In this chapter, I want to look more closely at some of the theological themes represented in the dramatic pieces developed for this study. The main script on which most of my analysis will be drawn is My God!? I will talk about the development of this piece shortly. At this point, however, it is worth stating that this sketch has been used for a number of years as a basic introduction to Black theology, in my teaching ministry across the UK.

This piece has been amended over the years and the echoes of this development will be described shortly. I have returned repeatedly to My God!? because I feel it encapsulates many of the nascent themes of Black theology within its few pages.

Black Theology Brought me Back to Life

The relationship between the Christian faith and Black people has always been complex and contradictory. In a previous work, I described Black people as being “incurably religious.” Within the overall framework of Christianity, the Bible in general and the figure of Jesus in particular, remain hugely important to Black Christian expressions of faith across the world. Scholars such as J. Deotis Roberts, Peter Paris and Vincent Wimbush have commented on the importance of the Bible and the Christian faith as a whole to the socialization and orientation of Black people.

My own Christian formation has been within a strict Christian framework.