A Black Theology of Liberation: the Black Church and a Living Wage

This article sets forth a controversial thesis which suggests that the Uniting Reformed Church in Southern Africa, although considered a black church, is in fact not a black church in the sense in which a radical black church is traditionally understood. A black church, it is argued, is perceived to be one that is a self-determined church which supports initiatives of ameliorating the depressive situations in which black people find themselves. References are made to black theology as a critical theology which was never accepted in the black church due to the dependency syndrome which was brought about by the white benevolence of the Dutch Reformed Church. This, it is argued, had become innate in the Uniting Reformed Church in Southern Africa which still considers itself as a so-called daughter church of the white Dutch Reformed Church.

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Book Review: Black Theology in Dialogue, the Way of the Black Messiah: The Hermeneutical Challenge of Black Theology as a Theology of Liberation

Theological Studies ◽

10.1177/004056398804900328 ◽

1988 ◽

Vol 49 (3) ◽

pp. 564-565

Author(s):

John P. Hogan

Keyword(s):

Black Theology ◽

The Way ◽

Theology Of Liberation

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The Faith of Black Politics: The Relationship Between Black Religious and Political Beliefs

Journal of Black Studies ◽

10.1177/0021934717753730 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 49 (3) ◽

pp. 256-283 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Eric L. McDaniel ◽

Maraam A. Dwidar ◽

Hadill Calderon

Keyword(s):

Civil Rights Movement ◽

Black Church ◽

Religious Beliefs ◽

Belief System ◽

Black Politics ◽

Black Theology ◽

Social Gospel ◽

Prosperity Gospel ◽

Political Beliefs ◽

The Social

Scholars argue that the Black church produces religious messages that foster racial cohesion; however, recent examinations of Black religion note the heterogeneity of the messages and beliefs advanced by Black churches. Several argue that this heterogeneity in Black religious beliefs is reflected in Black political beliefs. This study examines the linkage between heterogeneity in Black religious beliefs and heterogeneity in Black political attitudes. Offering measures of the social gospel, prosperity gospel, and Black theology, we demonstrate that each religious belief system is related to different aspects of Black public opinion. The social gospel is linked to continuing the legacy of the civil rights movement, while the prosperity gospel is associated with a departure from its legacy. Meanwhile, Black theology is linked to racial empowerment and extending the boundaries of Black politics.

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Ebuhlanti Amandla ngawethu: Womanism and black theology of liberation, in memory of Vuyani Shadrack Vellem

HTS Teologiese Studies / Theological Studies ◽

10.4102/hts.v76i3.6211 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 76 (3) ◽

Author(s):

Fundiswa A. Kobo

Keyword(s):

Black Women ◽

Lived Experiences ◽

Black Theology ◽

Black Consciousness ◽

The West ◽

Women’S Experiences ◽

Women's Experiences ◽

Heuristic Device ◽

A Site ◽

Theology Of Liberation

The liberation of black humanity has been an area of scholarly reflection by black theologians and the black consciousness communities. The constructs of oppression such as race, class and sexism amongst others have been critiqued in the quest for liberation of a fragmented black humanity. In this article, this quest for liberation happens within ubuhlanti [kraal], a site for which Vuyani Vellem is ‘like a hermeneutical circle, where the mediations of the bonds of spheres and the instantiation of their life take place’. By looking at a fragmented black humanity and black women’s experiences, we posit that no western framework could ever be representative of those bodies, ubuhlanti becomes our solution as a heuristic device and symbol of a communication of the efficacy of integrated life. From a womanist perspective, ubuhlanti decentres the West. Ebuhlanti Amandla ngawethu [power belongs to us], as black women and men dialogue issues that affect black humanity. The whole proposition of this dialogue ebuhlanti is animated by our lived experiences, which already offer alternatives for us to decentre.Contribution: Premised by the lived experiences of black humanity in their quest for liberation, this paper contributes in the dewesternising discourse by presenting alternative epistemologies and spiritualities. A womanist dialogue with black theology of liberation ebuhlanti, a decolonising and decentring praxis for the liberation of black humanity is our solution as blacks.

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