This textbook is an interdisciplinary collection of scholarly and religious articles about Asian American Christianity. Its four sections -- contexts, sites, identity, and voices ? offer in-depth understanding of both Catholic and Protestant traditions, practices, theologies, and faith communities. It also highlights diversity and complexity across lines of gender, generation, denomination, race and ethnicity in Asian American Christianity.

This textbook is an interdisciplinary collection of scholarly and religious articles about Asian American Christianity. Its four sections -- contexts, sites, identity, and voices ' offer in-depth understanding of both Catholic and Protestant traditions, practices, theologies, and faith communities. It also highlights diversity and complexity across lines of gender, generation, denomination, race and ethnicity in Asian American Christianity."... a real boon for understanding contemporary American religious life."- Mark Noll, Francis A. McAnaney Professor of History, University of Notre Dame'Thanks for editing this splendid reader. It is very comprehensive and diverse, the best presentation of Asian American theology so far.'- Peter C. Phan, Ignacio Ellacuria, SJ, Professor of Catholic Social Thought & Theology, Georgetown University

In this book, Julius-Kei Kato lets the theories and experiences of Asian American hybridity converse with and bear upon some aspects of Christian biblical and theological language. Hybridity has become a key feature of today’s globalized world and is, of course, a key concept in postcolonial thought. However, despite its crucial importance, hybridity is rarely used as a paradigm through which to analyze and evaluate the influential concepts and teachings that make up religious language. This book fills a lacuna by discussing what the concept of hybridity challenges and resists, what over-simplifications it has the power to complicate, and what forgotten or overlooked strands in religious tradition it endeavors to recover and reemphasize. Shifting seamlessly between biblical, theological, and modern, real-world case studies, Kato shows how hybridity permeates and can illuminate religious phenomena as lived and believed. The ultimate goal of the move toward an embrace of hybridity is a further dissolution of the thick wall separating ideas of "us" and "them." In this book, Kato suggests the possibility of a world in which what one typically considers the "other" is increasingly recognized within oneself.

This examination of the development of Asian American theologies in North America includes the immigrant experience of Asians from the mid-nineteenth century until the present, the nature of Asian American Christianity, and the themes that appear across traditions and denominations. Tan highlights the contributions of key Asian American theologians and scripture scholars and describes the more distinctive theologies that have developed among the diverse groups of Asian Americans, including Catholics, mainline Protestants, Evangelicals, and Pentecostals. A challenging final chapter presents four areas in which Asian American theologians can work together in the future.

The first reference resource on how Asian Americans are currently reading and interpreting the Bible, this volume also serves a valuable role in both developing and disseminating what can be termed as Asian American biblical hermeneutics. The volume works from the important background that Asian Americans are the fastest growing ethnic/racial minority population in the USA, and that 42% of this group identifies as Christian. This provides a useful starting point from which to examine what may be distinctive about Asian American approaches to the Bible. Part 1 of the Handbook describes six major ethic groups that make up 85% of Asian population (by country of origin: China, Philippines, Indian Subcontinent, Vietnam, Korea, Japan) and outlines the specific concerns each group has when its members read the Bible. Part 2 of the Handbook examines major critical methods in biblical interpretation and suggests adjustments that may be helpful for Asian Americans to make when they are interpreting the Bible. Finally, Part 3 provides 25 interpretations by Asian American biblical scholars on specific texts in the Bible, using what they consider to be Asian American hermeneutics. Taken together the Handbook interprets the Bible both with and for the Asian American communities.

Experiencing racial marginalization in society and pressures for success in family, Asian American Christian young adults must negotiate being socially underpowered, culturally dissonant, and politically marginal. To avoid misunderstandings and conflicts within and without their communities, more often than not they hide their true thoughts and emotions and hesitate to engage in authentic conversations outside their very close-knit circle of friends. In addition, these young adults might not find their church or Christian fellowship to be a safe and hospitable place to openly struggle with all of these sorts of questions, all the while lacking adequate vocabulary or resources to organize their thoughts. This book responds to these spiritual-moral struggles of Asian American young people by theologically addressing the issues that most intimately and immediately affect Asian American youths' sense of identity--God, race, family, sex, gender, friendship, money, vocation, the model minority myth, and community-- uniquely and consistently from the contexts of Asian American young adult life. Its goal is to help young Asian Americans develop a healthy, balanced, organic sense of identity grounded in a fresh and deeper understanding of the Christian faith.

"Why do the first generation still act like that?" "Why can't we try some new ideas?" "Why are the second generation so lazy?" "Why are the second generation so disrespectful?" "Isn't it a shame how the church is split between the two generations?" These and many more questions reflect the tangled conflicts within the Asian American church. Cultural differences have led to many misunderstandings and conflicts. Conflicts have created bitterness and churches have split apart. How can these tangled threads be rewoven into a beautiful tapestry of God's grace? What would it take for the Asian American church to reflect God's grace? In Tapestry of Grace, Dr. Benjamin C. Shin and Dr. Sheryl Takagi Silzer apply their years of study and teaching to explain how the cultural complexities that occur between the different generations of the Asian American church can be untangled. Taking lessons from their own spiritual journeys, they show how each generation can experience the amazing grace of the Gospel.