Spring of Living Waters: A Theological Ethnography of Palestinian Liberation Theology: The Liberative Faith Practices of Women and Laypeople at Sabeel

To date, research on Palestinian liberation theology has focused on texts. This has had two limitations. First, this has constrained the study of Palestinian liberation theology to theologians who have published writings, the majority of which are men, resulting in the exclusion of women and laypeople. Second, there has not been rigorous attention to the daily practices of liberation theology. This dissertation uses theological ethnography to attend to voices that are typically excluded from academic studies on Palestinian liberation theology (specifically women and laypeople), and to consider how liberative practices shape this movement. This dissertation asks three questions:

1) What does it look like to follow Jesus in the context of political oppression?

2) How is liberation interpreted and practiced at Sabeel (a Palestinian liberation theology center)?

3) In light of (1) and (2) What does it mean for the Church to respond to the witness of Sabeel, and act in solidarity?

The answers to these questions are multivalent, reflecting the diversity of voices included in this research. What becomes clear through this study is that ongoing liberative practices, which constitute Palestinian liberation theology, allow for new responses to these questions to emerge in the ever-shifting political context. This capacity is what makes Palestinian liberation theology a living theology.