Ethnography as Christian Theology and Ethics

Dr. Christian Scharen is Assistant Professor of Worship and Practical Theology at Luther Seminary, St. Paul, MN. He is an international leader working at the intersection of ethnography and theology, he is the author of five books and several scholarly articles, a number of which directly draw on ethnographic work and Christian Ethics. Dr. Aana Marie Vigen is Assistant Professor of Ethics at Loyola University, Chicago. She is author of a highly-regarded book on healthcare inequality that draws on ethnographic research and Christian theology and ethics, as well as several articles.

• Part I (80 pp - 20 pages per chapter) - co-authored by Christian Scharen and Aana Marie Vigen; 1. The Ethnographic Turn in Theology and Ethics; 2. What is Ethnography?; 3. Critiques of the Use of Social Science in Theological Ethics; 4. Theological Justifications for Turning to Ethnography; Part II (270 pages, 30 pages per chapter) - Case Studies; 5. Robert P. Jones, President of Public Religion Research, Washington D.C.; 6. Peter R. Gathje, Associate Professor of Christian Ethics, Memphis Seminary, Memphis, TN.; 7. Emily Reimer-Barry, Assistant Professor of Ethics, University of San Diego, San Diego, CA.; 8. Karey Harwood - Assistant Professor of Philosophy and Religion, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC; 9. Todd Whitmore, Associate Professor of Theology, Notre Dame University, Notre Dame, IN.; 10. Melissa Browning, (ABD), Loyola University, Chicago, IL.

‘This engaging collection is a helpful foundation for exploring the use of ethnography in Christian ethics and theology. The authors provide thoughtful and probing challenges to how social scientists and theologians do our work-encouraging us to question and alter some of the basic assumptions of our work so that we do it with genuine rigor rather than with unexamined normative commitments or using the social sciences as lax sources for theological reflection. The challenge is genuine and I encourage us to read and learn from this fine collection.' - Emilie M. Townes, Andrew W. Mellon Professor of African American Religion and Theology Yale Divinity School, USA.