The Black Church Studies Certificate Program (BCSCP) at Yale Divinity School (YDS) offers a Certificate in Black Church Studies for students who wish to respond to the evolving work of the Black Church and to the critical needs of marginalized communities. The program is open to students interested in serving in historically Black congregations, and /or who are inspired by the rich and ecumenically diverse traditions of the Black Church.
The BCSCP at YDS supports the inquiry of, and engagement with, practices of African American churches and other Christian communities throughout the African Diaspora. To cultivate such inquiry the BCS Certificate Program offers opportunities for dialogue with emerging and existing leaders in the Black church and in the broader community.
Through course work, colloquia, special lectures and other culturally relevant events, the BCSCP creates the opportunity for innovative and interdisciplinary thinking, and space for dialogue that supports the development of a student’s unique voice and perspective on Black religious life.
BCSCP Requirements
- Course work of at least twelve (12) credit hours of African American religious inquiry. One course must examine some aspect of African American history.
- Participation in one (1) colloquium per semester
- Participation in either the annual YDS/ New Haven Pilgrimage or the Biennial BCSCP Retreat.
- Complete one (1) supervised ministry in a BCSCP approved site.
- Participate in a regular meeting designed specifically for BCSCP participants.
- MDiv students are required to confirm with the BCSCP director their intention to receive the BCS certificate at the beginning of their second year of study, no later than the last day to change a course grade for that semester.
- MAR students are required to confirm with the BCSCP director their intention to receive the BCS certificate at the beginning of the spring semester of their first year of study, no later than the last day to change a course grade for that semester.
- STM students are required to confirm with the BCSCP director their intention to receive the BCS certificate at the beginning of their course of study, no later than the last day to change a course grade for that semester. STM students are also required to offer a presentation tied to their research project in relation to Black Church Studies, at the end of their course of study.
BCSCP Fall 2026 Courses
Fall 2026 course work that meets the requirements for the Black Church Studies Certificate Program are listed below:
- REL 3614: Creating Financially Sustainable Churches and Non Profits
- REL 3615: Managing Crisis in Churches and Non Profits
- REL 6626: Introduction to Systematic Theology
- REL 6629: Theology and Medicine
- REL 6631: Christian Ethics
- REL 7739: Pentecostals in Africa: Perspectives, Practice and Prospects
- REL 7778: 2000 Years of Christianity in Africa: A History of the African Church *
- REL 8804: Practical Theology Seminar
- REL 8807 : Practicing Care: Intro to Pastoral Theology for a Complex World
- REL 8815: Radical Pedagogy
- REL 8824: Ministry and the Disinherited
- REL 8861: The Musicality of Black Preaching
- REL 8862: The Gospel in Lament: Preaching for a Suffering World
- REL 8882: Migration and Ministry
- REL 9924: Foundations of Islam: Understanding Muslim Tradition, Practice and Encounter
- REL 9927: Black Religious and Political Thought
- REL 9994: Moral Issues in Public Policy: Poverty, Health Care and Voting Rights
* This course satisfies the BCSCP history requirement
**REL 3990: Negotiating Boundaries - Please note that this course is a prerequisite for ALL Supervised Ministry