Ep93. Transgressive Devotion, Natalie Wigg-Stevenson

I sat down with Natalie Wigg-Stevenson to talk about theology as performance art. We discuss her new work which weaves together discussions in church basements, notorious works of performance art, and a broad range of theological thinkers to respond to a moment where she felt forgotten by God. Along the way we talk about what it might mean to think about God's omnipotence through a framework of cognitive decline, in turn we discuss how she conceives of the role of humanity through caregiving to God. We also talk about the problems posed by the incarnation, ecclesiology as writing the church (rather than writing about), the role of the Spirit in the conception of Christ, and how infection and risk provide a way into thinking about what it means to be swept up into life with God.

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Natalie Wigg-Stevenson is Director of Master of Divinity, Director of Contextual Education, and Associate Professor of Contextual Education and Theology at Emmanuel College, Toronto. Her research explores how ethnographic methods can help create theological conversations across church, academy and everyday life. She is also interested in feminist and queer theologies, cultural theories of practice and practices for decolonizing higher education. Her current scholarly project uses ethnographic research to reimagine systematic theology as a form of performance art. Follow Natalie on twitter: @nataliews

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