God at the Margins: Making Theological Sense of Religious Plurality

God at the Margins: Making Theological Sense of Religious Plurality explores the broadening sources for Christian theology by examining the places to find God that have been historically overlooked by Christian tradition. These places, known as "the margins," often go unseen, except by those who dwell there due to gender, race, economics, or religious or sexual identity.

Table of Contents:
Introduction Where Christians Find God God at the Margins Margins Coming Together Chapter 1: Liberation Theology Historical Context and Development Key Ideas of Liberation Theology Conclusion Chapter 2: Feminist Theology Christian Feminism Secular Feminism Christian Feminist Theology Conclusion Chapter 3: Theology of Religions How Christianity Relates to Other Religions Three Approaches to Non-Christian Religions Conclusion Chapter 4: Post-Pluralist Approaches to Interreligious Work New Methods and Theology of Religions Theology of Religions: A Stalled Project? Interreligious Dialogue Comparative Theology Multiple Religious Belonging Conclusion Chapter 5: Interreligious Methods and God at the Margins Is Theology of Religions Needed? Theology of Religions as a Theology of Liberation Gendering Theology of Religions Conclusion Conclusion The Religious Other in the Twenty-First Century Three Methods of Interreligious Inquiry Recognizing God's Active Presence A Shift in Theology Expanding the Conversation: Deepening Theology of Religions

About the Author :
Aimée Upjohn Light has a PhD in philosophy of religion from Yale University and serves as an assistant professor of theology at Duquesne University, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Review :
God at the Margins is an accessible and insightful introduction to Christian interreligious work. Although liberation theology pushes the boundaries of theology to see God in the poor, and feminist theology argues that God is present in the experiences of women, Christian interreligious work seeks to understand God's presence in religions other than Christianity. Within this broader dynamic of finding God beyond traditionally privileged places, Aimee Upjohn Light traces recent developments in theology of religions, interreligious dialogue, and comparative theology and explains the ways in which these fields are enriched by and converging with liberationist and feminist concerns. God at the Margins is perfect for any number of courses in contemporary Christian theology that address method in theology, liberation theology, feminist theology, or interreligious theology. Tracy Sayuki Tiemeier Associate Professor of Theological Studies Loyola Marymount University Los Angeles Aimee Upjohn Light does two things in God at the Margins: (1) She offers a refreshingly lucid overview of the contemporary Christian conversation (often contentious) about how to make sense of and engage religious diversity, and (2) she offers a perspective that will clarify and vivify that conversation. Let Christians (really, all religious believers), both scholars and ordinary folk, first listen to the voices of those suffering on the margins--especially the universally marginalized: women--and then, in light of what they hear and feel, engage in their theologies of religions and their comparative theologies. Writing especially for her undergraduate students, Light also addresses, with respect and clarity, her fellow scholars. Her message needs to be taken seriously by anyone concerned about living religiously in an ever-more-connected multireligious world. Paul F. Knitter Paul Tillich Emeritus Professor of Theology World Religions and Culture Union Theological Seminary Aimee Light's God at the Margins offers a visionary picture of how theologies committed to social justice stem from a Christological paradigm. God at the Margins explicates how liberation theology, feminist theology, and theology of religions are central to the prophetic mission of the church. Through exceptionally lucid writing, Light draws needed attention to a serious engagement with non-Christians not only as possible sources of holiness but also as the privileged sites for God's self-revelation. She presents and analyzes the most promising comparative and interreligious work of contemporary theologians and then frames a Christian theology that builds upon these foundations. According to Light, by Jesus' own example of concern with those at the margins, the church too has a prophetic responsibility to identify in solidarity with those at the margins, whether the poor, women, or even non-Christians. Students of theology and religion will find the book both informative and insightful in the pressing demands it makes of any Christian theological mission that strives to be truly catholic, or universal. Madhuri M. Yadlapati Louisiana State University Baton Rouge, Louisiana In the last forty years, liberation theology, feminist theology, and theologies attentive to religious diversity have been rethinking central topics in Christian theology. In this concise volume, Light brings together these disciplines and the synergy among them. God at the Margins serves as a solid introduction to these theological fields and the future that might emerge at their intersection. With eminently accessible prose, this volume is recommended for students of theology and anyone interested in incorporating the growing edges of Christian theology into mainstream discussions. Jeannine Hill Fletcher Professor of Theology Fordham University