God Lives In The Hands Of Black Grandmothers

“I am reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also.” – 2 Timothy 1:5 NIV.

Yolanda Pierce, Dean of Howard University’s School of Divinity, has dedicated herself to developing what she calls “grandmother theology.” 

Raised by her grandmother, a woman whose faith was born from surviving Jim Crow, Pierce knows God lives in her grandmother’s hands. That same divinity has been present at Black women’s kitchen tables for generations. 

Pierce wants us to know this God. 

In her book In My Grandmother’s House, Pierce uses scripture, Black church experiences, and womanism to unpack grandmother theology. She values the spiritual wisdom and herstories that only Black grandmothers, aunties, and older Black femmes possess. Pierce asks, “Can a Black woman ever truly love God when we have never been taught to love ourselves?” 

She finds her answer in the tradition of Black grandmothers who leaned on faith and birthed a radical form of self-love. 

Our faith is twofold:  the faith we’ve individually cultivated with Spirit and the faith passed down through our very flesh.

Grandmother theology honors the  Black grandmothers who raised us. Thank God for all Black matriarchs who instilled a spirit of love in us.