Indigenous Australia and the Unfinished Business of Theology : Cross-Cultural Engagement

This book engages a complex subject that mainline theologies avoid, Indigenous Australia. The heritages, wisdoms and dreams of Indigenous Australians are tormented by the discriminating mindsets and colonialist practices of non-Indigenous peoples. This book gives special attention to the torments due to the arrival and development of the church. Indigenous Australia has on the one hand been romanticized and patronized, and on the other hand been avoided and ignored, in colonial, contextual and indigenous theologies. Indigenous Australia and the Unfinished Business of Theology consequently enters into (and invites ongoing) engagement with theological and cultural topics at the intersections of Indigeneity, Church, Colonization, Settlement, Mission, Apology, Reconciliation, Hermeneutics, Migration, and more. The book begins by drawing attention to the ongoing colonization of Australia, and to the rich wisdoms of Indigenous Australians which non-Indigenous people have not begun to respect, learn and appreciate. The remaining chapters are by non-Indigenous people who critically engage with some of the impacts and blind-spots of colonial, missionary, settler and migrant cultures. Together, the multidisciplinary contributors read and engage with indigenous heritages, arts, memories, and stories, as well as the policies and practices of Australian governments and churches Front Matter....Pages i-ix Colonization Has Many Names....Pages 1-8 Receive, Touch, Feel, and Give Raypirri ....Pages 9-15 Seeing Otherwise: Touching Sacred Things....Pages 17-30 Missionary Genocide: Moral Illegitimacy and the Churches in Australia....Pages 31-46 From Little Things Big Things Grow....Pages 47-61 Reconciling a Platypus Nation: Can Churches Help?....Pages 63-79 Ritual, in the Healing of Memories....Pages 81-96 Migration and Rudd’s Apology: Whose Voices are Heard, and What Do They Mean for the Christian Community?....Pages 97-111 In Touch Out of Touch: The Church and Reconciliation....Pages 113-128 National Black Congress: Ambivalence and Ambiguity....Pages 129-150 Formation for Ordained Ministry: Out of Touch?....Pages 151-166 Envisioning an Emerging Asian Australian Christianity....Pages 167-179 Place and Displacement: Reading Scriptures with Indigenous Australians....Pages 181-193 Hope with and Trust in Aboriginal Stories....Pages 195-205 Forgive Us Our Trespasses: Black Australia, Peopled Wilderness, Eroding Islands....Pages 207-219 Back Matter....Pages 221-229 "Cover" -- "Title" -- "Copyright" -- "Contents" -- "Foreword" -- "Preface" -- "1 Colonization Has Many Names" -- "2 Receive, Touch, Feel, and Give Raypirri" -- "3 Seeing Otherwise: Touching Sacred Things" -- "4 Missionary Genocide: Moral Illegitimacy and the Churches in Australia" -- "5 From Little Things Big Things Grow" -- "6 Reconciling a Platypus Nation: Can Churches Help?" -- "7 Ritual, in the Healing of Memories" -- "8 Migration and Ruddâ#x80;#x99;s Apology: Whose Voices Are Heard, and What Do They Mean for the Christian Community?" -- "9 In Touch Out of Touch: The Church and Reconciliation" -- "10 National Black Congress: Ambivalence and Ambiguity" -- "11 Formation for Ordained Ministry: Out of Touch?" -- "12 Envisioning an Emerging Asian Australian Christianity" -- "13 Place and Displacement: Reading Scriptures with Indigenous Australians" -- "14 Hope with and Trust in Aboriginal Stories" -- "15 Forgive Us Our Trespasses: Black Australia, Peopled Wilderness, Eroding Islands" -- "Notes on Contributors"