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Annie Barfield Tinsley @annitin ?

active 3 months, 2 weeks ago

"I am in year two of my job search. Sometimes I get weary, but don’t we all. But, I am “pressing on the upwardway, new heights I am gaining everyday, still praying as I am onward bound, Lord plant my [...]" · View

Full Name	Annie Barfield Tinsley
Bio	In December 2010 I completed my PhD in Theology and Religion at the University of Birmingham, UK. Over the past ten years my studies have allowed me to travel across the US, which includes many conferences. I am interested in intergrating biblical hermeneutics with postcolonial studies from an African American perspective. My research interest is to research any remains of Christianity beyond the eleventh century and make a connection to the beliefs that were held by Africans with the coming of the Portuguese in the fifteenth century. The reason for my interest lies in the belief that the traditional religions of Africa are a dissemination of the first-century beliefs. These beliefs were what Portuguese missionaries encountered in their attempts to evangelize the people of Africa. For my research project I would like to explore Christianity in Africa and the impact of the Portuguese arrival in Africa after the division of the world by Pope Alexander VI after 1495. I am also interested in the cultural linguistic aspects of African Americans and how language impacted the development of their culture with respect to the slavery, Christianity/religion and the Civil Rights Movement in the United States. Recent papers I have written include: “Colossians and Empire”, “Fiduciary Failure of African Christianity”, both presented in regional meetings of SBL; “Language Identity and Otherness”, presented at the University of Birmingham’s Identity and Otherness Conference; book reviews for JPTT, “Mark and It’s Subalterns” by David Joy and “They Were All Together in One Place”, Bailey, Liew and Segovia. I am working on various articles and papers; also looking to publish my dissertation soon.
Focus	Theory and Theology
Category	Poco Activist
Keywords	#African American Theology, #Biblical Hermeneutics, #christianities, #Christianity, #Enslaved Africans, #Ethnicity, #First Century African Christianity, #New Testament, #Pauline Studies, #Postcolonial Theory, #Race, #Religion & Culture, #Religion & Globalization, #Religion & Society, #Social Media Networking, #Subaltern, #The Gospels, #World Christianity, #Diaspora, #North American Slavery, #Linguistics, #Ethics, #Diversity
Geographic Location	America-North

Education

Alma Mater(s)	University of Birmingham, UK (2006-2010) Brite Divinity School – Texas Christian University, Fort Worth, Texas (2005-2006 Regent University, Virgnia Beach, Virginia (200-2004) Hampton University, Hampton, Virginia (1972-1976)
Degree(s)	BS, MA, ThM, PhD Theology and Religion
Dissertation or Thesis Title	“Toward a Re-reading of Colossians from an African American Postcolonial Perspective”
Description	Essential information is often lost when in reading a piece of work the identity of an audience or the recipients is overlooked. The first hearers of the letter to the Colossians were a diverse group of people in a colonized country under the imperial rule of Rome in the first century. The writer of the letter addressed possible concerns presented to him from the evangelist, Epaphras, a native of Colossae. In identifying the audience whether they are first recipients or future readers, ideologies and theologies are discovered which add to the existing criticism genres. The process of identifying the audience allows one to reread the work through the lens of various peoples. This process also allows one to make comparisons between the various audiences. A comparison is made in this thesis between the 1st century readers and the enslaved Africans who lived on the continent of North America who were later exposed to concepts that stemmed from the letter. In viewing the identities of both groups the most damaging finding was the derogatory labels placed on them. This thesis looks beyond the labels to ascertain the meaning of the Colossians letter, giving voices to each group.
Supervisor	David Parker