Womanist
Encyclopedia
Womanist theology is a religious conceptual framework which reconsiders and revises the traditions, practices, scriptures, and biblical interpretation with a special lens to empower and liberate African American
women in America
. Womanist theology associates with and departs from Feminist theology
and Black theology
specifically because it integrates the perspectives and experiences of African American
and other women of color. The former's lack of attention to the everyday realities of women of color and the latter's lack of understanding of the full dimension of liberation from the unique oppressions of Black
women require bringing them together in Womanist Theology. The goals of womanist theology include interrogating the social construction of black womanhood in relation to the Black
community and to assume a liberatory perspective so that African American women can live emboldened lives within the African American community and within the larger society. Some of its tasks are excavating the life stories of poor women of African descent in the church and to understanding the "languages" of black women. It is strongly associated with Black feminism
. Womanist theology is not only for African women; it attempts to embrace women of color all over the world.
The term Womanist
was developed by author Alice Walker
in her first collection of non-fiction, In Search of Our Mothers' Gardens: Womanist Prose
(1983), and referred primarily to African-American women, but also for women in general. In her own words: “A Womanist is to feminist as purple is to lavender.”
The roots of modern theological womanism grew out of the theology of James Hal Cone
, Katie G. Cannon, Jacquelyn Grant, and Delores Williams. Cone developed black theology which sought to make sense out of theology from black experience in America. In his book A Black Theology of Liberation, Cone argued that “God is black” in an effort to demonstrate that God identifies with oppressed black Americans. Then, Grant, a first generation womanist theologian, argued that Cone did not attend to the fullness of black experience – specifically that of black women. She argued that the oppression of black women is different than that of black men. Grant pointed out that lower-class black women must navigate between the threefold oppression of racism, sexism, and classism in her books Womanist Theology and White Woman's Christ Black Women's Jesus. For her, Jesus is a “divine co-sufferer” who suffered in his time like black women today. Grant concludes that black women are more oppressed and in need of further liberation than black men and especially white women. Delores Williams took the work of theologians such as Cone and Grant and expanded upon them. She suggested that womanist theologians need to “search for the voices, actions, opinions, experience, and faith” of black women in order to experience the God who “makes a way out of no way.” She defines womanism in the following way:
With the increasing use of womanist theory and theology in Master of Divinity, African American Studies, and Women's Studies, programs have clearly began to incorporate womanism into university and seminary courses.
daily language by mothers to describe adolescent daughters who act outrageous and grown-up, in contrast to "girlish". "Womanist
" was then developed in 1983 by Alice Walker
-- Black
novelist
, poet
, essayist, and activist
-- in her collection of essays, In Search of Our Mothers' Gardens: Womanist Prose
.
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
women in America
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Womanist theology associates with and departs from Feminist theology
Feminist theology
Feminist theology is a movement found in several religions, including Buddhism, Christianity, Judaism, and New Thought, to reconsider the traditions, practices, scriptures, and theologies of those religions from a feminist perspective...
and Black theology
Black theology
Black theology refers to a variety of Black theologies which have as their base the liberation of the marginalized, especially the injustice done towards Blacks in American and South African contexts...
specifically because it integrates the perspectives and experiences of African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
and other women of color. The former's lack of attention to the everyday realities of women of color and the latter's lack of understanding of the full dimension of liberation from the unique oppressions of Black
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
women require bringing them together in Womanist Theology. The goals of womanist theology include interrogating the social construction of black womanhood in relation to the Black
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
community and to assume a liberatory perspective so that African American women can live emboldened lives within the African American community and within the larger society. Some of its tasks are excavating the life stories of poor women of African descent in the church and to understanding the "languages" of black women. It is strongly associated with Black feminism
Black feminism
Black feminism argues that sexism, class oppression, and racism are inextricably bound together. Forms of feminism that strive to overcome sexism and class oppression. The Combahee River Collective argued in 1974 that the liberation of black women entails freedom for all people, since it would...
. Womanist theology is not only for African women; it attempts to embrace women of color all over the world.
The term Womanist
Womanism
The word womanism was adapted from Pulitzer Prize winning author Alice Walker's use of the term in her book In Search of Our Mothers' Gardens: Womanist Prose...
was developed by author Alice Walker
Alice Walker
Alice Malsenior Walker is an American author, poet, and activist. She has written both fiction and essays about race and gender...
in her first collection of non-fiction, In Search of Our Mothers' Gardens: Womanist Prose
In Search of Our Mothers' Gardens: Womanist Prose
Published in 1983, In Search of Our Mothers' Gardens: Womanist Prose is a collection composed of thirty-six separate pieces written by Alice Walker. The essays, articles, reviews, statements, and speeches were written between 1966 and 1982. Many are based on her understanding of "womanist" theory...
(1983), and referred primarily to African-American women, but also for women in general. In her own words: “A Womanist is to feminist as purple is to lavender.”
The roots of modern theological womanism grew out of the theology of James Hal Cone
James Hal Cone
James Hal Cone is an advocate of Black liberation theology, a theology grounded in the experience of African Americans, and related to other Christian liberation theologies. In 1969, his book Black Theology and Black Power provided a new way to articulate the distinctiveness of theology in the...
, Katie G. Cannon, Jacquelyn Grant, and Delores Williams. Cone developed black theology which sought to make sense out of theology from black experience in America. In his book A Black Theology of Liberation, Cone argued that “God is black” in an effort to demonstrate that God identifies with oppressed black Americans. Then, Grant, a first generation womanist theologian, argued that Cone did not attend to the fullness of black experience – specifically that of black women. She argued that the oppression of black women is different than that of black men. Grant pointed out that lower-class black women must navigate between the threefold oppression of racism, sexism, and classism in her books Womanist Theology and White Woman's Christ Black Women's Jesus. For her, Jesus is a “divine co-sufferer” who suffered in his time like black women today. Grant concludes that black women are more oppressed and in need of further liberation than black men and especially white women. Delores Williams took the work of theologians such as Cone and Grant and expanded upon them. She suggested that womanist theologians need to “search for the voices, actions, opinions, experience, and faith” of black women in order to experience the God who “makes a way out of no way.” She defines womanism in the following way:
With the increasing use of womanist theory and theology in Master of Divinity, African American Studies, and Women's Studies, programs have clearly began to incorporate womanism into university and seminary courses.
Etymology
The term womanish was commonly used in BlackAfrican American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
daily language by mothers to describe adolescent daughters who act outrageous and grown-up, in contrast to "girlish". "Womanist
Womanism
The word womanism was adapted from Pulitzer Prize winning author Alice Walker's use of the term in her book In Search of Our Mothers' Gardens: Womanist Prose...
" was then developed in 1983 by Alice Walker
Alice Walker
Alice Malsenior Walker is an American author, poet, and activist. She has written both fiction and essays about race and gender...
-- Black
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
novelist
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
, poet
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
, essayist, and activist
Activism
Activism consists of intentional efforts to bring about social, political, economic, or environmental change. Activism can take a wide range of forms from writing letters to newspapers or politicians, political campaigning, economic activism such as boycotts or preferentially patronizing...
-- in her collection of essays, In Search of Our Mothers' Gardens: Womanist Prose
In Search of Our Mothers' Gardens: Womanist Prose
Published in 1983, In Search of Our Mothers' Gardens: Womanist Prose is a collection composed of thirty-six separate pieces written by Alice Walker. The essays, articles, reviews, statements, and speeches were written between 1966 and 1982. Many are based on her understanding of "womanist" theory...
.
Approaches of womanist theology
Womanist theologians use a variety of methods to approach the scripture. Some attempted to find black women within biblical narrative so as to reclaim the role and identity of black people in general, and black women in specific within the Bible. Some examples are social ethicist, Cheryl Sanders and womanist theologian Karen Baker-Fletcher. Some approach the Bible 'objectively' to critically evaluate text which degrade women and people of color and offer an African-centred form, to resist male domination and bias, or what could be termed anti-women or androcentric attitudes and forms. Others draw on resources outside the Bible to enhance the plurality and cohesion of the texts along with our life experiences and reject scripture as a whole or part which is seen to serve male interest only. These methods are not separated and can be endorsed together.Womanist Exegesis
Patricia-Anne Johnson writes that, "Renita J. Weems, a womanist professor and scholar of the Hebrew Bible, examines scripture as a world filled with women of color. Through the use of womanist imagination, Weems helps students to understand female roles, personalities, and woman-to-woman relationships during the time when the biblical texts were written." Johnson, quoting further from Weems, also shows how Hagar and Esther can be seen as models of resistance for black women. Johnson: "Womanism may be envisioned as a post-colonial discourse that allows African American women to embrace a Jesus and a God free of the imperialism of white supremacy."External links
- "Womanist theology, epistemology, and a new anthropological paradigm" by Linda E. Thomas, in the journal Cross Currents.
- Hyacinth Sweeney, "The Bible as a Tool For Growth for Black Women". Black Theology in Britain: A Journal of Contextual Praxis Nov2000, Vol. 3 Issue 5, p21
- http://www.cas.sc.edu/relg/facbios/mitchem.html Introducing Womanist Theology by Stephanie Y. Mitchem, 2002.