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Fleshing the Spirit: Spirituality and Activism in Chicana, Latina, and Indigenous Women’s Lives
Fleshing the Spirit brings together established and new writers exploring the relationships between the physical body, the spirit and spirituality, and social justice activism. Examining the complex and dynamic connections among these concepts, the writers emphasize the value of “flesh and blood experience” as a site of knowledge. They argue that spirituality—something quite different from institutional religious practice—can heal the mind/body split and set the stage for social change. Spirituality, they argue, is a necessary component of an alternative political agenda focused on equitable social and ecological change.
The anthology incorporates different genres of writing—such as poetry, testimonials, critical essays, and historical analysis—and stimulates the reader to engage spirituality in a critical, personal, and creative way. This interdisciplinary work is the first that attempts to theorize the radical interconnection between women of color, spirituality, and social activism. Before transformative political work can be done, the authors say in multiple ways, we must recognize that our spiritual need is a desire to more fully understand our relations with others. Conflict experienced on many levels sometimes severs those relations, separating us from others along racial, class, gender, sexual, national, or other socially constructed lines.
Fleshing the Spirit offers a spiritual journey of healing, health, and human revolution. The book’s open invitation to engage in critical dialogue and social activism—with the spirit and spirituality at the forefront—illuminates the way to social change and the ability to live in harmony with life’s universal energies.
Contributors
Volume Editors
Elisa Facio
Irene Lara
Chapter Authors
Angelita Borbón
Norma E. Cantú
Berenice Dimas
C. Alejandra Elenes
Alicia Enciso Litschi
Oliva M. Espín
Maria Figueroa
Patrisia Gonzales
Inés Hernández- Avila
Rosa María Hernández Juárez
Cinthya Martinez
Lara Medina
Felicia Montes
Sarahi Nuñez- Mejia
Laura E. Pérez
Brenda Sendejo
Inés Talamantez
Michelle Téllez
Beatriz Villegas
The anthology incorporates different genres of writing—such as poetry, testimonials, critical essays, and historical analysis—and stimulates the reader to engage spirituality in a critical, personal, and creative way. This interdisciplinary work is the first that attempts to theorize the radical interconnection between women of color, spirituality, and social activism. Before transformative political work can be done, the authors say in multiple ways, we must recognize that our spiritual need is a desire to more fully understand our relations with others. Conflict experienced on many levels sometimes severs those relations, separating us from others along racial, class, gender, sexual, national, or other socially constructed lines.
Fleshing the Spirit offers a spiritual journey of healing, health, and human revolution. The book’s open invitation to engage in critical dialogue and social activism—with the spirit and spirituality at the forefront—illuminates the way to social change and the ability to live in harmony with life’s universal energies.
Contributors
Volume Editors
Elisa Facio
Irene Lara
Chapter Authors
Angelita Borbón
Norma E. Cantú
Berenice Dimas
C. Alejandra Elenes
Alicia Enciso Litschi
Oliva M. Espín
Maria Figueroa
Patrisia Gonzales
Inés Hernández- Avila
Rosa María Hernández Juárez
Cinthya Martinez
Lara Medina
Felicia Montes
Sarahi Nuñez- Mejia
Laura E. Pérez
Brenda Sendejo
Inés Talamantez
Michelle Téllez
Beatriz Villegas
- GenresNonfictionTheology
296 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2014
15 people are currently reading
118 people want to read
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
May 9, 2017
Going into this academic year, I had the intention of reading more Latinx theology after making the realization that I had thus far read a dismal amount. As I began to search for books that fit the bill, I came across this one and was elated. A variety of Latina (mostly Chicana) voices exploring the notion of spirituality in ways that were embodied and material? It sounded perfect, and with a nice cover, intriguing title, and the inclusion of poetry to boot.
Unfortunately, the book did not ultimately live up to my expectations, which I want to stress up-front is okay! What happened here was, my own biases and Christian-centric assumptions were challenged, and that isn't necessarily a bad thing, it just made for a less enjoyable/resonant read for me as a reader.
My own background, both personal and scholarly, is pretty exclusively rooted in Christianity and I naively went into this collection expecting explorations that stayed within that theological garden, so to speak. Instead, with one or two exceptions, the narratives here are of women raised in (folk-) Catholic homes who eventually liberate themselves from the oppressive structures of the Church to find a more fitting spirituality, almost always related to Indigenous or Native American ways of faith.
These are undeniably interesting and compelling experiences, and the issue was simply that I am not the intended audience. As a white male Christian still grounded within that spirituality, much of what they shared was not personally resonant. This is often not a striking issue, but I have such little familiarity with the goddesses discussed throughout the text (although definitely gained familiarity through reading this) and thus found myself feeling as though I was on the outside looking into what I was reading, often bogged down by my confusion and unfamiliarity. It did not necessarily feel like an introduction to the topic, but rather insiders writing to insiders (although I do agree that as a white male Christian, I'd say it's healthy to find myself as an outsider and not the intended audience, even if I enjoy the content less!)
With that said, many of the articles and essays here are engaging and intriguing to read, and there are some really beautiful representations and descriptions of spirituality to be found here. It's may not be intended for a reader like myself, but for those interested in Indigenous approaches to faith, I can imagine this would be a treasure trove of truly life-giving content and would heartily endorse it.
Unfortunately, the book did not ultimately live up to my expectations, which I want to stress up-front is okay! What happened here was, my own biases and Christian-centric assumptions were challenged, and that isn't necessarily a bad thing, it just made for a less enjoyable/resonant read for me as a reader.
My own background, both personal and scholarly, is pretty exclusively rooted in Christianity and I naively went into this collection expecting explorations that stayed within that theological garden, so to speak. Instead, with one or two exceptions, the narratives here are of women raised in (folk-) Catholic homes who eventually liberate themselves from the oppressive structures of the Church to find a more fitting spirituality, almost always related to Indigenous or Native American ways of faith.
These are undeniably interesting and compelling experiences, and the issue was simply that I am not the intended audience. As a white male Christian still grounded within that spirituality, much of what they shared was not personally resonant. This is often not a striking issue, but I have such little familiarity with the goddesses discussed throughout the text (although definitely gained familiarity through reading this) and thus found myself feeling as though I was on the outside looking into what I was reading, often bogged down by my confusion and unfamiliarity. It did not necessarily feel like an introduction to the topic, but rather insiders writing to insiders (although I do agree that as a white male Christian, I'd say it's healthy to find myself as an outsider and not the intended audience, even if I enjoy the content less!)
With that said, many of the articles and essays here are engaging and intriguing to read, and there are some really beautiful representations and descriptions of spirituality to be found here. It's may not be intended for a reader like myself, but for those interested in Indigenous approaches to faith, I can imagine this would be a treasure trove of truly life-giving content and would heartily endorse it.
Displaying 1 of 1 review