The Work of Theopoetics: Decolonizing and Expanding Theopoetic Discourse

This roundtable is set to explore in depth the creation, writing, and publishing processes amongst contributors and editors of _Theopoetics in Color: Embodied Approaches in Theological Discourse_, an edited volume highlighting racially and ethnically minoritized scholars in the field of theopoetics. A discourse of creative and embodied approaches to speaking about the divine, theopoetics has been in academic circles since the 1960s appealing to a range of intellectual voices including Rubem Alves, Amos Wilder, Paul Tillich, Mary Radford Ruether, Catherine Keller, and Sally McFague. Its presence in Theology and Arts conversations has only intensified as the academy looks for new ways to enhance religious study and theological thought. Growing in popularity given the recent revamping of the Arts, Religion, and Culture group, theopoetics is speaking to a new generation, one unlike their primarily Western, Eurocentric, and white predecessors. It is finding home in the work of historically minoritized voices; or rather, the world is now recognizing where theopoetics has always had home within the God-talk of underrepresented communities. _Theopoetics in Color: Embodied Approaches in Theological Discourse_ is a collaborative book project centering voices of color in the academy answering the question, “How does one do theopoetics?” It is a constructive rather than reactionary response to the dearth of theopoetics resources that fail to feature racially and ethnically minoritized voices. Most if not all theopoetics resources are either singularly authored (and primarily by white voices) or if anthologized, fail to include a significant (more than one or two) non-white voices. _Theopoetics in Color_ is a literal interruption in how theopoetics has been traditionally perceived. It explores how theopoetics actually functions amongst minoritized voices. Its existence is a physical and ideological intervention in how theopoetic discourse has been traditionally understood. _Theopoetics in Color_ shows that a new generation of scholars in the academy have been and are continuing to do theopoetics – and they are doing so on their own terms. The contributors in the volume actively craft new dialogues and construct new approaches to religious study – but it has taken the literal creation of a new work to recognize these voices as doing such. That two Black women had to create and facilitate the emergence of this project is no small detail. Black women have historically been of the mind that if something does not exist, we create it. If we are not welcome in the room, we gather elsewhere. _Theopoetics in Color_ is not only our response, but our gesture of welcome for all who have not been invited into or have not felt fully welcome in the proverbial room of theopoetic discourse. Minoritized persons have always done theopoetics in our respective theological and religious expressive works; in _Theopoetics in Color_ we share what it sounds like to us. And in this, we expose traditional theopoetics’ shortcomings. Diversity is not an idea but an ethos. In creating _Theopoetics in Color_ Oredein and Lockhart-Rusch intentionally created a space that did not exist. In an academy filled with external pressures and critique, the writing and publishing process of _Theopoetics in Color_ was subversive. They intentionally created unique pockets of community check ins, peer feedback, and compassion needed while writing during a pandemic. Because of the uniqueness of the writing/publishing process of this project, and the distinct history of the field of theopoetics, this project was a literal intervention not only in how theopoetic discourse has been carried forth thus far, but also in its literal construction and constructive aims. In conversation with contributors and the co-editors, this roundtable session will explore the decolonial, subversive, intervening, and interrupting processes imagined and facilitated around the innovative anthology in the field of theopoetics, _Theopoetics in Color: Embodied Approaches in Theological Discourse_. The impetus of Black women, _Theopoetics in Color_ itself is not only an intervening resource in theopoetic discourse, but its constructive process also illumines the innovation, expansive, and empowering capacity of Black women’s imagination.