Liberating Black Theology: The Bible and the Black Experience in America

by Anthony Bradley

Publisher:

Crossway

, 2010

Overview

When the beliefs of Barack Obama's former pastor, Rev. Jeremiah Wright, assumed the spotlight during the 2008 presidential campaign, the influence of black liberation theology became hotly debated not just within theological circles but across cultural lines. How many of today's African-American congregations-and how many Americans in general-have been shaped by its view of blacks as perpetual victims of white oppression?

In this interdisciplinary, biblical critique of the black experience in America, Anthony Bradley introduces audiences to black liberation theology and its spiritual and social impact. He starts with James Cone's proposition that the "victim" mind-set is inherent within black consciousness. Bradley then explores how such biblical misinterpretation has historically hindered black churches in addressing the diverse issues of their communities and prevented adherents from experiencing the freedoms of the gospel. Yet Liberating Black Theology does more than consider the ramifications of this belief system; it suggests an alternate approach to the black experience that can truly liberate all Christ-followers.

Key Features

• Explains what black liberation theology is
• Suggests that black theology must be formulated within biblically constrained presuppositions
• Offers what is essential for a Christian theology that is faithful to the text and also deals with personal and structural sin

Contents

• Setting the Stage: Defining Terms and Theological Distinctions
• America the Broken: Cone's Sociopolitical Ethical Context
• Cone's Theological Scaffolding
• Victimology in the Marxist Ethics of Black Theology
• Biblical Interpretation and the Black Experience
• Is There a Future for Black Liberation Theology?

Top Highlights

“While black theology affirms blackness, that theology should not be construed as an antiwhite reactionary theology. The notion of blackness is not merely a reference to skin color but rather is a symbol of oppression that can be applied to all persons of color who have a history of oppression, as well as to other marginalized groups such as homosexuals.” (source)

“What James Cone and those who followed him came to develop is not only a theology predicated on the autonomous black person as a nearly permanent victim of white aggression but also a separatist theological system, all in the name of contextualization. This newly developed theology, based on victimology, not only jettisons orthodox Christianity but also impedes opportunities for ecclesial reconciliation.” (source)

“For Cone, no theology is Christian theology unless it arises from oppressed communities and interprets Jesus’ work as that of liberation. Christian theology is understood in terms of systemic and structural relationships between two main groups: victims (the oppressed) and victimizers (oppressors).” (source)

“In the Trinitarian view of the Godhead, black theology says that as Creator, God identified with oppressed Israel and participated in the forming of that people; as Redeemer, God became the Oppressed One so that all may be free from oppression; as Holy Spirit, God continues the work of liberation.” (source)

“Experience, in the end, is the ultimate guide because there is no such thing as objective truth. God is not the God of white religion but the God of black existence. In Cone’s understanding, truth is not objective but subjective—a personal experience of the Ultimate in the midst of degradation.” (source)

Endorsements

With irenic tone Bradley reveals the theological justification of racial separation inherent within the victimization philosophy of both first generation and second generation black theology. His analysis demonstrates how the vision of Cone and his intellectual offspring contributes to rather than resolves DuBois' problem of the twentieth (now twenty-first!) century.

Eric C. Redmond, Associate Professor of Bible, Moody Bible Institute; Pastor of Preaching and Teaching, Calvary Memorial Church, Oak Park, Illinois

I have read a number of books which purport to explain, define, or critique black liberation theology, but Liberating Black Theology is the easiest to understand. This is because Dr. Bradley unapologetically maintains a biblical, orthodox perspective while being sympathetic to the issues and concerns of black liberation theologians. The book should be required reading for any seminary class on biblical interpretation and for seminary students and pastors interested in understanding the history and struggles of the black church in America.

Wy Plummer, African American Ministries Coordinator, Mission to North America, Presbyterian Church in America

Anthony Bradley's analysis of black liberation theology is by far the best thing that I have read on the subject. Anthony's book is comprehensive and in-depth. He covers all of the bases, and thereby provides the reader with all of the information that he needs to understand the critical issues involved with black liberation theology. By covering such figures as James Cone, Cornell West, and Jeremiah Wright, we see all of the nuances involved with their approaches to the subject. His explanation of victimology, Marxism, and aberrant Christian doctrine make a noxious mix of ideas that would make any true Christian wary of anything even approaching black liberation theology. His keen insight into these ideas and his clarity of writing make this book a jewel. Anthony has done the Christian community a great service by writing this book. There was a significant need for a work of this type and its arrival is long overdue.

Craig Vincent Mitchell, Assistant Professor of Christian Ethics, Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary

Product Details

• Title: Liberating Black Theology: The Bible and the Black Experience in America
• Author: Anthony Bradley
• Publisher: Crossway
• Print Publication Date: 2010
• Logos Release Date: 2023
• Pages: 206
• Era: era:contemporary
• Language: English
• Resources: 1
• Format: Digital › Logos Reader Edition
• Subjects: Black theology; African Americans › Religion; Black power › United States; Liberation theology › United States; Cone, James H; Victims of crimes › United States
• ISBNs: 9781433523557, 9781433511479, 9781433511493, 1433523558, 1433511479, 1433511495, 9781433511486, 1433511487
• Resource ID: LLS:24BE9C07822F4CC7AC39E2B09E2FD4CD
• Resource Type: Monograph
• Metadata Last Updated: 2023-10-04T18:09:49Z

About Anthony Bradley

Assistant Professor of Apologetics and Christian Ethics, Covenant Theological Seminary.