Stephen Pattison

A pioneering study which uses liberation theology to develop a socially and politically committed pastoral care

Pastoral Care and Liberation Theology

Gifford Lectures series, 2007 Seeing Things is a highly original book that will have appeal across humanity departments including visual studies, theology, art history, sociology, anthropology and ethics. The book considers in detail, the experience of perceiving visual objects, from high art to everyday artefacts. It looks in particular at the problems encountered with the ways we in Western culture look upon the world and things, and encourages and argues for ways to look and visualise the world more critically, broadly and widely. Sight is one of the main ways we perceive and relate to the world, and yet it is mostly assumed rather than actively reflected on. Objects designated as art and the realm of aesthetics attract some active attention and reflection, but most of the visible world is ignored in the context of what Pattison describes as our 'ordinary blindness'. The book argues that the range of things we choose to see and value is arbitrary and limited and the ways in which we relate to things and objects are mostly crude and un-nuanced. Pattison argues that it is desirable to consider more person-like relationships with all manner of visibly perceived objects, from classical sculptures to tennis rackets. If we begin to apply this person-like relationship with things, we transgress the Western secular and religious practice and belief that maintains that the realm of the manufactured is 'dead' and so can be treated by humans exactly as they wish without consideration. Pattison argues that this person-like relationship does not mean re-animating or re-sacramentalising the world, rather he argues for observation and exploration of the actual phenomenology of the object.

Deepening Relations with Visual Artefacts

Seeing Things

This interdisciplinary study brings together many contemporary discourses about shame within a new critical perspective. It will be an invaluable, stimulating resource for all those who are concerned with understanding shame and assisting those whose lives are lived in the shadow of it. Psychologists, philosophers and therapists will find this a fascinating source of new insight into the theory and phenomenology of shame. It will be of particular interest to those who are interested in relationships between religion and mental health, to pastoral workers, and to religious thinkers and theorists.

Theory, Therapy, Theology

Shame

Faces are all around us and fundamentally shape both everyday experience and our understanding of people. To lose face is to be alienated and experience shame, to be enfaced is to enjoy the fullness of life. In theology as in many other disciplines faces, as both physical phenomena and symbols, have not received the critical, appreciative attention they deserve. This pioneering book explores the nature of face and enfacement, both human and divine. Pattison discusses questions concerning what face is, how important face is in human life and relationships, and how we might understand face, both as a physical phenomenon and as a series of socially-inflected symbols and metaphors about the self and the body. Examining what face means in terms of inclusion and exclusion in contemporary human society and how it is related to shame, Pattison reveals what the experience of people who have difficulties with faces tell us about our society, our understandings of, and our reactions to face. Exploring this ubiquitous yet ignored area of both contemporary human experience and of the Christian theological tradition, Pattison explains how Christian theology understands face, both human and divine, and the insights might it offer to understanding face and enfacement. Does God in any sense have a physically visible face? What is the significance of having an enfaced or faceless God for Christian life and practice? What does the vision of God mean now? If we want to take face and defacing shame seriously, and to get them properly into perspective, we may need to change our theology, thought and practice - changing our ways of thinking about God and about theology.

Enfacement, Shame, Theology

Saving Face

This book, first published in 2000, aims to understand the nature of shame as it relates to Christian thought and practice.

Judith Thompson 

Ross Thompson

Since it was first published, the SCM Studyguide to Theological Reflection has quickly gained a reputation for being a vital and accessible guide to the subject for all who embark on it for the first time. This studyguide offers newcomers a step by step introduction to understanding what theological reflection is and helps them to explore which of the methods introduced best suits them and their particular situation. It is practical in emphasis, providing students with a wide variety of worked examples and opportunities to carry out their own exercises. This 2nd edition will bring the content up to date, offering a revised and improved bibliography and updated and refreshed examples and exercises, including new sections on scriptural reasoning and contemplative theology.

2nd Edition

SCM Studyguide: Theological Reflection

Elaine Graham

Zoë Bennett

Heather Walton

Practical theology as a subject area has grown and become more sophisticated in its methods and self-understanding over the last few decades. This book provides a complete and original research primer in the major theories, approaches and methods at the cutting-edge of research in contemporary practical theology. It represents a reflection on the very practice of the discipline itself, its foundational questions and epistemological claims. Each chapter examines different aspects of the research process: starting with experience and practice, aspects of research design and epistemology, communities of learning, the influence of theological norms and tradition on the practice of research, and ethical considerations about what constitutes ‘the good’ in advanced research. The uniqueness of this book rests in its authoritative overview of current practical theological research across a range of traditions and approaches, combined with a comprehensive introduction to research methodology. It offers worked examples from the authors, their colleagues and research students that serve to illustrate key ideas and approaches in practical theological research. The four authors are all internationally-leading scholars and rank amongst the most influential figures in practical theology of their generation. The book promises to be of interest to students, teachers and researchers in practical theology, especially those looking to conduct original practice-based enquiry in the field.

Stephen Pattison

About

Books

Join the club