Oxford University Names First Professor of Black Theology

September 15, 2023148 views0

Oxford University Names First Professor of Black Theology

2023-09-15T09:39:33+01:00

By Church News

Professor Anthony G Reddie has become Oxford University’s first-ever Professor of Black Theology.A lifelong Methodist, the theologian has written extensively on topics encompassing black theology, as well as issues related to justice, race, and poverty.Black Theology was founded during the trans-Atlantic slave trade and was first written about by theologian James Cone in 1969.Professor Reddie told Premier News that he still can’t quite believe the news. “It feels very strange and very bizarre. It hasn’t quite settled in yet. So I still find myself looking at the letter just to check that I didn’t misread it. So yes, it does say that I’ve been appointed. I’m not imagining his weird thing.”Born in Bradford, Reddie came into contact with Theology by accident. During a lunch break at Birmingham University, he took shelter in a bookshop, where he picked up James Cone’s 1969 book “Black Theology”.Speaking about how Black Theology finds its roots amongst 17th Century slaves, who found liberation in the hope of the gospel of Jesus, he said: “Part of the process of their exploitation and oppression was a very skewed and racist form of Christianity was forced on them. So a version of Christianity that was about forcing them to become effectively good slaves. So they would take out of context, some of the teachings of St. Paul, for example, where he talks about slaves obey your masters.“The genius, I think of God, and the Holy Spirit, working through these disempowered people was that that’s not what they heard what there was a voice of liberation and sovereign power. That the same God that had freed the Hebrew slaves in Egypt was the same God that would free them.”The Professor said he is the first person to bring Black Theology into Oxford University, “but in a fairly modest kind of small way”. He hopes that his new role will allow him to expand that work.Anthony G. Reddie is Director of the Oxford Centre for Religion and Culture and Professor of Black Theology at Regent’s Park College, University of Oxford. He is an Extraordinary Professor of Theological Ethics at the University of South Africa. He is specializing in black theology.Professor Anthony G. Reddie is a participative educator and liberation theologian who specialises in undertaking action research and participative observational work with predominantly poorer Black communities in the UK.The author of 17 books, numerous journal articles and editor of Black Theology: An International Journal, Professor Reddie is renowned for his innovative and engaging teaching and facilitating style. He is one of the foremost Practical Black theologians in the world.In 2015 Professor Reddie was appointed Professor Extraordinarius in the Department of Philosophy, Practical and Systemic Theology at the University of South Africa.ALSO READ: StepFWD Awards Returns in November for its 3rd Edition