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.

Current debates on decolonisation call for academic disciplines, including the practitioners of Black theology, to reflect on its content and curriculum. This edited volume actively engages in these ongoing dialogues, specifically addressing the pertinence of a Black theology of liberation within the postapartheid landscape. It not only delves into the historical underpinnings of this theological framework but also endeavours to establish a conceptual framework for assessing its significance within the current discourse on decolonising theological disciplines. In addition to shedding light on the historical importance of Black theology, the late Vuyani Vellem poses a crucial question: “What lessons has Black theology yet to learn?” This inquiry by emerging South African scholars serves as a guide for navigating the path forward in developing this theological perspective. Beyond emphasising the historical context, the volume aims to contribute to broader discussions about social cohesion in South Africa, where conflicting socio-political narratives persist. This work adds to the theoretical development by grappling with the history of Black theological thought and influences contemporary engagements with theology. Its impact spans various levels, encompassing the reconsideration of Black theology’s influence on race, gender, politics, community development, and more. Ultimately, this volume serves as a catalyst for understanding and reshaping the discourse on Black theology, offering valuable insights for navigating the complexities of theological thought in today’s diverse and evolving landscape.

"The introduction to this edition by Cornel West was originally published in Dwight N. Hopkins, ed., Black Faith and Public Talk: Critical Essays on James H. Cone's Black Theology & Black Power (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 1999; reprinted 2007 by Baylor University Press)."

With the publication of his two early works, Black Theology & Black Power (1969) and A Black Theology of Liberation (1970), James Cone emerged as one of the most creative and provocative theological voices in North America. These books, which offered a searing indictment of white theology and society, introduced a radical reappraisal of the Christian message for our time. Combining the visions of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King, Jr., Cone radically reappraised Christianity from the perspective of the oppressed black community in North America. Forty years later, his work retains its original power, enhanced now by reflections on the evolution of his own thinking and of black theology and on the needs of the present moment.

A book that reviews the principles of modern Black Theology, its roots and contributions to the Christian world. It also discusses what challenges Black theologians face in their minister and their religious communities.

Risks of Faith offers for the first time the best of noted theologian James H. Cone's essays, including several new pieces. Representing the breadth of his life's work, this collection opens with the birth of black theology, explores its relationship to issues of violence, the developing world, and the theological touchstone embodied in African-American spirituals. Also included here is Cone's seminal work on the theology of Martin Luther King, Jr., and the philosophy of Malcolm X, and a compelling examination of their contribution to the roots of black theology. Far-reaching and provocative, Risks of Faith is a must-read for anyone interesting in religion and its political and social impact on our time.

"First reconstructs the culutral matrix of African American religion, a total way of life formed by Protestantism, American culture, and the institution of slavery (1619-1865). Whites from Europe and Blacks from Africa arrived with specific, differing views of God, faith, and humanity. Hopkins recreates their worldviews and shows how white theology sought to remake African Americans into naturally inferior beings divinely ordained into subservience. The counter voice of enslaved blacks is the birth of the Spirit of liberation." -- Back cover.

First released in 1971, Liberation and Reconciliation presents a constructive statement that argues for a balance between the quest for liberation and the need for reconciliation in black-white relations. Examining biblical and theological themes from the perspectives of black experience, the book focuses on enlisting all humans of goodwill - black or white - in the cause of racial justice. Roberts concludes that nonviolent reconciliation is the best response to racial oppression. This groundbreaking work, now a classic in the field, is recognized as one of the first texts to move conversations within black theology beyond what black theologians were against toward what the movement sought to affirm.

This book discusses Black Theology, or Black Liberation Theology, relates to a religious viewpoint that arose amongst African-American seminarians and philosophers, individual black churches in the United States, and later in other areas of the world. Black theology aims to liberate non-white citizens from various types of political, societal, economic, and theological subjugation and sees Christian theology as a salvation theology: "a logical analysis of the being of God in the universe in the existential condition of the oppressed group, connecting the powers of liberation to the Gospel, which is Jesus Christ," Cone says. Black theology combines Christianity with civil rights concerns, especially those posed by the Black Power revolution and the Black Consciousness Movement. Current American origins in contemporary black theology can be traced back to July 31, 1966, when the ad hoc party of 51 clergies involved, dubbed the National Committee of Black Churchmen, purchased a full-page ad in The New York Times to print their "Black Power Declaration," which advocated a more aggressive approach to fighting injustice by using the Bible as an inspiration. Black Religion works mainly with the African-American culture in attempts to render Christianity possible for black citizens. Black religion is also differentiated from African theology on the African plateau. While not confined to the British background, the scholarly journal Black Theology, published by Anthony G. Reddie, was the gateway to the debate on black theology in Britain.