TO LIVE A LIFE of justice, we must also live a life of constant self-reflection. My work as a writer, activist, and woman of faith informs my actions in matters of justice, which I call soul work. Yet, if I cannot examine the ways I am complicit in oppressive structures, I become part of the problem. I never want to assume that my justice work, my soul work, is not in need of introspection.
I learned about spiritual activism from reading AnaLouise Keating’s scholarship of Gloria Anzaldúa’s theopoetic work, which focuses on navigating between spaces such as home, language, the academy, gender, and spirituality, among other conceived and imagined spaces. A theopoetic work wrestles with the tension of in-between spaces when theological language fails us and we must instead take up a form of spiritual activism—advocating for our own inner healing while addressing the injustices of the world.
Spiritual activism is the sacred way we advocate for social change. It is a call to action and a call to heal. As we navigate this in-between space, it is imperative that we self-examine and take inventory of our methods of action. For example, as a woman of color, if I assume or am complicit in my language, I will relegate all women of color (i.e. black, Indigenous, Palestinian, Central American, etc.) to an overarching assumption that all women of color face the same oppressive structures.
For me, spiritual activism is the awareness of conceived and imagined spaces I inhabit as a human being and as a woman of faith in relation to others and their experiences. I recognize the contradiction between spirit and activism. Yet, one cannot work without the other if we are to engage in a process that keeps us self-aware. The spiritual draws from the soul, from the very core of who we are or are to become. Activism draws from politics, from a tension that if left untreated will fester. The spiritual draws us into ourselves as a reflection of what is happening around us; it situates us in a God-centered space. Activism engages us to respond to a shared space that has become subjugated and no longer reflects the imago dei.
I have found that reading widely and social media engagement have been helpful as I seek personal self-reflection in the face of injustices. Before I engage in a conversation verbally, or in a digital space, I examine my own space. Even as a woman of color, I hold a certain privilege that must be acknowledged and dismantled before I can offer dialogue or critique in conversations. We must do the work that matters—soul work. And in our attempts to fight injustice, we must never overlook the ways we are complicit.
Carolina Hinojosa-Cisneros is a Tejana, Chicana, and Mujerista from San Antonio, where she is a graduate student at Our Lady of the Lake University. She is the 2019 recipient of the Rubem Alves Award in Theopoetics.
Got something to say about what you're reading? We value your feedback!
