Black theology
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Black theology, or black liberation theology, refers to a theological perspective which originated among African-American seminarians and scholars, and in some black churches in the United States and later in other parts of the world. It contextualizes Christianity in an attempt to help those of African descent overcome oppression. It especially focuses on the injustices committed against African Americans and black South Africans during American segregation and apartheid, respectively.
Black theology seeks to liberate non-white people from multiple forms of political, social, economic, and religious subjugation and views Christian theology as a theology of liberation – "a rational study of the being of God in the world in light of the existential situation of an oppressed community, relating the forces of liberation to the essence of the Gospel, which is Jesus Christ", writes James H. Cone, one of the original advocates of the perspective. Black theology mixes Christianity with questions of civil rights, particularly raised by the Black Power movement and the Black Consciousness Movement. Further, black theology has led the way and contributed to the discussion, and conclusion, that all theology is contextual – even what is known as systematic theology.
See also
- Bibliography of Black theology
- Albert Cleage
- W. E. B. Du Bois
- Dwight Hopkins
- Martin Luther King Jr.
- Liberation theology
- Womanist theology
- Christian Identity
