Kanyoro explains and analyzes the cultural resources, experiences and the practices of African women and the role of cultural hermeneutics in reading the Bible. She addresses the issue of the accountability of the church, women's organizations in the church and African women theologians.

This book has six chapters: The first Chapter deals with a brief history on the genesis of African Feminist theologies as an 'irruption within an irruption' of Feminist theological movements in the world including a reflection on its relationship to the secular Feminist Movement, and to similar theologies such as Contextual Theology, Liberation Theology and the Holiness Feminist Movement. The second chapter deals with an introduction to African Feminist Hermeneutics. In this chapter, the three branches of African Feminist Hermeneutics, the general theories, principles and approaches to African Feminist Hermeneutics are highlighted. The third chapter deals with an Evangelical Feminist Biblical Hermeneutics of the Old Testament. The fourth chapter deals with an Evangelical Feminist Biblical Hermeneutics of the New Testament. The fifth is about how Malawian Christian women interpret culture, Bible and power relations to realise their own liberation and chapter 6 concludes the book.

In highly accessible essays, the book covers the history, achievements, and cutting-edge questions in the area of gender and biblical scholarship, including violence and the Bible, female biblical God imagery, and sexuality."--Jacket.

Changing Horizons is the second of two volumes highlighting the ways in which Elisabeth Schussler Fiorenza's work constructs a critical feminist theory and praxis of liberation, in relation to the biblical text and its legacy, and in relation to the theological and ecclesial setting of today. Schussler Fiorenza attempts to free both biblical studies and theology from disciplinary constraints and assumptions that have allowed them to acquiesce and even perpetuate forms of oppression—from racism and poverty to colonialism and gender equality.

Essays discuss women's role in the church, the interpretation of Scripture, the use of Biblical materials, women in the Bible, female sexuality, battered women, and Biblical authority

The meaningful juxtaposition of academics (“experts”) with the day-to-day lives of nonacademics (“nonexperts”) has animated Gerald O. West’s work from the beginning. Seeking to bridge this chasm, West’s approach of reading the Bible with the “ordinary people” (typically marginalized communities) became a core practice not only of his church work but of his scholarship. West has been a strong proponent of taking seriously the “ordinary reader” as a viable and legitimate contributor to our understanding of biblical interpretation. Not only does this undo the “ivory tower” elitism that tends to pervade academic halls of learning, but it also reflects a form of scholarly humility that has been a mainstay of West’s and should be perpetuated more broadly in biblical scholarship.

Because there are more women in the Gospel of Luke than in any other gospel, feminists have given it much attention. In this commentary, Shelly Matthews and Barbara Reid show that feminist analysis demands much more than counting the number of female characters. Feminist biblical interpretation examines how the female characters function in the narrative and also scrutinizes the workings of power with respect to empire, to anti-Judaism, and to other forms of othering. Matthews and Reid draw attention to the ambiguities of the text-both the liberative possibilities and the ways that Luke upholds the patriarchal status quo-and guide readers to empowering reading strategies.

An Introduction to Womanist Biblical Interpretation provides a much-needed introduction to womanist approaches to biblical interpretation. It argues that womanist biblical interpretation is not simply a byproduct of feminist biblical interpretation but part of a distinctive tradition of African American women's engagement with biblical texts. While womanist biblical interpretation is relatively new in the development of academic biblical studies, African American women are not newcomers to biblical interpretation. Written in an accessible style, this volume highlights the importance of both the Bible and race in the development of feminism and the emergence of womanism. It provides a history of feminist biblical interpretation and discusses the current state of womanist biblical interpretation as well as critical issues related to its development and future. Although some African American women identify themselves as "womanists," the term, its usage, its features, and its connection to feminism remain widely misunderstood. This excellent textbook is perfect for helping to introduce readers to the development and applications of womanist biblical interpretation.

When African Theology was first formulated, women played just a small role. In 1989 Mercy Amba Oduyoye set out to change this by creating the Circle of Concerned African Theologians in order to them a voice. The Circle of Concerned African Women Theologians is an African Baby, born in an ecumenical surrounding. Though there were other movements addressing the issue of gender inequalities in church and society, circle theologies are distinct from other women's liberation movements in that they are theologies formed in the context of African culture and religion. This book traces the Circle history from 1989 to 2007.