Douglas, Kelly Brown. RESURRECTION HOPE: A FUTURE WHERE BLACK LIVES MATTER. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 2021 (224 pages, $26).

In the face of white Christian nationalism and other forms of racism, Dr. Kelly Brown Douglas’ realistic yet hopeful analysis opens eyes and hearts. From Black Lives Matter Plaza in Washington, DC to the Nave of the Washington National Cathedral, her voice rings “loud as the rolling sea” for all to pay attention.

Haen, Jan. HEAVENLY HOMOS, ETC. : QUEER ICONS FROM LGBTQ LIFE, RELIGION, AND HISTORY. Hannacroix, NY: Apocryphile Press, 2022 (103 PAGES, $24.50).

Who knew how many we are? The author writes: “In this graphic book, you will find sketches of persons who—rightly or wrongly—were presumed to be homosexual, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, or asexual. I believe that heteros and homos etc. long to be respected and loved in equal measure.” Ok, Ruth and Naomi, Joan of Arc, Walatta Petros, Juana Ines de la Cruz, Mary Daly, Virginia Woolf, and good company.

Koosed, Jennifer L. and Robert Paul Seesengood. WISDOM COMMENTARY: JUDITH VOLUME 16. Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2022 (272 pages, $49.59).

Judith saved her city from Assyrian invaders and lopped off the head of the general who led the charge, or so the story goes. This sophisticated commentary illuminates the textual issues, clarifies the historical from the literary, and ends on the grace note of Martha Graham dancing “Judith.” Not your grandmother’s commentary, and suitable for readers who want their worlds widened.

Maloney, Linda M. with Ivoni Richter Reimer. WISDOM COMMENTARY: ACTS OF THE APOSTLES VOLUME 45. Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2022 (452 pages, $49.59).

As complicated a book as the Christian scriptures contain, Acts of the Apostles is unpacked in this volume with scholarly skill and practice wisdom. Linda Maloney dissects with precision and writes with verve. Her “preferred method of analysis is a form of reader-response criticism that I might call fact-based imaginative empathy.” (p. lxi). It is an effective approach as the various writers in this commentary bring their own insights and commitments to the text. It is bracing, refreshing, effective feminist work.

Slee, Nicola. FRAGMENTS FOR FRACTURED TIMES: WHAT FEMINIST PRACTICAL THEOLOGY BRINGS TO THE TABLE. London, UK: SCM Press, 2020 (352 pages, £25).

            Feminist practical theology is a worthy antidote to a shattered world order. Nicola Slee demonstrates that theology is useful insofar as it employs multiple disciplines, vivid imagination, and a willingness to incorporate new insights with old.

Stokes, Jeanette. MAKING THE ROAD AS WE GO. Durham, NC: RCWMS Press, 2022 (243 pages, $30).

Read this memoir to know who Jeanette is—born into white, Presbyterian, privilege in Tulsa, Oklahoma, she studied at Smith College and Duke Divinity School. Her life’s work to date has focused on the wonderful Resource Center for Women and Ministry in the South, a feminist non-profit that includes religion, the arts, social justice, and much more. Stay tuned as her creative, beauty-seeking, peacemaking life unfolds.

Williams, Shannen Dee. SUBVERSIVE HABITS: BLACK CATHOLIC NUNS IN THE LONG AFRICAN AMERICAN FREEDOM STRUGGLE. Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 2022 (424 pages, $29.95).

The painful and inexcusable story of white racism in the context of religious orders is just beginning to be written. This volume is a welcome contribution. It serves as a cautionary tale for the whole Roman Catholic Church. White racists now have no excuse for perpetrating the injustice for another generation.

Yugar, Theresa, Sarah Robinson, Lilian Dube, Teresia Mbari Hinga, editors. VALUING LIVES, HEALING EARTH: RELIGION, GENDER, AND LIFE ON EARTH. Leuven, Belgium: Peeters Publishers, 2021 (298 pages, 55 euro).

This signal volume, including voices from all over the world, is a fitting unfolding of the trajectory Rosemary Radford Ruether set decades ago in her pioneering effort to value each living creature, human and otherwise, and to heal Earth of the wounds inflicted by a ruthless human(un)kind. Essays focused on Knowledge, Ritual, Activism, and Food provide a partial roadmap for moving forward as a global community. What a legacy, what a challenge!

Strahm, Doris, Silvia Strahm Bernet. MÄCHTIG STOLZ: 40 JAHRE FEMINISTISCHE THEOLOGIE UND FRAUEN-KIRCHE-BEWEGUNG IN DER SCHWEIZ. Wettingen, Switzerland: efef publisher, 2022 (300 pages, CHF 38.00).

Discover 40 courageous years of feminist theology and women’s church movement in Switzerland. Be part of a journey through essential interfaith facilities, networks, personalities, and initiatives. This work offers a detailed introduction to how feminist theology unfolded in Switzerland and similarly in other parts of Europe. A great model for other national women’s groups to follow.

Zinsstag, Evelyne, Dolores Zoé Bertschinger, AUFBRUCH IST EINES, UND WEITERGEHEN IST ETWAS ANDERES: FRAUENRÄUME: VON DER SAFFA 58 ÜBER DAS TAGUNGSZENTRUM BOLDERN ZUM FRAUEN*ZENTRUM ZÜRICH. Wettingen, Switzerland: efef publisher, 2020 (212 pages, CHF 29.00).

The second Swiss exhibition of women’s work (SAFFA) enabled the establishment of the ecumenical women’s movement. However, the beginning is one step, but continuing is the next difficulty, and requires intergenerational exchange. This work was written by the next generation of Swiss feminist theologians to remember their successful predecessors and describe the challenges of continuing their legacy.

Allen, Lisa. A WOMANIST THEOLOGY OF WORSHIP: LITURGY, JUSTICE, AND COMMUNAL RIGHTEOUSNESS. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 2021 (231 pages, $28).

Theologians, liturgists, students, and ministers will find a thorough introduction to theology of worship especially in the Black Church. The author weaves basic womanist insights into the fabric of worship making clear that worship will improve immeasurably.

Bourgeois, Roy. MALE SUPREMACY IN THE CATHOLIC CHURCH: AN INSIDER’S VIEW. Columbia, SC, 2022 (102 pages, $12).

Longtime peace activist and Maryknoll priest, Roy Bourgeois writes about his life in simple and clear prose. He highlights how championing women is a lonely task in patriarchal settings, quoting Martin Luther King Jr: “In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies but the silence of our friends.”

Chown, Mary Ellen with Illustrations by Andrea Nairn, GRACE DRIFTS IN. Oakville, Ontario, Canada, available at www.andreanairn.com, $25 CAD.

Word pictures, images, poems that are seared in the imagination combine with compellingly wrought graphics to become a lovely book of poetry. The perfect size to hold in grateful hands, a combination of muted colors that give the words beautiful accompaniment result in a welcome and profound volume. “how shall we wear our losses,” and “indulgences” are just a few of the many themes which make rich food for meditation.

De Sola, Carla. DANCING WITH THE DIVINE: A FLOW OF GRACE. Santa Cruz, CA: Omega Kairos Books, 2021 (163 pages, $25).

Liturgical dance is common in many places of worship because Carla De Sola pioneered it. In this beautifully written and rendered volume she provides an overview of the genre and how she embraces is. Thirty dancers reflect on their “Kairos moments” in dance. Accompanying photos and paintings, calligraphy and insights make this a sensuous volume in every sense of the word.

Ierardi, Anne, COMING ALIVE: MEMOIR. Brunswick, ME:  Shanti Arts Publishing, 2022 (199 pages, $27).

This wonderful memoir offers insight into the plain goodness of a life full of integrity. With deep authenticity, the author finds a way where there is still no way for a conscious Catholic woman,. All are born into times we do not choose and cannot always change. Readers learn how marvelous it is to embrace vocations and actualize talents the world needs, regardless.

O’Donnell, Karen and Katie Cross, ed. FEMINIST TRAUMA THEOLOGY: BODY, SCRIPTURE & CHURCH IN CRITICAL PERSPECTIVE. London, UK: SCM Press, 2020 (384 pages, £30).

Trauma is a common, pernicious, often preventable experience. The essayists in this volume attempt to situate it in a theological framework and attempt constructive work to make sense of it. The only sense is to stop it which is a common thread here. Read in combination with practical theologies of ministry for maximum usefulness.

Ortega, Ofelia. CUBAN FEMINIST THEOLOGY: VISIONS AND PRAXIS. Lanham, MD: Rowman and Littlefield/Lexington Books, 2022 ($110/$45 Kindle).

From the Foreword by Mary E. Hunt:

“I am a woman who dreams and who struggles,” wrote the Reverend Doctor Ofelia Miriam Ortega Suárez in Cuban Feminist Theology. What dreams they are, and what struggles! This English language publication of her work is a rare and welcome volume. It fills in many theological blanks and opens new horizons for Latin American and Caribbean feminist work in religion.” WATER is thrilled with the publication of this valuable volume.

Pui-Lan, Kwok. POSTCOLONIAL POLITICS AND THEOLOGY: UNRAVELING EMPIRE FOR A GLOBAL WORLD. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2021 (261 pages, $30).

“Christians have often put their hope in the eschaton—the end time. But post-colonial hope is more like a process, for we cannot defer hope till eternity.” (p.203) So Kwok Pui-Lan sets the goal of this work, to use religious analysis to bring about global social change. Her essays are crisp and clear; her approach accessible and pragmatic. Read this important book to join the efforts to “unravel Empire.”

Thistlethwaite, Susan Brooks. WALLS OF FEAR. Eugene, Oregon: Resource Publications, 2022 (226 pages, $23).

Susan Brooks Thistlethwaite wrote the nonfiction Women’s Bodies as Battlefield: Christian Theology and the Global War on Women. In her mystery, Walls of Fear, she shows how Black and Brown women’s bodies bear the hideous brunt of war to unthinkable but real extremes. This thriller offers crystalline insights into racism, private prisons, and domestic violence. Deeply poignant moments demonstrate the price of oppression, the joy of justice.

Coloe, Mary L. JOHN 1-10. Edited by Mary Ann Beavis and Barbara E. Reid. Wisdom Commentary, vol. 44A. Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2021 (304 pages, $49.95).

Johannine studies have always seemed to hold a sort of pride of place in biblical studies. This volume, written by distinguished international group of scholars, is on track to be a go-to resource in the field.

Coloe, Mary L. JOHN 11-21. Edited by Mary Ann Beavis and Barbara E. Reid. Wisdom Commentary, vol. 44A. Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2021 (600 pages, $49.95).

As the study unfolds, the power of Sophia and not simply Logos becomes obvious. The author concludes, “Women disciples today know that there were women disciples throughout the Gospel scenes, even when their presence has slipped through the ‘holes in the text,’ and many are not named.” (p. 549) No wonder we need this commentary series.

Perkins, Pheme, Eloise Rosenblatt and Patricia McDonald. 1-2 PETER AND JUDE. Edited by Linda M. Maloney and Barbara E. Reid. Wisdom Commentary, vol. 56. Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2022 (320 pages, $49.95).

This “reading from the margins” as stated in the Author’s Introduction, is focused on “the presence of the nonelite and the marginalized” (p. 3). It makes a volume on some of the less read biblical texts into another good feminist window on the whole enterprise.

Reid, Barbara E. and Shelly Matthews. LUKE 10-24. Edited by Barbara E. Reid. Wisdom Commentary, vol. 43B. Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2021 (713 pages, $49.95).

Luke is an “ambiguous Gospel” indeed as the authors affirm. Their efforts to clarify the complexities and continue to incorporate new feminist insights make this a signal volume in the collection.

Davison, Lisa Williams. MORE THAN A WOMB: CHILDLESS WOMEN IN THE HEBREW BIBLE AS AGENTS OF THE HOLY. Eugene, OR: Cascade Books, 2021 (132 pages, $20)

Sad to think that such a book needs to be written in the 21^st century. But contemporary culture is still shaped by many biblical images that ground arguments about women’s subordination and women’s primary role as walking wombs. This is a useful contribution for people who seek to change such ideas.

Denton-Borhaug, Kelly. AND THEN YOUR SOUL IS GONE: MORAL INJURY AND U.S. WAR CULTURE. Bristol, CT: Equinox Press, 2021 (301 pages, $32).

The intermingling of sexism, war, abuse, dishonor, and so many other complicated dynamics make and exacerbate moral injury. This is a must-read for all who are inclined to understand these dynamics especially in veterans, in order to banish them from societies now so replete with bellicose ways that there often appears no way out. The author shows some creative solutions and a deep reverence for the lives in the balance.

Florer-Bixler, Melissa. HOW TO HAVE AN ENEMY: RIGHTEOUS ANGER AND THE WORK OF PEACE. Harrisonburg, VA: Herald Press, July 2021 (250 pages, $16.99).

In a climate focused on the consequences of polarization, Florer-Bixler flips the conversation with an intentional acknowledgement of who the enemies are: the oppressors, the ones standing in the way of peace. By including the acceptance of anger as a part of reconciliation, the author challenges the notion of a passive peace and embraces a very active and fiery justice.

Scannell, Alice Updike. BUILDING RESILIENCE: WHEN THERE’S NO GOING BACK TO THE WAY THINGS WERE. New York, NY: Morehouse Publishing, 2020 (176 pages, $15.99).

An apt read for a world suffering a global pandemic. When the varying degrees of normalcy are always shifting, resilience is a muscle often over-stretched. Scannell’s guide, while pulling mostly from her work in gerontology, applies to many audiences. She advises how to build a solid set of skills in order to grow and maintain resilience as it is tested over time.

Morrison, Melanie S.  LETTERS FROM OLD SCREAMER MOUNTAN. Durham, NC: RCWMS, 2021 (100 pages, $25).

Anti-racism work done through travel and memory, the author’s and her mother’s lack of it, make this a poignant and compelling read. The daughter visits her mother’s old summer camp to appreciate the directors’ commitment to anti-racism work that inspired her mother and encouraged her own longtime endeavors toward racial justice.

Segura, Olga M. BIRTH OF A MOVEMENT: BLACK LIVES MATTER AND THE CATHOLIC CHURCH. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 2021 (139 pages, $20).

An interdisciplinary approach to the signal importance of Black Lives and the systemic white racism that infects the Roman Catholic Church. It is a wonder any Black people, especially Black women, are part such of an institution. Even some of the most progressive moments that critique the institution share the same racial, economic, sexual, and social structures and behaviors. This is a clarion call to change all of that with suggestions for how to do it.

Sutera, Judith, OSB. ST. BENEDICT’S RULE: AN INCLUSIVE TRANSLATION AND DAILY COMMENTARY. Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2021 (312 pages, $24.95). Sutera, Judith, OSB. ST. BENEDICT’S RULE: AN INCLUSIVE TRANSLATION. Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2021 (120 pages, $14.95).

Future generations of Benedictines and their friends will not be distracted by exclusive language thanks to Judith Sutera’s translation. Available in two convenient forms, with and without Daily Commentary, this is a very accessible, welcome resource.

Talvacchia, Kathleen T. EMBRACING DISRUPTIVE COHERENCE: COMING OUT AS EROTIC ETHICAL PRACTICE. Eugene, OR: Cascade Books, 2019 (142 pages, $19).

Truth-telling never goes out of fashion, nor does it cease to be necessary given the realities of racial ethnic, class, ability, age, etc. as contextualizing aspects of LGBTIQ lives. A racially marked (white) postmodern question about whether coming out matters gets a resounding yes from a respected theologian who knows from personal experience how complex it is.

Tsomo, Karma Lekshe, Editor. BUDDHIST FEMINISMS AND FEMININITIES. Albany, NY: State University of New York Press, 2019 (343 pages, $33.95).

The issues across religions are similar but not exactly the same. This focused look at Buddhism through the eyes of a wide range of competent writers makes an excellent text for feminist studies in religion. There is a certain genius in juxtaposing the topics ‘feminisms’ and ‘femininities’ that scholars in other religious traditions might explore. The differences are stark and instructive.

Atwood, Margaret. DEARLY: NEW POEMS. New York, NY: Ecco, 2020. (144 pages, $19.23).

Incisive, insightful, delicate, determined words fill these pages. Start at the end with “Blackberries:” “Some berries occur in sun, but they are smaller. It’s as I always told you: the best ones grow in shade.” Choose your favorite in this collection for prayer, meditation, or just plain lovely poetry.

Boursier, Helen T. THE ROWMAN & LITTLEFIELD HANDBOOK OF WOMEN’S STUDIES IN RELIGION. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, June 2021. (390 pages, $140.00).

Seasoned scholars and new colleagues alike illuminate diverse themes and perspectives from a range of social and religious starting points. The combination of theoretical analysis and applied wisdom demonstrates how feminist studies in religion can contribute to a more just, safe, and equitable world. Choose this as a text for a challenging and fruitful course or colloquium.

Farley, Wendy. BEGUILED BY BEAUTY: CULTIVATING A LIFE OF CONTEMPLATION & COMPASSION. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2020. (212 pages, $30.00).

         Many meditate; Wendy Farley sketches out the why’s and how’s of contemplative practice. This is a helpful resource for both those who are beginning the path, and those who, though well along the way, will welcome a refresher about what it’s all about. Hopefully, this book will encourage people to take up both spiritual and activist paths which are, after all, one.

Hovey, Gail. SHE SAID GOD BLESSED US: A LIFE MARKED BY CHILDHOOD SEXUAL ABUSE IN THE CHURCH. Jefferson, NC: Exposit, 2020. (268 pages, $19.99).

A Christian Education minister sexually abused a teenager. Gail Hovey’s riveting, beautifully written memoir is an excruciatingly honest account of her complex and committed life after abuse. She lives and breathes complexity—marriage, work, friends, lovers, family, a child, sex and gender, the injustices of the world. She finds ways to put the abuse by an older woman in a position of responsibility into perspective: she never forgets nor forgives, but she does not repeat the behavior with others. Instead, she finds healthy, fulfilling love. Not a “happily ever after” story, this is a compelling story of hard work at the job of life.

Kamionkowski, S. Tamar. WISDOM COMMENTARY: LEVITICUS. Collegeville, MI: Liturgical Press, 2018. (402 pages, $39.95).

This commentator displays an admirable humility before a complicated text, one that has been read variously depending on translation. She points out that many assumptions on things like bodies, land ownership, even issues of “impurity” with which Leviticus is often associated can be reread through contemporary eyes. Not easygoing, this work is helpful to the preacher and teacher, indeed to the believer who seeks to understand what a text that has had so much negative influence might mean positively.

Litle, Marcy. ILLUSIONS OF INNOCENCE. Durham, NC: RCWMS, 2021 (162 pages, $25).

This is “white people doing their anti-racism work” with grace and grit. It is not easy to look systemic racism in the eye and see oneself staring right back. But it is the work required of white people to undue generations of privilege and embrace future generations of justice. Readers and reading groups will take a well-written lesson from this book.

Matthews, Shelly, and Barbara E. Reid, OP. WISDOM COMMENTARY: LUKE 1-9. Collegeville, MI: Liturgical Press, 2021. (408 pages, $39.95).

Many commentators have lifted up the Lukan narratives and themes as evidence that women’s experiences are taken seriously in scripture. These authors do not dispute that, but they suggest that there are more questions than answers here, more ambiguity and variety than often acknowledged in these commonly used texts. It is a refreshing reality check.

 McPhillips, Kathleen, and Naomi Goldenberg. THE END OF RELIGION: FEMINIST REAPPRAISALS OF THE STATE. London, UK: Routledge, November 2020. (232 pages, $128).

All of the feminist deconstructions of religions are for naught if the fundamental meaning of religion is not interrogated. This volume offers new insights into the whole enterprise, inviting foundational changes to the field if scholars are courageous enough to be sufficiently critical.

Park, Song-Mi Suzie. WISDOM COMMENTARY: 2 KINGS. Collegeville, MI: Liturgical Press, 2019. (408 pages, $39.95).

2 Kings is an especially fraught book of the Bible. The overwhelming masculinity of YHWH is traced throughout the text. But the concluding chapters make clear that such imagery is tenuous at best, inviting the reader/scholar to reimagine other influences that shape the narrative and thus might reshape concepts of the divine.

Timmel, Sally J. YOU CAN NEVER GO BACK: THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF THE CO-FOUNDER OF THE GRAIL CONFERENCE AND RETREAT CENTRE, AND TRAINING FOR TRANSFORMATION. London, UK: Darton, Longman & Todd Ltd, 2021. (176 pages, $17.99).

Savor this autobiography by an activist of the first order whose spirituality is doing. Sally Timmel, longtime member of the Grail and co-creator with her partner, the late Anne Hope, of the Training for Transformation Handbooks, has wisdom aplenty to share. Written in a brisk, clear, unambiguous style, Sally offers a life story worth reading: a life lived to the max through global community and personal responsibility.

Tokaji, Diana. SIX WOMEN IN A CELL: A STORY OF SISTERHOOD AND SURVIVAL AFTER POLICE ASSAULT. Silver Spring, MD: Root to Rise Production, 2020. (246 pages, $16.99).

Diana Tokaji unwraps in powerful prose and poetry her brutal, unjust arrest. Police brutality, moral injury, assault, sexism, white supremacy, and insanity bred of injustice all bubble in the stories of six women thrown together randomly that one night she spent in a holding cell. Their microcosm foreshadowed the locked-down, out of work, out of school, out of kilter society that is the culmination of such social disintegration in a pandemic. Diana’s remedies—kindness, silence, yoga, peer counseling, social justice, humane and equal treatment of all—make this book both a work of art and a manual for change.