Book excerpt: Can the gospel message of the Atonement have a liberative message for black Christians? Is there, indeed, "power in the blood of Jesus"? This study of the meaning of the cross in the African American religious experience is both comprehensive and powerful: comprehensive because it explores the meaning of the cross -- symbol of suffering and sacrifice -- from the early beginnings of Christianity through modern times, and powerful because it is written by a black woman who has experienced abuse and the oppression of field-work.