New Book Confronts Why Some Black Americans Reject Christianity
California pastor JP Foster released 'The Gospel and My Black Skin,' a book that addresses why many Black Americans find it difficult to reconcile their racial identity with the Christian faith. Foster traces the history of Christianity in Africa and examines how slavery and colonialism distorted the faith's presentation to Black communities. The book is drawing attention from urban ministry leaders and scholars.
California pastor JP Foster has released a new book, "The Gospel and My Black Skin: Confronting the Past, Reclaiming the Future," that directly addresses one of the most persistent barriers to Christian faith in Black communities: the perception that Christianity is "the white man's religion."
Foster, who leads a predominantly Black church in Inglewood, California, wrote the book after years of street evangelism in Black neighborhoods where he repeatedly encountered people who rejected the faith because of its association with slavery, colonialism, and Jim Crow.
The book traces the deep roots of Christianity in Africa, arguing that many people do not know that the faith was present on the African continent long before European colonization. Foster highlights early African theologians such as Tertullian, Athanasius, and Augustine, whose African origins have often been erased or minimized by Western scholars.
"These leaders were shaped by African soil, African questions, and African communities," Foster writes. "But Rome's language became the medium of their message. And that's where the erasure began."
The book also examines how scripture was manipulated to justify slavery, how Southern evangelicals resisted the Civil Rights Movement, and how Christianity has been fused with American nationalism in ways that alienate many Black believers and seekers.
Foster calls on churches to pursue racial justice and to affirm the image of God in every person. He argues that the true Christian faith is liberatory, pointing to abolitionists and civil rights leaders who drew on their faith to fight oppression.
Christianity Today reviewed the book positively, calling it a valuable tool for urban apologetics. The review noted that Foster's personal stories, including a tense police stop and watching a mentor's reconciliation efforts fall apart, give the book emotional weight that theological arguments alone cannot provide.
The book is published by Zondervan and is available now.
