T. D. Jakes: America’s New Preacher

T. D. Jakes has emerged as one of the most prolific spiritual leaders of our time. He is pastor of one of the largest churches in the country, CEO of a multimillion-dollar empire, the host of a television program, author of a dozen bestsellers, and the producer of two Grammy-nominated CDs and three critically acclaimed plays. In 2001, Time magazine featured Jakes on the cover and asked: Is Jakes the next Billy Graham? T. D. Jakes draws on extensive research, including interviews with numerous friends and colleagues of Jakes, to examine his rise to prominence. Shayne Lee frames Jakes’ success as a metaphor for changes in the Black Church and American Protestantism more broadly, looking at the ramifications of his rise - and the rise of similar preachers - for the way in which religion is practiced in this country, how social issues are confronted or ignored, and what is distinctly American about Jakes’ emergence. While offering elements of biography, Lee also sheds light on important aspects of the contemporary American and African American religious experience.