| abstract |
Womanist theology transforms the identities and leadership of Black women who have engaged with it during their theological education. In "The Eight Week Womanist Workshop: Can Womanist Theology be a Source of Liberation for Black Churchwomen," Alexis Carter Thomas argues that creating space for critical contextual engagement and womanist theological discourse can change the mindsets of Black churchwomen in regards to their theological perspectives about God, themselves, and the heteropatriarchal leadership and culture of Black churches. The author provides a brief history of womanist theology and the position of African American women in the United States. Womanist theology is presented as counter-hegemonic to patriarchal hegemonic Black church culture. This paper examines The 8-Week Womanist Workshop - a focus group exploring how inviting Black churchwomen to engage with womanist theology may change their minds about the traditions and harms of patriarchal hegemonic Black church culture.
The paper proposes that womanist theology provides liberating concepts, biblical interpretation, and ways of being that have the power to reform, liberate and increase the well-being of Black churchwomen. The 8-Week Womanist Workshop reveals that Black churchwomen's minds can be changed by engaging with womanist theology in a small group format. It is especially important that those who have not had formal theological training are given more time, space, and facilitated discussions to explore key ideas within the area of study.
Monica Coleman's discussion of creative transformation and postmodern womanist theology is used to demonstrate how womanist theology invites Black churchwomen to witness God opening up new possibilities, to make radical moves that confront the status quo, prioritize justice, and pursue wholeness as a quality of life. Through this research, the idea of co-creative transformation emerges as a necessary framework to introduce womanist theology in ecclesial spaces. This involves envisioning Christ as a central, yet expansive, figure encouraging participants to engage with a postmodern and pluralistic world that is hindered by Black church patriarchal cultural hegemony. The paper concludes with a suggestion to improve the 8-Week Womanist Workshop through a four-part process of co-creative transformation: engagement, exploration, consideration, and action.
|
