The month of February, in both the United States and Canada, has been designated as Black History month. Today, it serves to highlight important people and events in the history of the African diaspora. In America, it also serves as a reminder of the many significant ways African Americans have contributed to the flourishing of society.
As it is well known, the United States sanctioned slavery throughout the 17th and 18th century. Slavey left a terrible stain in the soul of America. History.com reports, “Throughout the 17th and 18th centuries people were kidnapped from the continent of Africa, forced into slavery in the American colonies and exploited to work as indentured servants and labor in the production of crops such as tobacco and cotton.” Torture, mistreatment, rape, forced labor, and many other atrocities were committed against African Americans. People who were made in the image of God.
No Christ follower should ever condone the practice of slavery. It is a violation against the imago Dei (Genesis 1:27-28) and most of the warnings of the Ten Commandments. The idea that one race is superior to another is non-biblical. All men are equally created in the image of God and have equal value.
For more on my thoughts on racial issues:
Black Influence in Church History
Africans played a significant role in Christian history, specially in early church history. Here are a few examples:
Tertullian – well educated in rhetoric, Greek, and Latin, he was a jurist by training and profession. The first known Christian author to write in Latin, Tertullian exercised noteworthy influence not only in his own lifetime but also in subsequent centuries. His apologetic works include To the Heathens , On the Testimony of the Soul, To Scapula, Against the Jews, and the Apology, which is his most important work. (Information gathered from Carey, Patrick W., and Joseph T. Lienhard. Biographical Dictionary of Christian Theologians)
Clement of Alexandria – was a Christian theologian and philosopher who taught at the Catechetical School of Alexandria. Among his pupils were Origen and Alexander of Jerusalem. A convert to Christianity, he was an educated man who was familiar with classical Greek philosophy and literature. As his three major works demonstrate, Clement was influenced by Hellenistic philosophy to a greater extent than any other Christian thinker of his time, and in particular, by Plato and the Stoics. (Information gathered from Wikipedia)
Origen of Alexandria – Origen was reared in Alexandria. His parents were Christians, evidently wealthy enough to afford him a splendid education in standard Hellenistic curriculum: the study of Greek literature along with mathematics and astronomy. They also saw to it that he was taught from the Christian Scriptures and, given his phenomenal mastery of the Bible as an adult, we may well believe reports that he displayed precocious understanding of it as a child. His single most massive work, the Hexapla, a word-for-word comparison of the various Greek translations of the Old Testament, also survives only in fragments. All of these works, including the treatises occasioned by particular issues, testify to a life absorbed in the study of Scripture. (Information gathered from Carey, Patrick W., and Joseph T. Lienhard. Biographical Dictionary of Christian Theologians)
Athanasius – Athanasius was one of the most controversial and dynamic figures of his time. His importance lies not just — perhaps not primarily — in his controversy with the Arians and their successors, but also in his supervision of the church during a time of dramatic transition. Athanasius’ career represents the pivot between the martyred church and the ascetic church. Both his ascetical writings and his ecclesiastical activity with the desert ascetics rank among his most significant and lasting achievements. Still, it is his role in the Nicene controversy that is the source of Athanasius’ lasting fame. Athanasius’ Christology, his soteriology, and his asceticism all come together to describe the problem of our fatal separation from God and the restoration of the possibility of a restored life with God through the Incarnation. (Information gathered from Carey, Patrick W., and Joseph T. Lienhard. Biographical Dictionary of Christian Theologians)
Augustine of Hippo – More is known about Augustine than about anyone else in classical antiquity. His early schooling probably took place in Thagaste; he was then sent to Madaura (modern Mdaurouch) to study rhetoric and grammar. At seventeen, he went to Carthage (now Tunis) to complete his rhetorical formation. There, when he was about nineteen, he read Cicero ’ s now-lost Hortensius , which introduced him to philosophy; became acquainted with the Categories of Aristotle; attempted to read the Bible, but was repelled by the style of the available Latin translations; and joined Manichaeism, a religion to which he belonged for nine years, and which, among other things, rejected the Old Testament, partly because it seemed to condone immorality. Augustine’s literary output is immense, and a major reason for his enduring in fl uence on western Christian thought. Besides hundreds of sermons and letters, he has left us over ninety treatises, which fall into three main groups: commentaries on biblical books; polemical writings, such as those against Pelagianism; and various books on theological subjects. He is especially known for three works: Confessions, The Trinity, and The City of God. (Information gathered from Carey, Patrick W., and Joseph T. Lienhard. Biographical Dictionary of Christian Theologians)
The Legacy of Black American Preachers
Black American preachers have also played a significant role in the history of the church. I wanted to provide a few examples to make you aware of some important preachers who to this day are recognized by many as influential leaders. Here’s a non-exhaustive list that may give you a taste for who these men are:
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. – In 1903, W. E. B. Du Bois noted, “The preacher is the most unique personality developed by the [African American] on American soil. A leader, a politician, an orator, a ‘boss,’ an intriguer, an idealist—all of these he is, and ever, too, the centre of a group of men, now twenty, now a thousand in number.” Martin Luther King Jr. (1929–1968), more than any other African American preacher before or after him, embodied Du Bois’s description. History views him as a social activist, agitator, ritual leader, political organizer, charismatic figure, world statesman, theologian, “a first citizen of the world,” social ethicist, personalistic philosopher, orator, priest, and prophet, but he was preeminently a Baptist preacher. Although he had many detractors, he won the respect and admiration of presidents, vice presidents, senators, congressmen, governors, popes, and other religious leaders in America and throughout the world. (Information gathered from A Legacy of Preaching: Two-Volume Set—Apostles to the Present Day (p. 1408). Zondervan Academic)
William Joseph Seymour – He is known as the father of Pentecostalism. According to Christianity Today, “He became steeped in radical Holiness theology, which taught second blessing entire sanctification (i.e., sanctification is a post-conversion experience that results in complete holiness), divine healing, premillennialism, and the promise of a worldwide Holy Spirit revival before the rapture … Only in the last few decades have scholars become aware of his importance, beginning perhaps with Yale University historian Sidney Ahlstrom, who said Seymour personified a black piety “which exerted its greatest direct influence on American religious history”—placing Seymour’s impact ahead of figures like W. E. B. Dubois and Martin Luther King, Jr.”
Here are two current African American preachers I enjoy listening to on a regular basis:
Dr. Tony Evans – At the tender age of 24 (1973) Tony Evans, was contacted by a radio show producer from Houston (KHCB). This man had contacted Dallas Theological Seminary, where Tony was a junior in the ThM program, asking for great preaching content to put on his program for free. One of Tony’s professors recommended him. Thus began the public broadcasting of Dr. Tony Evans. Dr. Tony Evans is one of the country’s most respected leaders in evangelical circles. As a pastor, teacher, author and speaker, he serves the body of Christ through his unique ability to communicate complex theological truths through simple, yet profound, illustrations. While addressing the practical issues of today, Dr. Evans is known as a relevant expositor. (Information gathered from www.tonyevans.org)
Dr. Voddie Baucham – Voddie Baucham wears many hats. He is a husband, father, former pastor, author, professor, conference speaker, and church planter. He currently serves as Dean of Theology at African Christian University in Lusaka, Zambia. Voddie makes the Bible clear and demonstrates the relevance of God’s word to everyday life. However, he does so without compromising the centrality of Christ and the gospel. Those who hear him preach find themselves both challenged and encouraged. Voddie’s area of emphasis is Cultural Apologetics. Whether teaching on classical apologetic issues like the validity and historicity of the Bible, or the resurrection of Christ; or teaching on biblical manhood/womanhood, marriage and family, he helps ordinary people understand the significance of thinking and living biblically in every area of life. Dr. Baucham holds degrees from Houston Baptist University (BA in Christianity/BA in Sociology), Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary (M.Div.), Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary (D.Min.), an honorary degree from Southern California Seminary (D.D.), and additional post-graduate study at the University of Oxford, England (Regent’s Park College). (Information gathered from http://www.voddiebaucham.org)
I praise God for the legacy of men who set out to preach God’s Word. Our black brothers and sisters in Christ have much to be proud of. It is always a mystery how the Lord would choose depraved people like you and I to proclaim his timeless truth. Nevertheless he has, and still does. May he continue to raise up many more Black brothers and sisters who will advance the ministry of his Word around the globe!
Praise be to God for the legacy of those who are serious about the Christian faith and set out to impact the world for the glory of God!
Written by Daniel Messina