiction and poetry.

Biography

C. Eric Lincoln was born in

Athens, Alabama Athens is a city in and the county seat of Limestone County, in the U.S. state of Alabama; it is included in the Huntsville-Decatur-Albertville, AL Combined Statistical Area. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city is 25,406. Hist ...

, on June 23, 1924. He was abandoned by his father, then by his mother, and raised by his grandmother. He attended Trinity School in Athens, where he edited the school newspaper, the ''Campus Chronicle''.Hurt, Leslie
"Lincoln, Charles Eric (1924-2000)"
BlackPast.org. At the age of 13, he picked cotton to support his family and to buy books for his studies. He graduated a

valedictorian Valedictorian is an academic title for the class rank, highest-performing student of a graduation, graduating class of an academic institution in the United States. The valedictorian is generally determined by an academic institution's grade poin ...

from high school. After studying and working in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, he served in the U.S. Navy from 1943 to 1945. He received a BA in sociology and philosophy from LeMoyne-Owen College in

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in Shelby County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. Situated along the Mississippi River, it had a population of 633,104 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in Tenne ...

, in 1947. In 1954, he received an MA from

Fisk University Fisk University is a Private university, private Historically black colleges and universities, historically black Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Nashville, Tennessee. It was founded in 1866 and its campus i ...

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

. In 1956, he received a Bachelor of Divinity from the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, or UChi) is a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its main campus is in the Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood on Chicago's South Side, Chic ...

, and in 1957 he was ordained as a

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...

minister. He went on to earn a master's degree in education, and in 1960 he received a PhD in Social Ethics from

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a Private university, private research university in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. BU was founded in 1839 by a group of Boston Methodism, Methodists with its original campus in Newbury (town), Vermont, Newbur ...

. He started his career as a sales representative for

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, then was a manager for a Memphis nightclub, and a road manager for the Birmingham Black Barons baseball team. As an academic, he taught at

Clark Atlanta University Clark Atlanta University (CAU or Clark Atlanta) is a private, Methodist, historically black research university in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. It was founded on September19, 1865, as Atlanta University, it was the first HBCU in the South ...

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

, for eleven years, from 1962 to 1972. He served as Adjunct or visiting professor at

Portland State University Portland State University (PSU) is a public research university in Portland, Oregon, United States. It was founded in 1946 as a post-secondary educational institution for World War II veterans. It evolved into a four-year college over the next ...

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

Union Theological Seminary in the City of New York Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Unio ...

Fordham University Fordham University is a Private university, private Society of Jesus, Jesuit research university in New York City, United States. Established in 1841, it is named after the Fordham, Bronx, Fordham neighborhood of the Bronx in which its origina ...

Brown University Brown University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. It is the List of colonial colleges, seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the US, founded in 1764 as the ' ...

, and at the

University of Ghana The University of Ghana is a public university located in Accra, Ghana. It is the oldest public university in the country. The university was founded in 1948 as the University College of the Gold Coast in the British colony of the Gold Coast ...

. In 1970, he became the founding president of the Black Academy of Letters. From 1973 to 1976, he served as Professor of Religion and of Sociology and chairman of the Department of Religion and Philosophical Studies at Fisk University. From 1976 to 1993, he taught Religion and Culture at

Duke University Duke University is a Private university, private research university in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day city of Trinity, North Carolina, Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1 ...

Durham, North Carolina Durham ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the county seat of Durham County, North Carolina, Durham County. Small portions of the city limits extend into Orange County, North Carolina, Orange County and Wake County, North Carol ...

. His novel, ''The Avenue, Clayton City'', won the Lillian Smith Book Award for Best Southern Fiction in 1988 and the International Black Writers' Alice Browning Award in 1989. In 1990 he was elected to the Fellowship of Southern Writers. He was friends with

Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister, civil and political rights, civil rights activist and political philosopher who was a leader of the civil rights move ...

Malcolm X Malcolm X (born Malcolm Little, later el-Hajj Malik el-Shabazz; May 19, 1925 – February 21, 1965) was an African American revolutionary, Islam in the United States, Muslim minister and human rights activist who was a prominent figur ...

, and

Alex Haley Alexander Murray Palmer Haley (August 11, 1921 – February 10, 1992) was an American writer and the author of the 1976 book '' Roots: The Saga of an American Family.'' ABC adapted the book as a television miniseries of the same name and ...

. In 1990, he was cited by

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...

for "scholarly service to the church". He was diagnosed with

diabetes Diabetes mellitus, commonly known as diabetes, is a group of common endocrine diseases characterized by sustained high blood sugar levels. Diabetes is due to either the pancreas not producing enough of the hormone insulin, or the cells of th ...

in 1980 and died on May 14, 2000, at the age of 75 in Durham, North Carolina.

Bibliography

*''The Black Muslims in America'' (1961) *''My Face Is Black'' (1964) *''The Negro Pilgrimage in America'' (1967) *''Race, Religion and the Continuing American Dilemma'' (1984) *''The Avenue, Clayton City'' (1988) *''The Black Church in the African-American Experience'' (with Lawrence H. Mamiya, 1990) *''This Road Since Freedom: Collected Poems'' (1990) *''Coming Through the Fire: Surviving Race and Place in America'' (1996)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lincoln, Eric C. 1924 births 2000 deaths People from Athens, Alabama LeMoyne–Owen College alumni Fisk University alumni Boston University alumni University of Chicago Divinity School alumni Fordham University faculty Portland State University faculty Brown University faculty Academic staff of the University of Ghana Duke University faculty African-American Methodist clergy American Methodist clergy 20th-century African-American academics 20th-century American academics Deaths from diabetes in the United States African-American novelists American male novelists African-American poets American poets Academics from Alabama Novelists from Alabama Novelists from New York (state) Novelists from Oregon American expatriates in Ghana 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American clergy 20th-century African-American writers African-American male writers