Christian theology is language about the liberating character of God's presence in Jesus Christ as he calls his people into being for freedom in the world.

same for blacks and whites, because blacks and whites do not share the same life. The lives of a black slave and white slaveholder were radically different. It follows that their thoughts about things divine would also be different, even though they might sometimes use the same words about God. The life of the slaveholder and others of that culture

in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, things that are not, to reduce to nothing things that are” (I Cor. 1:27–28 NRSV).

Father or divine and human, though the orthodox formulations are implied in their language. They ask whether Jesus is walking with them, whether they can call him up on the “telephone of prayer” and tell him all about their troubles. To be sure Athanasius’ assertion about the status of the Logos in the Godhead is important for the church's

broken heart and eases the pain of the afflicted. Jesus rescued me from the gates of hell and restored my soul to his bosom.”

They investigate the past and relate the struggles of the apostles and the Fathers to our present struggles. Thus they become defenders of the faith, showing its reasonableness, its “fittingness” for the oppressed community now.

When the Word is spoken as truth and the people feel the presence of truth in the midst of their troublesome situation, they respond to the preached word by ratifying it with resounding “Amens.” The “Amen” is the congregation's witness to, and participation in, the proclamation. It is their Yes that lets the preacher know that he or she is on the

It is impossible to interpret the Scripture correctly and thus understand Jesus aright unless the interpretation is done in the light of the consciousness of the oppressed in their struggle for liberation.

The great problem with dominant white theologians, especially white men, is their tendency to speak as if they and they alone can set the rules for thinking about God. That is why they seldom turn to the cultures of the poor, especially people of color, for resources to discourse about God. But I contend that the God of Jesus is primarily found