About the Study
In Alice Walker’s four-part definition of “Womanist,” Walker explains that the term “Womanist” emerged from the Black traditional phrase “Womanish.” This term describes a maturing Black girl who is “outrageous, audacious, courageous, or [enacting] willful behavior.”
This study centers Black womanish girls.
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This study centers Black womanish girls.
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This study centers Black womanish girls. • This study centers Black womanish girls. •
Black & Womanish: A Study of Girlhood in Womanist Pastoral Theology explores Black girlhood experiences in theological reflection and asks: (1) what are the spiritual concerns for Black girls and (2) what can Black girls teach us about God and God’s activity in the world?
This project disrupts the erasure of Black girls in religion and society and is situated within womanist pastoral theology for three distinct reasons:
#1 First, womanist pastoral theology, as a discipline, engages in conversations integrating theology and social sciences, which is crucial for parsing through the complexities of Black girlhood experiences theologically.
#2 Second, womanist pastoral theology invites critical methodological interpretations of lived experiences as it explores various relational aspects and intrapsychic responses in Black womanhood, which can be critically appropriated and extended to Black girlhood.
#3 Finally, womanist pastoral theology activates contextually relevant practices of care because it considers Black women’s lived experiences of race, class, gender, and theology as integral to formulating models of pastoral theology, care, and counseling.
As a womanist pastoral theologian interested in Black girls and Black girlhood experiences, Kishundra D. King, PhD (the researcher) invites Black girls ages 13 to 17 to participate in two-part study involving initial surveys and optional follow-up interviews. The surveys will invite Black girls to reflect on their faith formation and spiritual concerns as they define them, and the follow-up interviews will establish a space for Black girls to deepen their reflections. The narratives will then serve as the primary lens for the critical engagement of theology and the social sciences in the researcher’s project, Making Space for Black Girlhood: A Womanish/st Pastoral Theology.