Not long ago, Baylor historian Thomas Kidd published a short post at The Gospel Coalition blog on the anniversary of Phillis Wheatley's death. He titled his piece "Phillis Wheatley: An Evangelical and the First Published African American Female Poet," and concluded by saying that "Evangelicals, of all people, need to remember her today."
In response, writer Jonathan Merritt tweeted: "Calling her an evangelical is, um, a bit weird."
"Why?" Kidd countered.
"Because you're assigning her to a movement at a time when the movement wouldn't have her. How are you defining evangelical?" Merritt replied. "If self-identification, did she? If denominational affiliation, was she?"
