Jonathan T. Stoner Dr. Veli-Matti Kärkkäinen HT501: The Church’s Understanding of God and Christ in Its Theological Reflection June 9, 2016 CRITICAL RESPONSE # 3: James Cone’s A Black Theology of Liberation James Cone’s black liberation theology was his response to what he and many in the black community saw as the bankruptcy of the theology of white theologians, which was blind to black suffering while knowingly or unknowingly propping up the white-supremacist theology that had been the status quo in the United States since our nation’s founding. In A Black Theology of Liberation, which was his follow-up to God of the Oppressed, he fleshed out his black liberation theology that was rooted in the experience, cultural heritage, and distinctive …show more content…
In black theology the goal is to discern what God is up to and how God is working on behalf of the downtrodden and fighting for them against their oppressors. This line of thinking led Cone to make the bold claim, which must have been quite shocking and offensive, especially to white Christians in the late 60s and early 70s, that “any message that is not related to the liberation of the poor in the society is not Christ 's message,” which for him meant that “Christian theology must become Black Theology” that has as its primary consideration the needs of the oppressed and marginalized in society …show more content…
Cone’s theological project was similar to the work of liberation theologians in Latin America as they all viewed the Gospels through the lens of the crucified Christ and the bruised, battered, and crushed people that the Messiah identified with. Black theology contends that it is only by taking on the perspective of the black church – and the marginalized in general – that Christians can gain a proper understanding of the character and purposes of God and the work of Jesus Christ. Plantinga notes that Cone wanted “to stress the connection between black oppression and Christian faith in an unmistakable way,” which led Cone to make the provocative “claim that ‘God is black,’” and not literally black in terms of skin color or ethnicity but black in the sense of standing in solidarity with the oppressed. The unpleasant truth is that many of the white standard bearers for the Christian faith have been sending the message, either implicitly or explicitly, that God is white, I mean just look at stained glass windows in cathedrals or religious artwork of the past 500 years that has reinforced God’s unbearable whiteness of being. Cone forcefully argues that this idolatrous image of God needed to be broken to pieces in a similar manner to the iconoclasts who smashed to bits what they deemed to be idolatrous depictions of God in the Middle Ages
He is composed, collective, and calm when writing his letter to the clergymen, and effectively used stirring diction and syntax to enlighten his audience on his mission towards racial justice that God Himself approves of. His letter is a testimonial to a black person’s life in America, where “we [black americans] creep at horse and buggy pace toward gaining a cup of coffee at a lunch counter” (para 13). His letter was history in the making with every stroke of the pen. It truly showed that the pen is mightier than the the
In David Walker’s “Appeal”, David connected religion, colonization and history to instill pride in his fellow colored citizens to stand up against slavery and to show white Americans the cruelty they are inflicting upon people who are just as human as they are. He points out the flaws in slavery and the consequences that come along with those who support it. He does this by writing about slavery with Israel people being controlled by the Egyptians. He also talks about Bible passages about God and analyzes actions from Christians while challenging the developing views associated with Scientific Racism and the notion that religion justified slavery. David Walker wanted enslaved people to rebel against slavery and their slave owners to reclaim
In Chapter 1 and 2 of “Creating Black Americans,” author Nell Irvin Painter addresses an imperative issue in which African history and the lives of Africans are often dismissed (2) and continue to be perceived in a negative light (1). This book gives the author the chance to revive the history of Africa, being this a sacred place to provide readers with a “history of their own.” (Painter 4) The issue that Africans were depicted in a negative light impacted various artworks and educational settings in the 19th and early 20th century. For instance, in educational settings, many students were exposed to the Eurocentric Western learning which its depiction of Africa were not only biased, but racist as well.
Dr. Martin Luther King effectively uses logos to reason with clergymen to bring to light to actions that have forever affected his African American brothers. Dr. Martin Luther King also talks about one of the key obstacles that have prevented the African Americans from pursuing freedom in recent times. He states, “… The Negro’s great stumbling block in his stride toward freedom is not the White Citizen’s Counciler or the Ku Klux Klanner, but the white moderate….” (King 4). The White Citizen’s Counciler and the Ku Klux Klanner or KKK both were groups that targeted the African Americans as an inferior race.
As a witness for blacks who were voiceless and ignored, he speaks out against the white church for saying little about slavery and racial justice. His passion for social justice comes from growing up in Arkansas in the Jim Crow era. The memories of his father and lynch mobs never left him. Black church comforted him, but made him wonder. “If the white churches are Christian, how come they segregate us?
The criticism made by the these eight clergyman epitomize the idea of whiteness and white privilege. Rather than to offer assistance and guidance for King and his efforts to diminish racial injustices prevalent in the South, they, instead, offer criticism in an attempt to depreciate King’s fight for racial equity. This rhetoric has occurred often throughout American history, where we see white individuals devaluing and hindering the progress made by individuals of color. For example, one of the critiques that King received was that The Negro community should be more patient and wait for society to move gradually toward civil rights. What white individuals fail to understand is that there is no such thing
The first three chapters of the reading, The Struggle for Black Equality, Harvard Sitkoff runs through the civil rights movement in the 20th century; outlining the adversities facing black people, the resistance to black equality, hindrances to the already progress and the achievements made in the journey for civil rights. John Hope Franklin, in the foreword, dwells on the impact of the time between 1954 and 1992 and the impact it had on American Society, how fight for equality is far from easy and patience is required in the fight to "eliminate the road blocks that prevent the realization of the ideal of equality". In the preface, Sitkoff is clear that that history does not speak for themselves and attempt to detail any particular will be influenced by the author 's personal beliefs. Sitkoff, who associated and identified with the movement, believed "that the struggle was confronting the United States with an issue that had undermined the nation 's democratic institutions". Sitkoff elected
Dailey stages the allegation of miscegenation being the root religious civil rights issues with the theology of Segregation, the effects of the Brown decision, and the Ministers march. As a whole, Dailey emphasizes the importance of the testimonies that segregation was “the commandment and law of God”. Also, that most historians tend to “pass” over this topic, condemning “the most lasting triumph of the civil rights movement: its successful appropriation of Christian Dogma” (Dailey 122). “…why
However, the church is failing to show the love of God to people of color. This relates to the the Holocaust because the Nazi regime thought Jews were inferior, and they dehumanized them. Garrison is calling out the church leaders to more aware of and empathic for their fellow human
In William H. Chafe’s novel, Civilities and Civil Rights: Greensboro, North Carolina, and the Black Struggle for Freedom, Chafe used evidence from Greensboro, North Carolina to prove his thesis about resistance in the United States from 1945 to 1975. In Chafe’s thesis, he argued that America was resisting civil rights for free blacks. Greensboro was considered one of the most “progressive” areas in the New South and whites seemed to be greatly accepting of the racial changes in the south. Despite the fact that Greensboro appeared so tolerant towards change, there still was a large amount of resistance.
Khadija Abdulahi God is Able In the book, “Strength to Love” by Martin Luther King Jr, focuses on the problem of racial segregation and discrimination in the United States. King was a leader in the civil rights movement. He used a non-violent tactic from his Christian belief. King argued that the Christian faith is what brings people together and it is key to their freedom.
From reading the textbook, it can be surmised that the “Black Sacred Cosmos” is the African-American religious worldview and its spiritual rebirth to Christianity as shaped by its heritage through slavery, emancipation, segregation, and other social injustices used to withhold societal and religious freedom from African-Americans in America, in which the whole universe/cosmos is viewed as sacred. The ultimate goal in this, as it related to the church, was the personal conversion of those who were not “saved,” to coming to know God and accepting Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. In this worldview African American Christians Afro-centrically define nuances and emphasis of their theological views.
African-American historian W.E.B Dubois illustrated how the Civil War brought the problems of African-American experiences into the spotlight. As a socialist, he argued against the traditional Dunning interpretations and voiced opinions about the failures and benefits of the Civil War era, which he branded as a ‘splendid failure’. The impacts of Civil War era enabled African-Americans to “form their own fraternal organizations, worship in their own churches and embrace the notion of an activist government that promoted and safeguarded the welfare of its citizens.”
In Cesar Vallejo’s poem, “Los Heraldos de Negros”, in English called “The Black Heralds”, themes of God, children, love, and tragic consciousness emerge. My aim here is to examine another important source of his meaning, which is how the speaker sees God’s role in his encounters with life’s struggles. In the poem, a hateful God replaces a merciful God. The nature of this hateful God poses as a savior but instead of being helpful, or being resurrected to save humankind, he poses as a false or fake entity, which confuses and frustrates the speaker. Vallejo depicts God as hateful instead of merciful, because the speaker challenges and questions God’s methods.
This reference in particular evokes the strongest emotional response from black people because many African Americans revered Lincoln for his decision to sign the revolutionary Emancipation Proclamation, and how the document symbolized a free future for slaves--the ancestors of the blacks in the crowd. But the next few lines following this allusion also persuades those ignorant of how little things have changed by highlighting the “manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination” that blacks still suffer from despite the hundred year gap. Here, he uses the connotations of “manacles” and “chains” to evoke a negative emotional response from the audience, especially from those unaware of the need to change, causing their opinion to match the speaker’s: against segregation. Additionally, King weaves biblical allusions into his speech to appeal to the Christians within the crowd. He uses the “dark and desolate valley of segregation” to illustrate the injustice African Americans have endured for centuries and juxtapositions it with the “sunlit path of racial justice” to exemplify a future where true freedom exists for