Reforming bodies under surveillance: an urgent task for theological education

In attending to the relationship between surveillance and human flourishing, this chapter contributes to filling the gap in theological education around recognising that digitized, deconstructed bodies in cyberspace have material implications for people’s life chances. It considers theological works...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Reforming practical theology
Main Author: Stoddart, Eric 1960- (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
Check availability: HBZ Gateway
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Published: International Academy of Practical Theology [2019]
In: Reforming practical theology
Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains:B Surveillance / Body / Information / Identity / Church
IxTheo Classification:NBE Anthropology
NCC Social ethics
Online Access: Volltext (kostenfrei)
Description
Summary:In attending to the relationship between surveillance and human flourishing, this chapter contributes to filling the gap in theological education around recognising that digitized, deconstructed bodies in cyberspace have material implications for people’s life chances. It considers theological works on contemporary surveillance and places the issues in relation to van der Ploeg’s ‘informationized body’ and Swinton’s proposal for the ‘resurrection of the person’. Patel’s problematizing of the browning of bodies under surveillance brings engagement with media misrepresentation of marginalized groups. The chapter’s core argument is that digitized bodies need reforming as social persons and that subjects of surveillance deserve formation that is not driven by prevailing social prejudices. The core theological claim is that cruciform, rather than hierarchical, surveillance demands Christian solidarity with people who find themselves under diverse forms of unjust surveillance. The chapter concludes with a call to the Church to assess its own participation in cultures of surveillance.
Contains:Enthalten in: Reforming practical theology
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.25785/iapt.cs.v1i0.73