By Angela Walker
Admittedly, thinking about Black History Month gives me some internal dissonance. It might be that for much of my educational life, I was usually one of the few brown faces in a sea of white ones. I don’t have a clear memory of what it looked like for Black History Month to be celebrated in school. But I do have a slightly fuzzy memory of standing in front of my bedroom mirror reciting Martin Luther King Jr.’s I Have a Dream speech. Our church didn’t do much in celebrating Black History Month, but that might be because it was a Black Church, so nothing special needed to be done. I would say that my parents did a great job at creating a safe home to be Black. We grew up being surrounded by art and books written by Black people, and I am deeply thankful to them for their intentionality. They gave me a deep love for the written word, so it shouldn’t be a surprise that my BA degree is in English. In a bit of a surprise turn of events after serving in a local college ministry, I decided to attend seminary. In 2000, I moved to Illinois and started my seminary education, and it was there that I had the privilege of taking Political Theologies with Dr. Bruce Fields. It was in that course that I learned the names of Black Theologians that I never knew existed. I was really blown away to be introduced to people such as James Cone, Delores S. Williams, Howard Thurman.
It was such a gift to learn about Black Theology. I am so thankful to Dr. Fields, who has now passed, because he showed me how much the Black Church needs black theologians. Our white brothers and sisters do not own theology. As Black Christians, we need to do our research and know the names and pass them along. Black theologians provide a unique lens that is necessary to our spiritual formation and understanding of scripture. During Black History Month, let's honor the contributions of Black theologians as their voices expand our vision of the Church.
Note: To look into other notable black theologians and authors like Dr. Fields, check out this page.