Taking on Privilege and Oppression in Practical Theology: A Spatial Perspective

Abstract

Practical theology has a legacy of privilege and oppression. This is a point of departure for Courtney Goto in Taking on Practical Theology. Goto convincingly argues that what counts as practical theological knowledge is shaped by a dominant paradigm that privileges some and marginalizes others. This is particularly obvious in the way practical theologians approach “context,” a key feature of today’s practical theological scholarship. To deal with privilege and oppression in practical theology, it is necessary to use C/critical, I/intersubjective spaces in order to create a compassionate, just, and responsible community of practical theologians. My thesis is that Goto’s analyses and conclusions could be enriched and strengthened by a spatial perspective. I introduce Henri Lefebvre’s notions of the production of space and the trialectics of space to illustrate the possible contribution of such a spatial perspective. A view of social space in terms of perceived, conceived, and lived space helps us to see a more differentiated picture of the power dynamics in social (and thus also academic) practices. Last, I introduce Edward Soja’s ideas on spatial justice. His views add even more analytical power to the spatial perspective and support our normative vision of justice as integral element of our scholarly practices.