Biographical Sketch

The Reverend Dr. Brad Braxton, an ordained Baptist minister, biblical scholar, and teacher of preaching, is a respected voice among today’s progressive religious leaders. His expertise in the Bible’s role in contemporary culture and his significant experience as a professor of preaching have made him a highly sought after lecturer and preacher in the United States and abroad. His lectures, sermons, and writings have addressed topics such as racial reconciliation, multiculturalism, interfaith dialogue, environmental justice, and collaborative economic partnerships with developing countries.

His speaking engagements have included appearances at influential institutions such as Yale University, Princeton University, Duke University, Emory University, and Morehouse College. In March 2007, Dr. Braxton preached at Westminster Abbey in London, England, joining a select group of American ministers who have stood in that renowned pulpit. His Westminster Abbey sermon on justice and non-violence was part of the bicentennial commemoration of the abolition of the slave trade in the British Empire. He also has preached in Canada, Ghana, and South Africa.

Dr. Braxton holds a Ph.D. in New Testament studies from Emory University and is a widely published author. His publications include three books: Preaching Paul (2004); No Longer Slaves: Galatians and African American Experience (2002); and The Tyranny of Resolution: I Corinthians 7:17-24 (2000) as well as numerous essays and sermons. He is a member of a team of scholars who have created The African American Lectionary, the first, online, ecumenical African American preaching and worship lectionary, which is being funded by the Lilly Endowment. The Reverend Martha Simmons, the manager of the lectionary and co-editor of the historic Norton anthology of African American preaching, speaks of Dr. Braxton’s work this way: “Brad Braxton is one of the most informed, prophetic, and theologically sound voices of the twenty-first century.”

Dr. Braxton won a prestigious Jefferson Scholarship to the University of Virginia, where he received his B.A. in religious studies. As a student at the University of Virginia, he was selected to be a Rhodes Scholar. While completing his Master’s degree at the University of Oxford, he worked closely with Professor Christopher Rowland, one of the world’s leading New Testament scholars and liberation theologians.

Professor Rowland endorses Dr. Braxton’s work in this way: “Brad is as good as you can get as an interpreter and expositor of the Bible in relation to contemporary matters. North American and European universities are full of extremely clever people who are good at doing ancient history, but not many of them will be able to relate a significant classic text like the Bible to the contemporary world. Brad does it with academic confidence and competence and an ability to relate to a lot of different people.”

Dr. Braxton’s previous positions include professorships at Vanderbilt University and Wake Forest University and pastorates at the Riverside Church in New York City and Douglas Memorial Community Church in Baltimore, Maryland.

Dr. Braxton’s partner in life and ministry is his wife, Lazetta. She is a Certified Financial Planner and CEO of her own financial planning firm. They have one daughter, Karis.

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