The Madonna of 115th Street

A twenty-fifth anniversary edition of the author's classic study of popular religion in Italian Harlem. In the preface, it discusses significant shifts in the field of religious history and calls for new ways of empirically studying divine presences in human life. In a masterful evocation of Italian Harlem and the men and women who lived there, Robert Orsi examines how the annual festa of the Madonna of 115th Street both influenced and reflected the lives of the celebrants. His prize-winning book offers a new perspective on lived religion, the place of religion in the everyday lives of men, women, and children, the experiences of immigration and community formation, and American Catholicism. This edition includes a new introduction by the author that outlines both the changes that Italian Harlem has undergone in recent years and significant shifts in the field of religious history. Reviews of the earlier edition:“A richly tapestried portrait-narrative. . . . Orsi is to be commended for a truly significant contribution to the annals of American social history.”—Francesco Cordasco, USA Today “Orsi has fashioned an impressive fusion of the inner histories of immigrant social and religious life.”—John W. Briggs, American Historical Review

Describes the origin and history of the annual festa in Italian Harlem