Signifying Love and Embodied Relationality: Toward a Womanist Theological Anthropology

Abstract

Stories create phenomenal venues for helping people transcend delusion while affirming reality, and Tyler Perry’s films tell stories about complicated human ontology and existence. His works, with underlying theological, spiritual, and/or religious themes, engage topics many would rather deny. Having worked through childhood sexual assault and abandonment issues by way of journaling and the arts, Perry brings his experiences and observations of personal and communal triumphs and tragedies to his storytelling.¹ He makes no claims that he is engaging in historical, psychological, sociological, ethical, or theological analysis and instruction. Yet, his work explores complex systems of family and personal development, interfaced with faith, and includes domestic violence, tragedy, self-worth, victimhood, dreams, drugs, greed, addiction, class, gender, prostitution, incarceration, love, forgiveness, and salvific hope. Perry came to know salvific hope when he forgave his father for years of tortuous verbal and psychological abuse: forms of domestic violence.² Domestic violence is a critical, public health problem with significant religious, theological, and spiritual ramifications for victims, perpetrators, their families, communities, and the world. Domestic violence informs the films examined in this chapter.