Hugh Black

Hugh Black

6 Sermons
Hugh Black (March 26, 1868 – April 6, 1953) was a Scottish-American theologian and author. Black was born on March 26, 1868, in Rothesay, Scotland. He received a Master of Arts degree from the University of Glasgow in 1887, and studied divinity at Free Church College Glasgow from 1887 until 1891. Black was ordained in 1891 and became associate pastor at St George's Free Church in Edinburgh in 1896, where he worked with Alexander Whyte.Hugh Black (March 26, 1868 – April 6, 1953) was a Scottish-American preacher, theologian, and author whose ministry bridged pastoral service and academic theology, impacting congregations across Scotland and the United States for over five decades. Born in Rothesay, Scotland, to parents whose details are not widely documented—likely a modest Presbyterian family—he grew up immersed in the Free Church tradition. He graduated with a Master of Arts from the University of Glasgow in 1887 and studied divinity at Free Church College Glasgow (1887–1891), ordained in 1891 without further formal degrees, though he later received honorary Doctor of Divinity titles from Yale (1908), Princeton, and Glasgow (both 1911). Black’s preaching career began as assistant pastor at Sherwood Church in Paisley, Scotland, followed by a decade as associate pastor at St. George’s Free Church in Edinburgh (1896–1906) under Alexander Whyte, where his eloquent sermons earned him renown as a “whitener” to Whyte’s “blackening” style. Emigrating to the United States in 1906, he became Professor of Practical Theology at Union Theological Seminary in New York City (1906–1937), preaching at college chapels and guest pulpits like Central Congregational Church in Providence, Rhode Island, with a focus on practical faith and evangelism. He pastored First Congregational Church in Montclair, New Jersey, from 1930 to 1937, retiring to write and lecture. Author of works like The Art of Being a Good Friend (1899) and Christ’s Service of Love (1907), he married with family details unrecorded and passed away at age 85 in Montclair, New Jersey.
  • Sermons
  • Bio