Decolonizing Interreligious Education: Developing Theologies of Accountability by Shannon Frediani (review)

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Reviewed by:

• Decolonizing Interreligious Education: Developing Theologies of Accountability by Shannon Frediani
• Angela Berliner

Shannon Frediani, Decolonizing Interreligious Education: Developing Theologies of Accountability. Postcolonial and Decolonial Studies in Religion and Theology. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, 2023. Pp. 165. $95.00.

Decolonizing Interreligious Education introduces readers to how colonization (of thought and deed) harms certain populations and how interreligious education can address and repair these wrongs. The author takes concepts that have little meaning outside academia and makes them accessible and usable to the layperson, the student, and the teacher. Frediani shares her formidable research in uplifting marginalized perspectives with a clarity that allows this book to be a useful tool both for experts in the field of decolonial studies and for those just starting to learn.

Decolonizing interreligious education begins with finding narratives that have been pushed to the background in favor of the narratives of colonizers. Looking back at my education, European and European-American history and literature were the dominant voices, particularly before college. The experiences of marginalized populations were mostly limited to a paragraph or chapter in a textbook, or a single class session. Frediani asks her readers to engage in the interreligious imaginary to think outside the dominant histories. The author surveys diverse scholars and how educators can use their ideas in the work of decolonizing interreligious education. She explores what is missing due to this [End Page 438] coloniality of thought, exposes the politicizing of religion to dominate, and seeks out alternative scholarship to help educators imagine new ways to approach their work to help religious leaders better address the populations most affected by systemic injustice.

The author then delves into different ways that pastoral and spiritual-care practitioners can incorporate decoloniality into their work. The first step is acknowledging the harm and grief caused by colonization and systemic injustice, which is then followed by a reconnection to religious narratives that have been erased or suppressed. In this way, leaders and teachers can subvert, upend, and reverse the dominant theologies that take place in interreligious education. She concludes the book by showing how her research can be used among populations who have experienced oppression to heal and resist the dominant and dominating narratives. By expanding the interreligious imagination to think outside the status quo, addressing the damage caused by colonization, and discovering knowledge that usually exists on the margins of education, interreligious educators can foster deeper ways to connect.

Besides serving as a useful tool for anyone interested in learning more about decolonizing education (no matter what field), this is a book written by an educator for educators. Frediani takes time to define important terms at the beginning of the book, and, at the end of each chapter, questions are offered for classroom discussion. Finally, the appendix serves as a sample syllabus replete with course goals, quizzes, and assignments. As a newcomer to decolonial studies, this book was the ideal introduction.

It was difficult to find anything worth critiquing except that Frediani uses the nongendered term "Latinx" instead of Latinos/Latinas—an American English term that has become controversial because the majority of Spanishspeaking Latin Americans do not use it, and some find it offensive because it disrespects the language. Perhaps the author could have been more sensitive to what they prefer, rather than endowing the language with an English-speaking way of thinking.

Frediani's most illuminating topic was about how colonization is not just about physical domination but the domination of thought. By erasing the histories, stories, cultures, and religions of colonized populations, the colonizer gets to define what and how we learn. Through decolonizing education, we can find alternative narratives to serve their respective communities better. [End Page 439]

Angela Berliner Gratz College, Melrose Park, PA Copyright © 2024 Journal of Ecumenical Studies ...