The FSR Blog has an ongoing open call at all times. We accept open submissions on any topic that engages feminism and religion. You can find the blog’s complete blog submission guidelines here. All submissions and inquiries should be sent to blog@fsrinc.org ..read more

The FSR Blog is issuing an Open Call for a new @theTable series on Black Women & Religion in Speculative Fiction. We are looking for blogs that explore themes of Black womanhood, religion/spirituality, and feminism in fantasy, science fiction, magical realism, time travel, etc. Blogs on Black women authors and characters are welcome. Some guiding questions that we hope shape the series are: How do Black fantasy/sci fi authors engage themes of religion and spirituality? How do Black female characters in speculative fiction engage with religion and feminism? Are there any marked differences ..read more

By Emma Cieslik. Gabrielle Cerince, Devotee of the Goddess, smeared period blood across her cheeks, then her forehead, then down her neck before licking her fingers. On July 2nd, 2023, Cerince shared a reel of this Blood Magic and Womb Ritual on Instagram. In patriarchal religious institutions and societies, Cerince explains during the video, period blood has been shamed by people who do not understand or accept it as sacred material culture. She painted her face to acknowledge that what is seen as socially and religiously disgusting and unnatural is truly divine. Her goal to destigmatize ..read more

By Oluwatomisin “Tomi” Oredein. “It is a form of struggle and survival, an epistemic existence-based response and practice—most especially by colonial and racialized subjects—against the colonial matrix of power in all of its dimensions, and for the possibilities of an otherwise.” – cultural theorist Catherine Walsh on decoloniality 1 Decolonization Decolonization—the active and actual commitment to practicing decoloniality on a large, systematic scale—is also an active hope, a practice of ontological belief.  It acts on the assertion that those once colonized deserve to live in the worl ..read more

By Alejandro Escalante. A loca with a broom over her shoulder. Source: Lowell Fiet/Digital Library of the Caribbean. A loca (“madwoman”) named Willian danced and sang boisterously as she swept the ground and lead the procession of sacred images of Santiago Apóstol in Loíza, Puerto Rico. As she swept, she blew kisses and twerked provocatively with festivalgoers, enticing some and vexing others. Willian was a “loca,” a festival personage that Loiceños take on during Las Fiestas Tradicionales en Honor a Santiago Apóstol, the yearly festal celebration held in honor of St. James. Called locas for t ..read more

By Meghan R. Henning. In her 2010 Ted talk, Brené Brown talked about how she returned to the church amidst a period of turmoil as an academic and how she found a progressive faith that was different from what she expected. A quote from that talk has resurfaced periodically in interviews, on her own Twitter account, and recently as a meme: “I went back to church thinking that it would be like an epidural, like it would take the pain away… that church would make the pain go away. Faith and church was not an epidural for me at all; it was like a midwife who just stood next to me saying, ‘Push. It ..read more

By Midori Hartman. I write this reflection having recently returned from participating in the International Society of Biblical Literature meeting in Salzburg, Austria (July 16th – 21st). After two years of virtual conferences, it was quite a wonderful experience to meet with others in person again, especially engaging with other feminists in events sponsored by the SBL Women in the Profession committee. Yet this conference was also an important moment for me to think about the threshold upon which we find ourselves concerning future directions of the professional academic conference. For us f ..read more

by Sharon Jacob. “When a Hindu man marries a Muslim woman, it is always portrayed as romance and love by Hindu organizations, while when the reverse happens it is depicted as coercion.” Charu Gupta, Historian at University of Delhi Genesis 34 is the story of Dinah and the Shechemites. The most common interpretations of Genesis 34 contend that Shechem assaulted, abducted, and/or coerced Dinah into a sexual relationship. In response, Dinah’s brothers kill all of the men in Shechem’s community. While such interpretations are pertinent and highlight important factors around sexual violence, conse ..read more

Interview by Michal Raucher and Sharon Jacob. The FSR Blog has benefitted from brilliant and dedicated student interns who served as submissions editor. As Jennifer Maidrand wraps up her role as a student intern, she is moving over to the FSR board with our deep appreciation. We (co-chairs Michal Raucher and Sharon Jacob) received so many wonderful applicants for the new submissions editor position, and Kimi Bryson stood out among the rest. We wanted to introduce her to the rest of the FSR community. We are sure that through this interview you’ll see what we saw in Kimi when we hired her. We a ..read more

By Andrea Corso Johnson. The Magnificat is the first of four “hymns” in Luke’s Gospel.1  Although located in the New Testament, the Magnificat is closely connected to the Hebrew Bible (or Old Testament). Its structure and thematic expression are similar to Hannah’s song (I Sam. 2:1-10).2 It also bears similarity to the Hebrew Bible theme, the hymns of the anawim (poor ones).3 Mary’s Magnificat is the debut expression of the Gospel of Luke’s literary theme of divine reversal, which focuses on money, power, and authority.4 The Magnificat centers the experience of a poor, pregnant, unmarried ..read more