Dance as a liberating practice into divine darkness?: A systematic theologian re-reads Philo of Alexandria’s descriptions of dance

Laura Hellsten

doi:10.1057/s41280-023-00284-0

Dance as a liberating practice into divine darkness? A systematic theologian re-reads Philo of Alexandria’s descriptions of dance

Laura Hellsten

Forskningsoutput: Tidskriftsbidrag › Artikel › Vetenskaplig › Peer review

1 Citeringar (Scopus)

182 Nedladdningar (Pure)

Sammanfattning

In this article, I show how a deeper understanding of Lived Theology can enrich discussions about historical dance practices. I elaborate on the teachings of Philo of Alexandria (c. 20 BCE–50) and how his descriptions of dancing indicate that such practices may be understood as worship and contemplation. I further suggest that dancing in Philo’s texts, especially On the Contemplative Life, can be understood as an exegetical practice. I describe how a supersessionist logic insensitive to traditions of Lived Theology has operated in the theological discourse on Philo and thus has been unable to recognise these dimensions of the described dancing.

Originalspråk	Engelska
Sidor (från-till)	345-369
Tidskrift	Postmedieval
Volym	14
Nummer	2-3
DOI	https://doi.org/10.1057/s41280-023-00284-0
Status	Publicerad - sep. 2023
MoE-publikationstyp	A1 Tidskriftsartikel-refererad

Finansiering

I want to thank Lindsey Drury for inviting me to the community of historic dance scholars gathering at the DSA 2021 conference: Galvanizing Dance Studies: Building Anti-Racist Praxis, Transformative Connections, and Movement(s) of Radical Care , and opening up the possibility for participation in this special issue of postmedieval. I am also forever grateful for the work done by the editorial team of postmedieval, for helping me articulate my thoughts into new ways of understanding. I want to acknowledge the Centre of Excellence BACE at the Åbo Akademi University Foundation for providing me with the post-doctoral position that has made my work on this article possible. Finally, I also want to name the Polin Institute for Theological Research at Åbo Akademi University for providing a platform for me to explore the further connections between Christian dance practices and racialisation of the Other in the project The Praxis of Social Imaginaries. Cosmologies, Othering and Liminality. As always, my work is dedicated to my husband, Markus, and our cat, Moses, who continue to teach me all that is worth knowing in this life.

Åtkomst av dokument

10.1057/s41280-023-00284-0Licens: CC BY

s41280-023-00284-0Slutlig publicerad version, 329 KBLicens: CC BY

https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi-fe20230824103838

Citera det här

@article{90e172514f0a406d92fba9cec0669127,

title = "Dance as a liberating practice into divine darkness?: A systematic theologian re-reads Philo of Alexandria{\textquoteright}s descriptions of dance",

abstract = "In this article, I show how a deeper understanding of Lived Theology can enrich discussions about historical dance practices. I elaborate on the teachings of Philo of Alexandria (c. 20 BCE–50) and how his descriptions of dancing indicate that such practices may be understood as worship and contemplation. I further suggest that dancing in Philo{\textquoteright}s texts, especially On the Contemplative Life, can be understood as an exegetical practice. I describe how a supersessionist logic insensitive to traditions of Lived Theology has operated in the theological discourse on Philo and thus has been unable to recognise these dimensions of the described dancing.",

keywords = "Dance History, Theology and the Arts, Contemplative studies, Philo of Alexandria",

author = "Laura Hellsten",

year = "2023",

month = sep,

doi = "10.1057/s41280-023-00284-0",

language = "English",

volume = "14",

pages = "345--369",

journal = "Postmedieval ",

issn = "2040-5979",

publisher = "Palgrave Macmillan",

number = "2-3",

}

TY - JOUR

T1 - Dance as a liberating practice into divine darkness?

T2 - A systematic theologian re-reads Philo of Alexandria’s descriptions of dance

AU - Hellsten, Laura

PY - 2023/9

Y1 - 2023/9

N2 - In this article, I show how a deeper understanding of Lived Theology can enrich discussions about historical dance practices. I elaborate on the teachings of Philo of Alexandria (c. 20 BCE–50) and how his descriptions of dancing indicate that such practices may be understood as worship and contemplation. I further suggest that dancing in Philo’s texts, especially On the Contemplative Life, can be understood as an exegetical practice. I describe how a supersessionist logic insensitive to traditions of Lived Theology has operated in the theological discourse on Philo and thus has been unable to recognise these dimensions of the described dancing.

AB - In this article, I show how a deeper understanding of Lived Theology can enrich discussions about historical dance practices. I elaborate on the teachings of Philo of Alexandria (c. 20 BCE–50) and how his descriptions of dancing indicate that such practices may be understood as worship and contemplation. I further suggest that dancing in Philo’s texts, especially On the Contemplative Life, can be understood as an exegetical practice. I describe how a supersessionist logic insensitive to traditions of Lived Theology has operated in the theological discourse on Philo and thus has been unable to recognise these dimensions of the described dancing.

KW - Dance History

KW - Theology and the Arts

KW - Contemplative studies

KW - Philo of Alexandria

U2 - 10.1057/s41280-023-00284-0

DO - 10.1057/s41280-023-00284-0

M3 - Article

SN - 2040-5979

VL - 14

SP - 345

EP - 369

JO - Postmedieval

JF - Postmedieval

IS - 2-3

ER -

Dance as a liberating practice into divine darkness? A systematic theologian re-reads Philo of Alexandria’s descriptions of dance

Sammanfattning

Finansiering

Åtkomst av dokument

Fingeravtryck

Citera det här