Bible software company Logos announced that it will launch more resources written by Black authors in 2021, according to Christianity Today. For the last year, Logos has worked with a small group of Black leaders, called the Kerusso Collective, to create more study curriculum for churches.
“The African American voice is a powerful voice that needs to be heard,” said Chauncey Allmond, a national presenter for Logos. “There’s a lot of traditions in the African American church that I think Logos is missing out on.”
Logos created the collective in early 2020 before the recent national conversation on race when the company received feedback from customers and potential customers.
“We don’t think it’s going to be primarily for the African American audience. We’re looking at it also to serve the white evangelical church because there’s a need there,” he said. “The multiethnic churches are growing in leaps and bounds, and for them to have product and resource offerings that will help them serve their community, I think, is a win-win for everyone.”
In early 2021, Logos hopes to offer the new study resources. Included in the Kerusso Collective are Charlie Dates, pastor of Progressive Baptist Church in Chicago; Cynthia L. Hale, pastor of Ray of Hope Christian Church in Decatur, Georgia; Esau McCaulley, assistant professor of New Testament at Wheaton College; Kenneth C. Ulmer, pastor of Faithful Central Bible Church in Inglewood, California; Joseph W. Walker III, bishop of Mt. Zion Baptist Church in Nashville; and, Ralph Douglas West, pastor of Church Without Walls in Houston.
Fellow Logos presenter Damon Richardson believes the new scholarship will only enhance white evangelicals’ perspectives.
“The light hits that diamond in a different way,” he said. “You get a different cut and a different glimmer.”
Richardson converted to Christianity after being raised in the Nation of Islam, which believes Christianity is “a white man’s religion.” He sees the diversification of scholarly research as a tremendous benefit.
“I think it’s good for people to see the African American contribution in these areas,” he said. “It’s good for the church.”
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Mikaela Mathews is a freelance writer and editor based in Dallas, TX. She was the editor of a local magazine and a contributing writer for the Galveston Daily News and Spirit Magazine.
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