Black Queer Theology is a critical academic discipline that stands at the intersection of Black Theology, Womanist Theology, and Queer Theory. Its primary aim is to articulate a faith that fully embraces the humanity and divine image present in Black lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer individuals. Emerging as a response to the double rejection—from the mainstream white church due to race, and from many Black churches due to sexuality—black queer theology asserts the inherent sacredness of queer Black identity.
The methodology of Black queer theology, pioneered by scholars like theologian Kelly Brown Douglas and anthropologist Jafari S. Allen, involves a radical re-reading of scripture and tradition. It critiques the ways Christianity has been weaponized to enforce white supremacy and heteropatriarchy, seeking instead to find the radical, liberative core of the Gospel message. Black Queer Theology insists that the liberation theology of figures like James Cone must be expanded to include all forms of marginalization, arguing that God’s justice cannot be compartmentalized. Black queer theology thus offers a powerful, affirming framework for spiritual survival, resistance, and the full decolonization of Christian thought and practice.
