Abuelita Faith: What Women on the Margins Teach Us about Wisdom, Persistence, and Strength

Drawing from her popular podcast The Protagonistas, which centers on BIPOC believers among communities of faith, Cuban American theologian Armas now offers a thoughtful examination of Christianity through the lens of women-focused theology. Referencing Ada Maria Isasi-Diaz’s liberation theology and Maria Pilar Aquino’s intercultural theology, the text is a deep dive into a Latine perspective of the women of the Bible, along with an exploration of ways in which immigrant and Indigenous women practice faith. Armas’s nuanced research enriches the reader’s experience and broadens the interpretation of biblical stories often only told through Western and European lenses. For the author, the context of abuelita faith is a narrative of women’s empowerment and social justice that comes to fruition in examining the biblical histories of Ruth, Naomi, Tamar, and Rizpah. Armas expertly weaves her own abuelita’s history of personal faith and resistance into each chapter and intersects it with biblical text, creating an approachable work.