JENNIFER CARNER JOINS PITTSBURGH THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY AS DIRECTOR OF PREACHING IN A POST-CHRISTIAN AGE INITIATIVE
The Rev. Dr. Jennifer Carner has joined Pittsburgh Theological Seminary as director of the Preaching in a Post-Christian Age Initiative. Made possible by Lilly Endowment, Inc.’s Compelling Preaching Initiative grant, the Seminary’s new Preaching in a Post-Christian Age Initiative will bring 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. In addition to the work of directing this program, Dr. Carner will serve as visiting assistant professor of preaching and share in the teaching of preaching in our master’s programs.
Dr. Carner’s primary areas of study and practice include homiletics, the history of African American preaching and rhetoric, theology, sacred rhetoric, and the history of Black oratory. She comes to PTS from The Greater Travelers Rest Baptist Church, in Atlanta, Ga., where she served as executive pastor and senior manager. In these roles, Dr. Carner’s work has 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. Beyond her ecclesial leadership, Dr. Carner has served as assistant professor of religion at Barry University and as faculty lecturer in rhetoric at Wayland Baptist Theological Seminary. She holds membership in numerous societies, including the Academy of Homiletics, Rhetoric Society of America, the NAACP, 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 disaster, 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.
“We are thrilled to welcome Dr. Carner to our group of scholars and practitioners at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary,” said President Asa Lee. “What is needed for the Preaching in a Post-Christian Age Initiative is a deep attention to and respect for both the characteristics of the current cultural climate and the riches of the Christian tradition, and Dr. Carner’s experience as a preacher, scholar, and an adaptive ministry leader make her a perfect fit.”
“Preaching and worship can shape a community’s theology, ideas, and praxis,” said Dr. Carner. “The Preaching in a Post-Christian Age Initiative will resource pastors, new faith community leaders, and preachers to address the challenges of presenting the gospel in this age. I look forward to engaging our team in a whole-hearted effort to respond to the root causes of the crisis of effective proclamation. We look forward to building learning communities that nurture preachers’ rhetorical confidence and cultivate their competence in the art and science of preaching.”