Incommensurable Paradigms: the Competing Theological Claims of Black Pietism and Black Liberationism
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Incommensurable Paradigms: The Competing Theological Claims of Black Pietism and Black Liberationism By Aaron Joshua Howard Dissertation Submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate School of Vanderbilt University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY in Religion December 16, 2017 Nashville, Tennessee Approved: Lewis V. Baldwin, Ph.D. Paul C.H. Lim, Ph.D. Paul J. Dehart, Ph.D. Dennis C. Dickerson, Ph.D. In honor of my father. Dad, I feel your absence profoundly. I will see you again, soon. ii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This dissertation could not have been completed without the support, encouragement, and generosity of many. To my beautiful and precious wife Mimi, my gratitude is endless. When I felt like giving up, your strength lifted me, and I will always be grateful. You are an amazing mother and wife, and one of the most selfless and generous people that I will ever know. I thank the Lord for you and I will always love you with my whole heart. Thank you to my two children Yosef and Blaine who endured my frequent absences and distractedness during this process. I love you both more than life itself and I am so proud of who you are becoming. I am blessed to be your father. Thank you to my mother, Althea Howard. You set an example of grace, faith, love, and holiness that I try to exemplify daily. Your consistent prayers and encouragement fueled my desire to finish. Words cannot express my love for you and how much you mean to me. To my sister Malaika Graves, thank you so much for your prayers, support and listening ear. To my aunt Doris Sims, the first PhD that I knew, you instilled within me the value of education from an early age and this work bears the imprints of your influence. I would like to give special recognition to the Graduate Department of Religion and the Program in Theology and Practice at Vanderbilt University for your financial support and commitment to my scholastic vision. I would also like to extend heartfelt appreciation to The Forum for Theological Exploration for generous financial support that helped to bring this dissertation to fruition. I am also appreciative of Louisville Institute’s role in supporting and contributing to my work. Special thanks are offered to my dissertation committee: To Lewis V. Baldwin, who iii served as chair of my committee, I appreciate you immensely. This would not have been possible without you. I consider you to be more than a mentor; you are a cherished friend. Whenever we work together, great things happen, and I look forward to what the future holds. To Paul Lim, Paul DeHart, and Dennis Dickerson, your intellectual investment over the years has made me a better scholar, and I consider your presence on my committee both a tremendous blessing and privilege. To Victor Anderson, your scholastic breadth and theoretical depth always leave me in awe. Thank you for believing in me and I am grateful for all the many ways that you have supported me and stood beside me during my tenure at Vanderbilt. To Jimmy Byrd, Jaco Hamman, and Karen Eardley, many thanks for monitoring my progress, keeping me abreast of institutional regulations, and providing invaluable advice and feedback. You demystified the Ph.D. process and empowered me for future success. To my best friend Marvin Lawton, we’ve been brothers for twenty-five years. Thank you for always reminding me of my potential and inspiring me to be great. To my close friends Kevin Brown, Kyle Frohock, and Nathan Held, I love each of you guys. You each shine with the light of Christ, and I am enriched by having such men of character in my life. To Pastor Lamonte Lawson, I appreciate your wisdom and advice more than you know. Thanks for never ceasing to believe in me. To Shirley Jones, I treasured your prayers and wisdom throughout this process. I will always call you sister and friend. Julie Evans, your encouraging words, unwavering support, and yearly birthday call helped me to know that I was never alone. To my Church of God in Christ mentors and brothers Bishop David Daniels, Leonard Lovett, Raynard Smith, and Eric Lewis Williams, your wisdom and counsel helped me navigate successfully the labyrinth that we call the academy. Your timely instruction gave me hope and kept the finish line in view. iv Words cannot convey my heartfelt gratitude to my St. Andrews Presbyterian Church family. Thank you, Pastor Leonard Jordan. You are truly a man of God. I appreciate you so much and I am grateful for your support over the years. I would also like to thank Gloria Jordan, Ron King, Kenneth and Paula McClellan, Margaret Ransom, and Katherine Brown for checking in during my sabbatical, providing gifts of appreciation, and praying for me when I needed it most. To my Christ Presbyterian Academy family, it is a privilege to serve alongside you. When I arrived at CPA, I doubted whether I could finish this dissertation. My father had just passed away and I was in the midst of a difficult season at Vanderbilt. Your joy and love lifted my spirits and strengthened the places that had been weakened. CPA became my refuge, a peaceful space where words and thoughts from Holy Spirit could flow. I wrote this entire dissertation in my classroom, room 302, and your prayers, belief in me, and willingness to discuss my research helped bring it to completion. I am especially indebted to Parker Altman, my principal. You approved time off that allowed me to finish, offered use of the school copier for my research, and ensured that I was not overloaded with responsibilities. You are the epitome of a godly servant leader, and I am honored to call you “boss”. To Sallie Wallace, Ben Crist, and Kristen Diggs, thank you for letting me confide in you. Your prayers sustained me through every storm, and I am grateful for your friendship. To my fellow sojourners at Vanderbilt who served as conversation partners, including Asante Todd, Brandon McCormack, Christophe Ringer, Bridgett Green, Kyle Brooks, Michael Fisher, Leonard Curry, Courtney Bryant, and Terrance Dean, I appreciate you. Gideon Park, we came in together (but you finished way earlier) and helped each other through those tough first v years, and I will always consider you my brother and friend. Susannah Larry, you helped make the journey worthwhile. To all those whose names I have forgotten or inadvertently left out of these pages, I thank you as well. Lastly, but above all others, I thank God my Father, Jesus my Savior, and Holy Spirit my Comforter and source of endless power. I came to Vanderbilt at your invitation, and you sustained me until the end. I pray that this dissertation witnesses to the truth of the gospel and touches the lives of many. To you be the be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever, Amen. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS DEDICATION ................................................................................................................................. ii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ........................................................................................................ iii INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................... 1 Chapter 1. BLACK SCHOLARS ASSESS THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE BLACK CHURCH AND BLACK LIBERATION THEOLOGY ...................................................................................... 15 Introduction ................................................................................................................... 18 Compatibilists ................................................................................................................ 18 Dale P. Andrews and the Chasm between Black Theology and the Black Church ... 18 Raphael G. Warnock and the Black Church’s Divided Mind ..................................... 26 Incompatibilists ......................................................................................................... 37 Cecil Wayne Cone and the Identity Crisis in Black Theology .................................... 37 Cheryl J. Sanders and the Role of the Womanist Concept for Christian Theology and Ethics .................................................................................................................. 48 Conclusion ..................................................................................................................... 60 2. EXPLORING SHIFTING PARADIGMS AND DIMENSIONS OF INCOMMENSURABILITY .... 62 Introduction ................................................................................................................... 62 Paradigms and Paradigm Shifts ..................................................................................... 62 The Emergence of Black Liberation Theology/Womanism as a Paradigm Shift ........... 70 Paradigms as Frameworks ............................................................................................. 72 Hypergoods .................................................................................................................... 76 Scientific Incommensurability ....................................................................................... 81 Ethical Incommensurability ........................................................................................... 92 Rational Inquiry and Paradigm Choice ........................................................................ 101 Conclusion.................................................................................................................... 108 3. BLACK PIETISM: A THEOLOGICAL