Fat liberation theology

Liberation theology is branching out. The newest addition to this burgeoning field, after black liberation theology, feminist liberation theology, and gay liberation theology, appears to be fat liberation theology.

This is in line with a broader cultural movement, particularly in the United States, campaigning for the liberation and societal recognition of fat people. Similar to the homosexuals who adopted the pejorative "queer" others had labelled them with, the movement of overweight and obese men and women wears with pride the stigma "fat".

That this "fat acceptance" or "fat liberation" movement is increasingly becoming mainstream could be seen at the recent Academy Awards. Not only was the, as they say, "morbidly obese" Gabourey Sidibe nominated as Best Actress for her role in the small independent film "Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire", but her only slightly less heavy co-star Mo'Nique actually won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress in the same film.

In theology, this ties in with a book called "The Fat Jesus: Christianity and Body Image" by Lisa Isherwood (Seabury, 2008):

www.churchpublishing.org/products/index.cfm?fuseaction=productDetail&productID=3339

Publisher's description: "We are living in a food and body image obsessed culture. We are encouraged to over-consume by the marketing and media that surround us and then berated by those same forces for doing so. At the same time, we are bombarded with images of unnaturally thin celebrities who go to enormous lengths to retain an unrealistic body image, either by extremes of dieting or through plastic surgery or both. The spiritual realm is not immune from these pressures, as can be seen in the flourishing of biblically and faith based weight loss programs that encourage women to lose weight physically and gain spiritually.

"Isherwood examines this environment in light of Christian tradition, which has often had a difficult relationship with sexuality and embodiment and which has promoted ideals of restraint and asceticism. She argues that part of the reason for our current obsession and bizarre treatment of issues around weight, size and looks is that secular society has unknowingly absorbed many of its negative attitudes towards the body from its Christian heritage. Isherwood argues powerfully that there are resources within Christianity that can free us from this thinking, and lead us towards a more holistic, incarnational view of what it is to be human. The Fat Jesus provides a fascinating study of the complex ways that food, women and religion interconnect, and proposes a theology of embrace and expansion emphasizing the fullness of our incarnation."

Lisa Isherwood is Professor of Feminist Liberation Theologies at the University of Winchester and Vice President of the European Society of Women in Theological Research.

A blog by a Washington State pastoral psychotherapist explicitly promotes fat liberation theology:

http://kataphatic.wordpress.com/

Also interesting: "The Fat Studies Reader", edited by Esther Rothblum and Sondra Solovay, with a foreword by Marilyn Wann (New York University Press, 2009):

www.nyupress.org/books/The_Fat_Studies_Reader-products_id-11104.html

Reviews: "In the US, where two-thirds of the population are overweight or obese, [...] The Fat Studies Reader argues the problem is not obesity per se but the way it is presented in culture. Sociologists point to a 'societal fat phobia' which engenders prejudice against the obese – and argue that this prejudice is tolerated by those who would never dream of making racist or sexist remarks." ("The Independent")

"With a winning audacity, The Fat Studies Reader announces its intention to serve as the foundation of a new academic field. Its editors present convincing voices from law, medicine, social sciences and the humanities, making it difficult to dismiss their case that the time has come for fat studies." ("Ms. Magazine"; here and above italics originally bold)

"Fat studies is an arena where the personal, political and scientific converge, and with this book, readers can mount an informed challenge to the medical construction of obesity and size, the diet industry, insurance companies, public policy and popular culture .... It may be too soon for the movement to offer utopian alternatives, but these essays offer a rich supply of tools for the activist and scholar willing to start the revolution." ("Publishers Weekly")

Esther Rothblum is Professor of Women's Studies at San Diego State University.

Sondra Solovay is Adjunct Professor of Law at John F. Kennedy University and at San Francisco Law School.