Religion:Society for the Study of Black Religion

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The Society for the Study of Black Religion is the oldest scholarly society dedicated to the study of the African-American religious experience. It is dedicated to "scholarly research and discussion about the religious experiences of Blacks."[1]

History

The SSBR was founded in 1970 to support black religious scholars' critical inquiry into the foundations of black theology.[2] The intellectual ferment which led to the group's founding began with Joseph B. Washington's publication of the seminal Black Religion in 1964,[3] and continued with the publication of James H. Cone's Black Theology and Black Power in 1969.[4]

The group chose the name "religion" rather than "theology" to avoid the constraints imposed by the narrower term.[5] Charles Shelby Rooks, who would later become the first African-American head of a traditionally white-led seminary at the Chicago Theological Seminary, took a leading role in the founding and served as the SSBR's first elected president.[6]

Presidents

  • Charles Shelby Rooks, 1970–1974
  • Lawrence Neale Jones, 1974–1977[7]
  • Gayraud Wilmore, 1978–1980[8]
  • Charles Shelby Rooks, 1980–1983[8]
  • Gayraud Wilmore, 1984–1985[8]
  • Charles H. Long, 1986–1989[8]
  • Clarence G. Newsome, 1990–1991[8]
  • Lillian Ashcraft-Eason, 1996–1999[8]
  • Peter J. Paris, 2000–2003[8]
  • Katie G. Cannon, 2004–2008[8]
  • Lee H. Butler, Jr., 2008–2012[8]
  • Emilie Townes, 2012–2016[9]
  • Stephen G. Ray, Jr., 2016–present[10]

Notable members

See also

References

  1. "SSBR". Society for the Study of Black Religion. http://www.ssbr.net. Retrieved 2016-03-06. 
  2. Paris, Peter J. (1991). "Overcoming Alienation in Theological Education". in Barbara G. Wheeler & Edward Farley. Shifting Boundaries. p. 183. ISBN 9780664251727. https://books.google.com/books?id=bvGBm3axCjAC&pg=PA183&. 
  3. Rooks, Charles Shelby (1990). Revolution in Zion: Reshaping African American Ministry, 1960-1974 : a Biography in the First Person. Pilgrim Press. p. 134. https://books.google.com/books?hl=hr&id=SpHZAAAAMAAJ. 
  4. Long, Charles H. (2003). "Assessment and New Departures for a Study of Black Religion". African American Religious Thought: An Anthology. p. 223. 
  5. Paris, Peter J. (2014). "The African in African American Theology". The Oxford Handbook of African American Theology. p. 438. ISBN 9780199755653. https://books.google.com/books?id=DolSAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA438. 
  6. Young, Henry J. (1979). Major Black Religious Leaders Since 1940. 2. p. 107. 
  7. Encyclopedia of African American Religions. p. 409. https://books.google.com/books?id=fxsmAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA409. 
  8. 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 8.6 8.7 8.8 "Society for the Study of Black Religion: 42nd Annual Meeting". http://www.ssbr.net/ssmedia/pdfs/2012_program.F1.pdf. 
  9. "Bio: Emilie M. Townes". Vanderbilt University. http://divinity.vanderbilt.edu/people/bio/emiliem-townes. Retrieved 2016-03-05. 
  10. "Dr. Stephen G. Ray, Jr. Named President-Elect of the Society for the Study of Black Religion". Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary. https://www.garrett.edu/news/dr-stephen-g-ray-jr-named-president-elect-society-study-black-religion. 

External links