Meaning in the margins: postcolonial feminist methodologies in practical theology

Radford, W. (2017) Meaning in the margins: postcolonial feminist methodologies in practical theology. Practical Theology, 10(2), pp. 118-132. (doi: 10.1080/1756073x.2017.1302700)

Abstract

This paper troubles research approaches in practical theology by exploring how attention to lived experiences of marginalization in postcolonial feminist theologies shapes theological methodologies. Drawing on the work of Walter Mignolo and Marcella Althaus-Reid, the margins are explored as epistemological and material sites that shape theological knowledge production. The complex intersections of experiences and identities of lives on the margins require a resistance to taxonomic or technical theological methodologies. As discussed by Mayra Rivera and Ada María Isasi-Díaz, the margins are not sites of deprivation, but of critical praxis, so theological methodology must be attentive to everyday experiences of the margins. The paper highlights where postcolonial feminist theologies add to practical theology about poetics by attending to making meaning. The paper concludes by reflecting on academic engagement with postcolonial feminist theology and the lived experiences of the margins.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Radford, Ms Clare
• Authors: Radford, W.
• College/School: College of Arts & Humanities > School of Critical Studies > Theology and Religious Studies
• Journal Name: Practical Theology
• Publisher: Taylor & Francis
• ISSN: 1756-073X
• ISSN (Online): 1756-0748
• Published Online: 22 March 2017
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2017 Contact Pastoral Trust
• First Published: First published in Practical Theology 10(2): 118-132
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced in accordance with the publisher copyright policy