Duke Divinity School is the first theological school in a major research university to require Black Church Studies for M.Div. students. The school also offers courses open to all its master’s and doctoral students.

Our Courses

Black church studies is an intensely interdisciplinary, ecumenical, and intellectually inclusive endeavor. The faculty members who teach courses in Black church studies are not simply faculty of African descent but also include other Divinity School faculty members with interests that intersect this interdisciplinary field. This includes faculty members with primary research interests in history, biblical studies, theology, ethics, spirituality, congregational studies, pastoral theology, preaching, sociology of religion, and postcolonial & de-colonial studies.

Here is a sample of the courses offered on a rotating basis by the Divinity School related to the Black Church:

  • Theology in the Black Church Traditions
  • The Black Church in America
  • Blacks in White Churches
  • The Ethical and Political Thought of Martin Luther King, Jr.
  • Womanist Theological Ethics
  • Religion, Race, and Politics
  • Dreaming of a White Apocalypse:  Religion, Race, Popular Culture
  • Deep River: Howard Thurman, Spirituality, & the Prophetic Life
  • African Americans & the Bible
  • The Most Segregated Hour: Churches, Race, Caste, & Class