Pacific School of Religion (PSR) celebrates an extraordinary moment in the life and vocation of Dr. Joshua S. Bartholomew, Assistant Professor of Theology, Race, and Social Justice, whose scholarship and ministry continue to shape conversations on faith, justice, and liberatory social change.
On February 15, Dr. Bartholomew preached at the Historic Third Baptist Church of San Francisco, the oldest Black Baptist congregation on the West Coast. Founded in 1852 in the home of Eliza and William Davis, Third Baptist has served for more than 170 years as a center of spiritual formation, civic leadership, and social transformation in the Bay Area. Under the leadership of The Reverend Devon Jerome Crawford and Pastor Emeritus Amos Brown, the church continues its longstanding tradition of community-minded ministry rooted in love, witness, and collective care. Rooted in Matthew 17 and Black prophetic witness, Dr. Bartholomew urged the congregation to remember who we are and to welcome God’s transforming work within. His full sermon is available on YouTube.
This preaching moment comes as Dr. Bartholomew prepares for another major milestone: his nomination and upcoming induction into the 41st Annual Martin Luther King Jr. College of Ministers & Laity at Morehouse College. In a letter issued on behalf of President F. DuBois Bowman ’92, Morehouse announced that Dr. Bartholomew will be inducted into the MLK Jr. Collegium of Scholars, a recognition awarded to leaders whose work exemplifies religious, ethical, and social commitment. The ceremony will take place on Thursday, April 9, 2026, at 11 a.m. in the Martin Luther King Jr. International Chapel Crown Nave, featuring music by the Morehouse College Glee Club and a keynote address from The Honorable Reverend Senator Raphael Gamaliel Warnock ’91, PhD. The event will also be livestreamed on Morehouse College’s YouTube channel.
About Dr. Joshua S. Bartholomew
Dr. Joshua Bartholomew is a scholar-activist, critical theorist, and first-generation immigrant from Trinidad and Tobago, raised in Roxbury, Boston. His research explores the intersections of economic justice and racial equality, with a focus on the ethical and theological dimensions of Black radical traditions and social movements. He is the author of Black Theology and The Black Panthers (Bloomsbury Publishing) and co-editor of the forthcoming Theology, Abolition, and Economic Justice (Bloomsbury Publishing). His current monograph centers on Fred Hampton and the original Rainbow Coalition.
Dr. Bartholomew holds leadership roles across the American Academy of Religion, serving on the steering committees of the Black Theology Unit, the Class, Labor, and Religion Unit, and the Applied Religious Studies Committee. He is a founding member of the Society of Race, Ethnicity, and Religion (SRER) and a member of the Society of Christian Ethics (SCE), the Society for the Study of Black Religion (SSBR), and the Community Economic Research Network (CERN). An ordained minister in both the National Baptist and American Baptist traditions, he was licensed to preach at the historic Abyssinian Baptist Church in Harlem. He is also a devoted member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated.
Learn more about Joshua HERE.
PSR is proud to celebrate Dr. Bartholomew’s achievements and honored to walk alongside him as he continues to inspire, educate, and embody the transformative values at the heart of our mission.
Congratulations, Dr. Bartholomew! 🎉