God is a Negro: The (Rhetorical) Black Theology of Bishop Henry McNeal Turner
In this essay, I argue that Henry McNeal Turner was doing something way more complex than just declaring God is a Negro when he uttered this iconic statement. It is my belief he was offering a deep theological analysis on God-talk, language and hermeneutics, in addition to providing a radical vers...
| Published in: | Black theology |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Routledge, Taylor and Francis Group
[2015]
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| In: |
Black theology
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| IxTheo Classification: | FD Contextual theology KAH Church history 1648-1913; modern history KBQ North America KDG Free church NBC Doctrine of God |
| Further subjects: | B
rhetorical theology
B Rhetorical criticism B Public Theology B Henry McNeal Turner B Rhetoric B Black Theology |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (Verlag) |
| Summary: | In this essay, I argue that Henry McNeal Turner was doing something way more complex than just declaring God is a Negro when he uttered this iconic statement. It is my belief he was offering a deep theological analysis on God-talk, language and hermeneutics, in addition to providing a radical version of a contextual theology that predates our modern understanding of the term. In addition, Turner's editorial also offers a critique to the hegemonic Christian interpretation of his day, namely, asking African Americans to see and experience God in a new and affirming way. I have accomplished this task by offering a rhetorical analysis of this statement, arguing that Turner engaged in what some scholars call rhetorical theology. By maintaining that all theology is at its core a form of argument, rhetorical theology places emphasis on how a speaker or writer situates language in order to persuade its hearers to a certain position. In other words, when Turner spoke and wrote God is a Negro, he was not doing systematic theology, he was engaged in a public theology - a rhetorical enterprise, that had as its aim a persuasive function within a specific context. |
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| ISSN: | 1743-1670 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Black theology
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1179/1476994815Z.00000000045 |