Asian women comprise more than a quarter of the world's population, and the forms in which they express feminist theology are many and varied, extending through grassroots movements, theological networks, ecumenical conferences and journals. Those involved in the process include community organizers, theological students, church leaders and social activists, among whom even the concept 'feminism' assumes many definitions and substitutes. Kwok Pui-lan's introduction to this huge subject begins with a survey of the social, political and cultural contexts of Asian women's experiences, and then traces the emergence of feminist consciousness and the organization of women's networks. She describes the resources of Asian feminist theology and the appropriation of Asian religious traditions, and considers the reconstructions of the concept of God in inclusive categories. Finally, she summarizes Asian women's critique of the patriarchal church and outlines the search for a new spirituality that express women's embodiedness and sexuality.

The burgeoning field of postcolonial studies argues that most theology has been formed in dominant cultures, laden intrinsically with imperializing structures. An essential task facing theology is thus to "decolonize" the mind and free Christianity from colonizing bias and structures. Here, in this truly groundbreaking study, highly respected feminist theologian Kwok Pui-lan offers the first full-length theological treatment of what it means to do postcolonial feminist theology. She explains her methodological basis and explores several specific topics, including Christology, pluralism, and creation.

Introducing Feminist Theology responds to the questions "What is feminist theology?" and "Why is it important?" by considering the perspectives of women from around the globe who have very diverse life experience and relationships to God, Church and creation. Clifford introduces the major forms of feminist theology: "radical, " "reformist, " and "reconstructionist, " and highlights some of their specific characteristics.

This volume critically engages with the problems traditional Christology raises for feminist theology. It also explores the creative engagements of feminist theologians with the person of Jesus.

Introducing the Women's Hebrew Bible is an up-to-date feminist introduction to the historical, socio-political, and academic developments of feminist biblical scholarship. In the second edition of this popular text Susanne Scholz offers new insights into the diverse field of feminist studies on the Hebrew Bible. Scholz provides a new introductory survey of the history of feminism more broadly, giving context to its rise in biblical studies, before looking at the history and issues as they relate specifically to feminist readings and readers of the Hebrew Bible. Scholz then presents the life and work of several influential feminist scholars of the Bible, outlining their career paths and the characteristics of their work. The volume also outlines how to relate the Bible to sexual violence and feminist postcolonial demands. Two new chapters further delineate recent developments in feminist biblical studies. One chapter addresses the relationship between feminist exegesis and queer theory as well as masculinity studies. Another chapter problematizes the gender discourse as it has emerged in the Christian Right's approaches to the Old Testament.

Contributors examine white feminist theology's misappropriations of Native North American women, Chinese footbinding, and veiling by Muslim women, as well as the Jewish emancipation in France, the symbolic dismemberment of black women by rap and sermons, and the potential to rewrite and reclaim canonical stories.

Named by the International Bulletin of Missionary Studies as an Outstanding Book of 2014 for Mission Studies Despite the ongoing global expansion of Christianity, there remains a lack of comprehensive scholarship on its development in Asia. This volume fills the gap by exploring the world of Asian Christianity and its manifold expressions, including worship, theology, spirituality, inter-religious relations, interventions in society, and mission. The contributors, from over twenty countries, deconstruct many of the widespread misconceptions and interpretations of Christianity in Asia. They analyze how the growth of Christian beliefs throughout the continent is linked with the socio-political and cultural processes of colonization, decolonization, modernization, democratization, identity construction of social groups, and various social movements. With a particular focus on inter-religious encounters and emerging theological and spiritual paradigms, the volume provides alternative frames for understanding the phenomenon of conversion and studies how the scriptures of other religious traditions are used in the practice of Christianity within Asia.

This book represents a major contribution toward the development of a global feminist theology. The personal histories and experiences of women of African, Asian, Anglo-American, and Latin-American heritage recounted here make it possible to analyze the social and historical contexts of their Christian faith. Their insights into the lives of those who have been oppressed or excluded, in the Third World or in the United States, clear the way for understanding the partnership of men and women everywhere.