God of the Oppressed by James H. Cone is an articulation of Black divinity of deliverance. Cone was a champion of black liberation theology. The book was published in 1975 and it followed his two publications, “Black Power and Black Liberation” (1969) and “A Black Theology of Liberation” (1970). The book explores the historical suffering of blacks and the silence of white Christianity. Cone opines that white Christianity should be at the forefront condemning the oppression and racism against the black community. All beliefs about Jesus should be perceived through the struggles of the blacks in the quest for their liberation.
James Cone discusses the apparent differences in preaching between white and black theologians. In fact, Cone believes that white theologians are full of hypocrisy. The hypocrisy and racism by white theologians have compelled them to avoid the topic of slavery, racism, and imperialism when preaching. In simple terms, Cone blames the contextual and historical factors for white theological understanding. According to Cone, Black theologians preach about the God of the oppressed, thus, the title of the book. Indeed, Cone praises black theology for maintaining the idea of portraying Jesus as a liberator. Jesus was, is, and will keep on liberating the oppressed and poor.
Black people in the US have experienced oppression, which Cone terms as the evil of the American society. The torture and dehumanization subjected to minority communities should earn condemnation from white Christianity. However, they have ignored the discussion of oppression and instead preach about the meekness of Jesus Christ.
