Jennifer L. Carner

The Rev. Dr. Jennifer Carner is director of the Preaching in a Post-Christian Age Initiative and visiting assistant professor of preaching at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary. Her primary areas of study and practice include African American sacred proclamation and the rhetoric of social movements, folk preaching and the practice of a folk ethic in preaching, histories of homiletic theory, and histories of American preaching. Prior to her time at PTS, Dr. Carner ministered at The Greater Travelers Rest Baptist Church, Atlanta, Ga., where she served as senior manager, executive pastor, preaching assistant, membership care pastor, content creator, and global operations manager. In these roles, Dr. Carner’s work included forecasting church trends, leadership in pastoral care and discipleship initiatives, and online resource management and development, in addition to a variety of editorial, preaching, and teaching projects.

In addition to her ecclesial leadership, Dr. Carner has served as assistant professor of religion at Barry University. She holds membership in numerous societies, including the Academy of Homiletics, Rhetoric Society of America, the Society of Biblical Literature, and the American Academy of Religion. She has produced papers, Bible studies, sermons, and devotionals on topics such as wellness in African American communities, millennial disillusionment due to trauma and natural disasters, and pop culture, including a sermon featured in The African American Pulpit. Dr. Carner holds a B.S. in Christianity/theology from Mercer University, an M.Div. from Emory University’s Candler School of Theology, and a Ph.D. in African American preaching and sacred rhetoric from Christian Theological Seminary. Her dissertation is entitled: The Contextual Art of the African American Folk Preaching Tradition, in which she defined the homiletical theory and theology of the Africana Folk preaching tradition using nine distinct homiletical markers based upon the rhetorical artifacts of 19^th century African American female preachers. In her most recent academic work, Dr. Carner has also identified a folk ethic in contemporary Africana preaching traditions.

Made possible by Lilly Endowment, Inc.’s Compelling Preaching Initiative grant, the Preaching in a Post-Christian Age Initiative brings pastors from diverse denominations and settings to the PTS campus four times each year to explore faithful and innovative ways to preach the Word, attuned to local contexts and broader concerns.

31 Days of Winning: Women's Devotional & Prayer Journal. JT Publishing House, 2019.