Engage in ministries of compassion, mercy, justice and reconciliation justice, and love in Black communities of faith. You will explore the history, theology, and biblical interpretation unique to the Black Church experience. You will be taught tools to apply authentic, critical, and responsible interpretation and use of Scripture in the Black Church experience. By examining the historical place of the Black Church, you’ll be better equipped to address individual and systemic injustice in local and global contexts. This program is an excellent option for those who seek to be prepared and equipped to pursue further academic scholarship in the field of the Black Church experience and social justice.
Advanced Certificate
Black Church Studies
Northeastern Seminary’s Black Church Studies certificate program is designed for students who want to deepen their understanding of the history, theology, and biblical interpretation unique to the Black Church. The certificate program is designed to equip men and women to be scholars, church practitioners, and transformative leaders in urban or suburban congregations and other settings within African American culture and beyond.
Black Church Studies- Featured Courses
History of the Black Church
The historical role of the Black Church in the Black community is emphasized in conjunction with the contributions and distinctive characteristics within American Protestantism. The course focuses on an examination and interpretation of the history of the Black church, including the seven historic American Black denominations: the African Methodist Episcopal Church; the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church; the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church; the National Baptist Convention, U.S.A.; the National Baptist Convention of America; the Progressive National Baptist Convention; the Church of God in Christ and other Pentecostal Associations and Non-Denomination affiliations.
Black Theology
The course will examine the enduring institution and changing dynamics of the Black Church from its inception in America to the present. It will explore its changing history, theology, Biblical interpretation, culture, education, ethics, and ministry. It will examine the importance of the Black Church in the life of the community and its people. Emphasis includes the relationship between the twentieth-century Black liberation theologies and civil rights movements. The lives and contribution of Black women and men who offered new theological interpretations, and social change movements, and provided a foundation for the global church in the twenty-first century is examined.
Leadership in the Black Church
The course is designed to acquaint students with major figures, movements, and issues in African American theological and ethical traditions with particular emphasis on leadership. The course explores theological and sociological concerns within respective traditions and offers a forum for practical engagement with contemporary problems associated with African American church life and culture.
Total Program
Sticker Price: $10,652
Less than 15% of students
pay this amount
100% of students who applied
for a scholarship received one
The function of education, therefore, is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically. But education, which stops with efficiency, may prove the greatest menace to society. The most dangerous criminal may be the man gifted with reason, but with no morals. We must remember that intelligence is not enough. Intelligence plus character — that is the goal of true education”
Stackable Curriculum - Certificate to Master’s
Your Black Church Studies education develops the ministry skills to become a change agent in your ministry context. Graduates of the certificate may go on to complete an M.A. or M.Div. without losing any credits with Northeastern Seminary's stackable curriculum.
Step 1: Certificate in Black Church Studies
Becoming a chaplain starts with exploring the ethics of chaplaincy care and ministry in multifaith contexts with an accredited certificate.*
Continue your education with another stackable block of courses to receive a Master of Arts degree in Ministry Practice or Theological Studies.
Complete the requirements for service as a chaplain when you assemble multiple stackable competency blocks to earn your Master of Divinity with a Black Church Studies concentration.
Faithful Teacher | Interpreter | Communicator
For Anna Santana, delving into the Scriptures opened her eyes to the calling God had placed on her life to be a teacher. Anna's preparation at Northeastern Seminary allowed her to develop her talent for connecting with others to faithfully interpret and communicate God's word.
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