Long Line of Learned, Passionate, and Articulate African-Americans Within the Reformed Tradition

I was so excited when Pastor Thabiti Anyabwile’s latest book arrived this week:

May We Meet in the Heavenly World:
The Piety of Lemuel Haynes (1753-1833)

I’m ashamed by my ignorance, but until Pastor Anyabwile let us know about this great man, Lemuel Haynes, I simply never knew that “there had in fact been a long line of learned, passionate, and articulate African-Americans within the Reformed tradition” (from the Foreword by Anthony J. Carter)—more or less from the time of the founding of the USA.

As soon as I found out, I bought the book because I wanted to learn more! And now I can’t put the book down. I just want to keep reading about this man who Pastor Anyabwile describes thusly:

“His life of faithful pastoral ministry, spanning over fifty years, leaves us a rich legacy from which to learn. His power as a preacher, precision as a theologian, carefulness as a pastor, and joviality as a brother all instruct us centuries later on what faithfulness entails. His love for the Savior and longing for eternity call us out of ourselves and upward to the Bishop and Overseer of our souls.”