Abuelita Faith: What Women on the Margins Teach Us about Wisdom, Persistence, and Strength
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- Create Date：2021-09-10 06:52:01
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Kat Armas
- ISBN：158743508X
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Summary
What if some of our greatest theologians wouldn't be considered theologians at all？
Kat Armas， a second-generation Cuban American， grew up on the outskirts of Miami's famed Little Havana neighborhood。 Her earliest theological formation came from her grandmother， her abuelita， who fled Cuba during the height of political unrest and raised three children alone after her husband passed away。 Combining personal storytelling with biblical reflection， Armas shows us how voices on the margins--those often dismissed， isolated， and oppressed because of their gender， socioeconomic status， or lack of education--have more to teach us about following God than we realize。
Abuelita Faith tells the story of unnamed and overlooked theologians in society and in the Bible--mothers， grandmothers， sisters， and daughters--whose survival， strength， resistance， and persistence teach us the true power of faith and love。 The author's exploration of abuelita theology will help people of all cultural and ethnic backgrounds reflect on the abuelitas in their lives and ministries and on ways they can live out abuelita faith every day。
Kat Armas， a second-generation Cuban American， grew up on the outskirts of Miami's famed Little Havana neighborhood。 Her earliest theological formation came from her grandmother， her abuelita， who fled Cuba during the height of political unrest and raised three children alone after her husband passed away。 Combining personal storytelling with biblical reflection， Armas shows us how voices on the margins--those often dismissed， isolated， and oppressed because of their gender， socioeconomic status， or lack of education--have more to teach us about following God than we realize。
Abuelita Faith tells the story of unnamed and overlooked theologians in society and in the Bible--mothers， grandmothers， sisters， and daughters--whose survival， strength， resistance， and persistence teach us the true power of faith and love。 The author's exploration of abuelita theology will help people of all cultural and ethnic backgrounds reflect on the abuelitas in their lives and ministries and on ways they can live out abuelita faith every day。
Reviews
Tessa Patiño
，
Armas uses anecdotal narratives about her lived experience and Biblical stories to illuminate women and their significant roles in Christianity。 I appreciated the humanity that was brought into spirituality through Armas’ explanations。 This book felt like you were talking to a friend—a friend who is immensely knowledgeable about the Bible！
Stephanie Ridiculous
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Excellent。 An exciting and inviting look at how white evangelicalism approaches faith & culture and misses the beauty of the lived experience; the in-between spaces marginalized folks， particularly women， must navigate daily that reflect the complex and nuanced stories we see in scripture and yet rarely acknowledge in western faith practices。
Rachel Edney
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I liked this even more than Reading While Black！！！ We looooove a good decolonizing work！
Chelsey Engel
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I'm so glad I came across this book and across Kat as a person/writer。 What a refreshing take and reminder on what faith can mean， how vast， how diverse， how beautiful and life-saving。 I'm so glad I came across this book and across Kat as a person/writer。 What a refreshing take and reminder on what faith can mean， how vast， how diverse， how beautiful and life-saving。 。。。more
Jennifer
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Kat Armas has masterfully woven together her own story of faith with Scripture and theology， drawing on liberation theology as well as postcolonial， feminist， and womanist theology。 The driving question she wants us all to consider is “What if some of our greatest theologians wouldn't be considered theologians at all？” Throughout this book， Armas tells the stories of the overlooked theologians in the Bible and in our world today。 And they have so much to teach us。 “For centuries Scripture has be Kat Armas has masterfully woven together her own story of faith with Scripture and theology， drawing on liberation theology as well as postcolonial， feminist， and womanist theology。 The driving question she wants us all to consider is “What if some of our greatest theologians wouldn't be considered theologians at all？” Throughout this book， Armas tells the stories of the overlooked theologians in the Bible and in our world today。 And they have so much to teach us。 “For centuries Scripture has been used and misused to justify atrocities across the globe， and as a Western， biblically educated Christian， my conviction is to offer tools so that others can read and reread it through life-giving lenses， as I believe liberation is central to God’s story。”Like Kat， I believe liberation is central to God’s story。I found this part to be particularly encouraging:“Ada Maria Isasi-Díaz once said that “La vida es la lucha—the struggle is life。” She explains that for over half of her life， she thought her task was to struggle and then one day enjoy the fruits of her labor—“but above all I have realized that I can and should relish the struggle，” she says。 “The struggle is my life; my dedication to the struggle is one of the main driving forces in my life。” Relishing the struggle involves recognizing God’s presence within it， realizing that the struggle is sacred。 And while la lucha is a personal struggle for survival， it also marks our collective struggle for liberation。”“As Aboriginal elder Lilla Watson articulates so beautifully: our liberation is bound together。 And that too—our collective struggle—is holy。” 。。。more
Aaron Lee
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What can we learn about God from forgotten women？ In Abuelita Faith， Kat Armas shows what women on the margins can teach us about wisdom， persistence， and strength。“Abuelita theology” is looking at the real and raw outworkings of faith and wisdom in unnamed and overlooked women。 Mothers， grandmothers， sisters， and daughters all have something to teach us about God。 They are theologians， and we can learn from their cultural memory – a collective knowledge passed from one generation to the next， a What can we learn about God from forgotten women？ In Abuelita Faith， Kat Armas shows what women on the margins can teach us about wisdom， persistence， and strength。“Abuelita theology” is looking at the real and raw outworkings of faith and wisdom in unnamed and overlooked women。 Mothers， grandmothers， sisters， and daughters all have something to teach us about God。 They are theologians， and we can learn from their cultural memory – a collective knowledge passed from one generation to the next， allowing reconstruction of cultural identity。Unnamed and Overlooked WomenArmas draws our attention to the unnamed and overlooked women of the Bible， including the “woman from Tekoa” in 2 Samuel 14 and a “wise woman [who] called from the city” in 2 Samuel 20。 She speaks of Huldah the prophetess in 2 Kings 22 and 2 Chronicles 34。With Huldah， Armas links the story with her own truth-telling on racism and sexism in the church。 She calls all of us to remember past injustices and speak out about them to future generations。Lived Experience and Liberation TheologyLived experience is the key to abuelita faith。 It is something born in our homes and communities， not in sterile lecture halls and in the theoretical realm of western academia。 Adversity and oppression are common to abuelitas， and Armas shows – like in the lives of Ruth， Tamar， and Esther – how God is still working behind the scenes。Armas talks about liberation theology and points out that women were always working in God's plan。 She connects us to the Exodus story， how Pharaoh found the women and midwives to be weak and insignificant – but ultimately led to his undoing。 Interestingly， Armas sees a pattern of women who work with their hands as well as provide physical as well as financial support for ministry。 Joanna （Luke 8）， Tabitha （Acts 9）， and Lydia （Acts 16） are included。Celebrating and Championing Women of the FaithThemes of being an activist， survival and persistence， hypersexualization and sexual abuse， motherhood， exile， injustice， and equality are considered。 Taken altogether， this is a rather sobering book。 But Armas is a compelling writer， weaving Biblical narratives with her own experiences and offering incredible insight。 And while she shares somber stories， her book is ultimately one of joy – celebrating and championing women of the faith。 For those who have ears to hear， come and listen – we have much to learn from their wisdom。I received a media copy of Abuelita Faith and this is my honest review。 。。。more
Rebeka Jones
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This book is so needed！ What a beautiful collection of women's stories - both biblical and from the author's personal life and cultural history - stories of faith and survival in desperate circumstances。 Excellent。 This book is so needed！ What a beautiful collection of women's stories - both biblical and from the author's personal life and cultural history - stories of faith and survival in desperate circumstances。 Excellent。 。。。more
Sabrina Peters
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Review forthcoming。
Brad Dell
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So very good。 It was almost as though Kat’s life was lived for this book — scripture weaves tightly into her life stories and the history of Cubans（-Americans）。 The elegant writing is part-memoir and part-theology to form one beautiful whole。 As a white man， I treasure the perspective and perception Kat shares here。 She is driving me to see scripture in a new light， and to teach far more at church about the courageous， defiant women celebrated by the God Who Sees。 Thank you for your honesty and So very good。 It was almost as though Kat’s life was lived for this book — scripture weaves tightly into her life stories and the history of Cubans（-Americans）。 The elegant writing is part-memoir and part-theology to form one beautiful whole。 As a white man， I treasure the perspective and perception Kat shares here。 She is driving me to see scripture in a new light， and to teach far more at church about the courageous， defiant women celebrated by the God Who Sees。 Thank you for your honesty and wisdom， Kat！ Already bought an extra copy for a friend。 。。。more
Kristie Enns
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This book is a beautiful look at women on the margins of society and their relation to women on the margins of scripture。 Armas casts a light on to stories of women in scripture that are often left in the shadows。 She also reminds the reader the importance of listening; coming to the table to hear the stories of women who have known struggle， hardship and heart break。 The theology that Armas presents is a "lived-in" theology。 A theology of experiences woven into a beautiful tapestry where every This book is a beautiful look at women on the margins of society and their relation to women on the margins of scripture。 Armas casts a light on to stories of women in scripture that are often left in the shadows。 She also reminds the reader the importance of listening; coming to the table to hear the stories of women who have known struggle， hardship and heart break。 The theology that Armas presents is a "lived-in" theology。 A theology of experiences woven into a beautiful tapestry where every thread has a unique voice。 。。。more
Amy Woo
，
I really enjoyed Abuelita Faith because Kat Armas highlights so many important topics that should be examined and discussed。 Using extensive research， her cultural heritage and experience as a woman of faith， Kat invites readers to explore what it means to read the Bible within the context of intergenerational pain and wisdom。 The call to decolonize and decenter our views of theology in Chapter 2 may be a bitter pill for readers to digest。 However the call is necessary as Kat outlines in later c I really enjoyed Abuelita Faith because Kat Armas highlights so many important topics that should be examined and discussed。 Using extensive research， her cultural heritage and experience as a woman of faith， Kat invites readers to explore what it means to read the Bible within the context of intergenerational pain and wisdom。 The call to decolonize and decenter our views of theology in Chapter 2 may be a bitter pill for readers to digest。 However the call is necessary as Kat outlines in later chapters what it takes to love marginalized groups and to love one’s neighbor。 Abuelita Faith is a must read in my opinion。 。。。more
Katheryne
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Kat Armas is a voice in Christianity well worth listening to。 Her beautiful book is filled with writing that is intelligent and fluid， keeping your interest and attention all the way through。 She weaves stories from her life， her grandmother’s life， history， and the Bible， highlighting everyday theology from those on the margins。 She focuses on themes such as wisdom， liberation， and truth-telling。 She describes everyday traditions from her own Cuban roots as well as those of other cultures。 The Kat Armas is a voice in Christianity well worth listening to。 Her beautiful book is filled with writing that is intelligent and fluid， keeping your interest and attention all the way through。 She weaves stories from her life， her grandmother’s life， history， and the Bible， highlighting everyday theology from those on the margins。 She focuses on themes such as wisdom， liberation， and truth-telling。 She describes everyday traditions from her own Cuban roots as well as those of other cultures。 The grace and strength at the core of this book bind all these threads into a theology of acceptance and love that began with our grandmothers and will continue with us， as long as we refuse to let it be overlooked and forgotten。 I， personally， am convicted to keep reading books like Abuelita Faith - and to keep listening to voices of women， immigrants， bipoc， and others who have been and continue to be silenced in western Christianity。 I am grateful to the author and publisher for proving an arc for me to review。 All opinions are my own。 。。。more
Colleen
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It was such a beautiful experience to read this book。 The way Armas honors the women who are usually on the margins—women of color， women who are older， impoverished， or not classically educated—opens up a depth of wisdom from which we can and should learn。 She looks to her own experiences as a Cuban American， her abuela’s life， women in history， and women in the Bible to show us that the stories of these women are important， complicated， and teach us about God。 I loved the ways she connected Ab It was such a beautiful experience to read this book。 The way Armas honors the women who are usually on the margins—women of color， women who are older， impoverished， or not classically educated—opens up a depth of wisdom from which we can and should learn。 She looks to her own experiences as a Cuban American， her abuela’s life， women in history， and women in the Bible to show us that the stories of these women are important， complicated， and teach us about God。 I loved the ways she connected Abuelita Faith to activism， food provision， working with your hands， creating art and textiles， connecting to the land， and much more。 I will be reflecting on the lessons in this book for a very long time， and I will look to the wisdom of these women for the rest of my life。 。。。more
Andrea Humphries
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I loved this book。 The way Armas has interwoven her own story and the stories of her abuela and other marginalized women with the stories of women in Scripture is enlightening and eye-opening。 Abuelita Faith reminds us， especially those of us who are white in the West， that theology is being done on the ground in communities all around us and it's just as true and just as powerful （and sometimes more so） as the theology being done in the academy or from the pulpits of our churches。 It points us I loved this book。 The way Armas has interwoven her own story and the stories of her abuela and other marginalized women with the stories of women in Scripture is enlightening and eye-opening。 Abuelita Faith reminds us， especially those of us who are white in the West， that theology is being done on the ground in communities all around us and it's just as true and just as powerful （and sometimes more so） as the theology being done in the academy or from the pulpits of our churches。 It points us to the need to widen our perspective， to decolonize our ways of thinking about the world and our faith。 Armas has given her reader a powerful exploration of the absolutely vital fact that if the Gospel we're preaching isn't actually good news for those on the margins， for the poor single mother， for the widow， for the struggling immigrant， then it's not truly the Gospel。 。。。more
Ali Batir
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I won a copy of this book in a giveaway。 It was one of three books and， truthfully， it was the one I was least excited about。 I had never heard of Kat or her successful podcast （The Protaganistas）。 After watching In The Heights and being inspired by Abuela Claudia’s ‘paciencia y fe’， I remembered that Abuelita Faith was on my bookshelf and I decided to give it a read。 I’m so glad I did。 This book is beautiful。 Kat Armas does an exceptional job walking the reader through her life， her culture， an I won a copy of this book in a giveaway。 It was one of three books and， truthfully， it was the one I was least excited about。 I had never heard of Kat or her successful podcast （The Protaganistas）。 After watching In The Heights and being inspired by Abuela Claudia’s ‘paciencia y fe’， I remembered that Abuelita Faith was on my bookshelf and I decided to give it a read。 I’m so glad I did。 This book is beautiful。 Kat Armas does an exceptional job walking the reader through her life， her culture， and the overlooked women of the Bible in a way that is inviting， humble， and brave。 As someone who has been on a journey the last year to discover and learn from marginal voices of faith， Abuelita Faith was so life giving。 Kat doesn’t shy away from the uncomfortable。 Instead， she takes the reader’s hand and lovingly shows them how the Bible is full of the uncomfortable and how God uses the uncomfortable to grow us all。 。。。more
Hannah
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I will forever recommend Kat Armas’ work to anyone who will listen！ She is one of the leading Christian thought leaders of our generation。 The central idea behind this book is that the beliefs & lived experiences of women of color should inform & strengthen our faith， and that women of color should be respected as experts within Christianity。 So good！
Ceri
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This was a fascinating look at the author’s experience of deconstructing and decolonising her faith。 Drawing on liberation， mujerista， feminist， womanist and other branches of theology， she weaves in her own and her family’s stories with those from Latin American history and lesser known biblical texts。 She recounts her struggles and her challenges honestly， and emphasises the importance of culture and heritage to engaged faith。I have read quite widely in feminist theology and a little in libera This was a fascinating look at the author’s experience of deconstructing and decolonising her faith。 Drawing on liberation， mujerista， feminist， womanist and other branches of theology， she weaves in her own and her family’s stories with those from Latin American history and lesser known biblical texts。 She recounts her struggles and her challenges honestly， and emphasises the importance of culture and heritage to engaged faith。I have read quite widely in feminist theology and a little in liberation theology， so it was really interesting to see this different perspective on both。 I picked this up expecting a fluffy， feel-good reflection on faith and family， but this was so much better。 It was powerful， deep and challenging。 I loved that the Bible stories she picked were not the common ones but the marginalised characters who are often overlooked （including my best girl， Rizpah）。 I did not know a lot about Latin American history or politics so it was great to learn more about this region and the cultural elements related to faith and religion both within this area and for those， like Armas， with roots there。 。。。more
Meghan Tschanz
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Loved the way Armas has blended her own stories， women of the Bible， and related them to modern evangelicalism。 Definitely worth your time。
Charlotte
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In Abuelita Faith， Kat Armas moves deftly between her personal family history（as a Cuban-American growing up in Miami）， scholarly interpretations of biblical stories in which women played an integral and 9ften subversive part， and stories of everyday women carrying wisdom forward， telling the silenced truths， and resisting injustice。 I savored this book。 Armas's family stories dropped me into places I've never been （Miami， Cuba） and drew my attention to the everyday love-soaked wisdom lived out In Abuelita Faith， Kat Armas moves deftly between her personal family history（as a Cuban-American growing up in Miami）， scholarly interpretations of biblical stories in which women played an integral and 9ften subversive part， and stories of everyday women carrying wisdom forward， telling the silenced truths， and resisting injustice。 I savored this book。 Armas's family stories dropped me into places I've never been （Miami， Cuba） and drew my attention to the everyday love-soaked wisdom lived out by the women there。 Her retellings and interpretations of biblical women's stories helped me see the usually-unremarked-upon throughline of faithfulness， blessedness， and love that runs through both the Hebrew Scriptures and the Christian New Testament。 It was an inspiring and challenging read。I will be looking for an opportunity to use Abuelita Faith in my parish ministry and will keep my copy close at hand for scripture study and sermon-writing。 。。。more
Jessica
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