Creating Sanctuary in Virtual Pews

by Danielle J. Buhuro · foreword by Melva L. Sampson

• Women

• Publisher: Fortress Press (Augsburg Fortress)
• Published: 2027

Publisher's Description

Danielle J. Buhuro notes that our digital lives increasingly are filled with online experiences that harm everyone's religious, gendered, and cultural identities. However, Buhuro convincingly argues that digital spaces, especially social media and artificial intelligence, are sites of profound violence and portals of erasure particularly for Black women. Notably, Black Muslim and trans women are among the most targeted and abused people online. Therefore, Buhuro argues that these spaces are the new frontier for spiritual care. Drawing on Africana psychology and womanist theology, Womanist Digital Spiritual Care proposes a framework for digital acts of celebration as a radical, restorative spiritual care practice. Rather than fostering affirmation addition via online clicks and comments, celebration as digital spiritual care becomes a tool for resisting digital harm, helping to restore Black women's God-given identities, and reimagining care in virtual spaces. Buhuro's innovative-yet-accessible work bridges theological imagination, psychological theory and practice, and digital ethics. In doing so, it offers a bold approach for liberative care in today's digital world. This book will help equip womanists, pastoral and spiritual caregivers, and social justice advocates and organizers who care about the lives--digital and beyond--Black women, especially Black Muslim and trans women, with strategies to address digital harm.