Proclamation Theology

Description

Proclamation Theology: The idea of writing a book on Proclamation Theology arose from students at the Interdenominational Theological Center in Atlanta, where Dr. Joseph A. Johnson, Jr. served as professor of New Testament during the early 1960’s, prior to being elected to the office of Bishop in the CME Church. During that time, Johnson frequently had standing room only at his lectures, which were attended by students as well as by black ministers in the Atlanta area. There was an expressed need for students to master the art of translating theology so that it could be used homiletically in the proclamation of the word of God. Proclamation of the word has been a basic concern of the black preacher. For Johnson, therefore, a theology of vital interest is a theology that can be preached. It must be a theology that is faithful to the Hebrew-Christian traditions and to the preaching tradition of the black church. Written in 1977, Proclamation Theology was intended to be the first in a series on black Christian theology. Proclamation Theology captures the “genius and uniqueness” of black preaching as a means of responding to the social, economic, and cultural oppression of black people with the love, power, will, and strength to survive that characterizes the black religious experience.

About the Author. Bishop Joseph A. Johnson, Jr. (1914-1979) was the thirty-fourth bishop of the Christian Methodist Church. Prior to being elected to the office of bishop, Johnson served as Professor of New Testament at the Interdenominational Theological Center in Atlanta and was the first president of Phillips School of Theology, then located in Jackson, Tennessee. Johnson graduated from Texas College and then received the Master of Theology and Doctor of Theology degrees at Iliff School of Theology. In 1953, he became the first African American to be admitted to Vanderbilt University, where he received the Bachelor of Divinity and Doctor of Philosophy (New Testament) Degrees. He is the author of The Soul of the Black Preacher, Basic Christian Methodist Beliefs, The Local Church and Lay Evangelism, and other works. He was a contributor to Gardiner and Roberts’ Quest for a Black Theology and Lincoln’s The Black Experience in Religion. His works have been included in anthologies of black theology and African American religious history.

© 1977 by Bishop Joseph A. Johnson, Jr.
Fourth Episcopal District Press; Shreveport, LA

329 pages

*Note: These first edition books are new but show some wear and discoloration due to age.