Black History is Church History
A one-day conference for Christians who want a fuller, truer understanding of how God has worked through history.
For many of us, there’s been a lingering story in the background:
that Christianity was primarily spread through colonization and coercion —
and that our faith arrived through power, not through the Spirit.
But that story is incomplete.
From the earliest days of the Church, God was already moving through Africa, Asia, and across the world long before colonization ever entered the picture.
Black history is Church history.
And this story belongs to the whole Church.
What This Gathering Is
Black History Is Church History is a one-day discipleship gathering designed to:
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Bring clarity where there has been confusion through scholarly, Christ-centered teaching
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Restore confidence in your faith story
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Reveal the beautiful, global story of God’s work throughout history
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Lead you to a deeper awe of God’s faithfulness
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Unify the Church around a shared history
What You'll Leave With
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Learned what you were never taught
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Found language for questions you’ve carried
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Gained a fuller picture of the Church’s story
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Felt more rooted in your faith
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Learn from trusted voices:
We will explore the Great Cloud of Witnesses that many history books omit — from early African theologians and martyrs, to the intellectual rigor of the ancient African Church, to the faithfulness of enslaved believers in America.
You will encounter the depth, continuity, and global reach of the Church’s story.
Alexander Wade serves as the Lead Teaching Pastor of Worthy Redeemer Church in North Huntsville, Alabama. Wade’s passion for Christ and His Church was ignited in 2005 when he came to faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Since then, he has dedicated his life to studying and proclaiming the gospel, with a special love for Scripture and historical theology. He and his wife, Alyssa, are raising four wonderful children—Harrison, Samson, Penelope, and Canaan. He holds a degree in Historical Theology from Reformed Baptist Seminary.
Joel McCarty is a follower of King Jesus, husband to Kristy, and father to four kids (KJ, Everleigh, Scarlett, and Madi Wren). Joel is a member of New Eden Church in Decatur, Alabama, and also serves on the Elder Team as the Pastor for Preaching.
K.A. Ellis is the Director of the The Alonzo and Althea Edmiston Center for Christian Endurance Studies in Atlanta, Georgia. She’s passionate about theology, human rights, and global religious freedom. Since 2006, it’s been Dr. Ellis’ pleasure to collaborate with the Swiss-based organization, International Christian Response, traveling internationally to connect local and global Christians while studying and advocating for global religious freedom. Her research explores Christian endurance from society’s margins, particularly in places where it’s most difficult to live the Christian life.
Dr. Ellis is the Cannada Fellow for World Christianity at Reformed Theological Seminary. She holds a Master of Arts in Religion (MAR) from Westminster Theological Seminary, a Master of Fine Arts (M.F.A.) from the Yale School of Drama, and a Ph.D. in World Christianity and Ethics at the Oxford Center for Mission Studies in England. In 1969, Carl Ellis began his ministry as a Senior Campus Minister with the Tom Skinner Associates in New York. From 1979 to 1989, Carl served as the Assistant Pastor of Forest Park Community Church in Baltimore, MD, served on faculty at Chesapeake Theological Seminary, and served as a seminar instructor for Prison Fellowship where he developed and taught “in-prison” and “in-community” seminars for inmates and community volunteers. Between 1986 and 2009, Carl served as an adjunct faculty member at the Center for Urban Theological Studies (C.U.T.S.), and as Dean of Intercultural Studies at Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, PA. Carl was recently the Associate Pastor for Cultural Apologetics at New City Fellowship. Dr. Ellis studied under Francis Schaeffer at LÁbri in Hermoz sur Olon’, Switzerland, completed his MAR (Theology) at Westminster Theological Seminary, and holds a D.Phil. from Oxford Graduate School.
Damon Richardson is an ordained Baptist minister who has served over the past 33 years in various ministry roles including senior pastor and teaching pastor. Damon currently preaches itinerantly and is the founder of UrbanLogia, an online theological and apologetics resource which specializes in the field of urban apologetics. Rev. Richardson has a passion for helping to equip ministers, church leaders and all believers biblically, theologically and apologetically. Damon holds an M.A. in Religious Studies and is a PhD candidate at Beulah Heights University in Atlanta, GA, where he resides with his wife Nadine and the younger two of their four children.