Christian Relief, Development, and Advocacy 4(1),  Summer 2022 

Redfield, Book Review  46 

  

Book Review 

 

Theologies and Practices of Inclusion 
Edited by Nina Kurlberg & Madleina Daehnhardt 

 
Reviewed by Rebecca Redfield 

 
 

 
 

2021. London: SCM Press. £35.00. 

 

In a society where diversity, equity, inclusion, 

justice, and belonging are buzz words, Theologies and 

Practices of Inclusion serves as a reminder and call to 

action grounded in the reality that followers of Jesus 

have a biblical mandate to follow the example of our 

king and actively participate in his just and beautifully 

diverse kingdom coming, where all are welcomed and 

the last will be first. Theologies and Practices of 

Inclusion, masterfully edited by Nina Kurlberg and 

Madleina Daehnhardt, practices what it preaches as the 

twenty contributing authors span many countries and 

first languages, and more than half are women. This 

book offers a refreshing balance of theological 

grounding – looking to Scripture and the example of 

Christ as our guide – and case studies to demonstrate 

how these practices are lived out. I commend 

Tearfund’s staff for its humility in openly sharing the 

joys, challenges, and lessons learned for the benefits of 

the larger faith-based community.  

This book is relevant and important today. We 

need to be reminded of Scripture’s clarion call to 

engage in the work of inclusion and justice -- that it is 

not optional for followers of Jesus. We need to be 

reminded of why inclusion is essential to development 

work. We need to be reminded that inclusion is 

achieved in the presence of justice. We need to learn 

from examples of inclusion in practice, especially in the 

world of development work. Here we explore these 

four key gifts to the community from the book. 

First, why inclusion matters to Christians. Scripture 

undergirds the entirety of this volume, grounding the 

“why” and fueling the “how.” We see that 

ethnocentricity has no place in the kingdom and that 

there is no superiority or supremacy in the kingdom of 

God apart from that of Jesus Christ himself (Philippians 

2: 9-11). His body is made up of beautifully diverse 

image-bearers from “every nation, from all tribes and 

peoples and languages” worshipping him eternally 

(Genesis 1:26-27. Revelation 7:9). We see and 

experience God through the beauty of diverse 

experiences and cultures of his image-bearers and, 

consequently, as Jocabed Solano and Juana Condori 

remark, “when a people group with their own specific 

culture dies, something of God dies” (314). We follow 

a king who welcomes all, confronting and disrupting 

cultural norms of exclusion (John 4: 1-42, Luke 10: 25-

37, Luke 19:1-10). We follow a king who breaks down 

(has broken down and continues to break down) the 

walls that divide us – not by exalting one group over 

another, but by centering the king himself (Ephesians 

2:14-22). Theologies and Practices of Inclusion 

contends that our theology must not be divorced from 

our practice, advocating for faith-based organizations 

“to develop theological thinking and programming in 

parallel, and not in isolation” (13). Beginning this work 

with a biblical understanding of why it matters for 

followers of Jesus and organizations centered on him 

builds a solid foundation to withstand pushback (both 

internal and external) that the work of inclusion and 

engaging in justice is mission drift. Selina Palm’s 

chapter highlighting theological vantage points and 

cultural perceptions on inclusion from a variety of 

regions is especially insightful in pointing out that, with 

the Bible as our guide and Jesus as our model for the 

work of inclusion and justice, incorporating culturally-

informed views and associations can serve as guideposts 

and lenses through which to engage across cultures. 

Second, why inclusion matters in the development 

space. With a clearly outlined scriptural precedent and 

expectation to be people and organizations of inclusion, 

it is perhaps redundant to address why inclusion and 



Christian Relief, Development, and Advocacy 4(1),  Summer 2022 

Redfield, Book Review  47 

  

justice matter in the realm of development. Yet, I have 

observed in this space an assumption that discussing 

and engaging in the work of inclusion is “nice to have,” 

rather than a “must have” that is integral to the work. As 

we will see, addressing inclusion and systemic injustice 

is integral to achieving holistic development outcomes. 

Exclusion, injustice, and poverty are often mutually 

reinforcing– strengthening and deepening the pull into 

isolation. As Bryan Stevenson says, “My work with the 

poor and the incarcerated has persuaded me that the 

opposite of poverty is not wealth; the opposite of 

poverty is justice” (Stevenson 2014, 18). Further, 

drawing from Bryant Myers’ seminal work on the four 

core relationships reflected in Walking with the Poor: 

Principles and Practices of Transformational 

Development (2011), we see the insidious work of 

exclusion and injustice rallying together to inhibit 

flourishing relationships with God, self, others, and 

creation. And as Liz Muir reminds us, “Poverty and 

racial injustice are inextricably linked” (76). Inclusion 

matters if we are seeking to support the holistic 

flourishing of all people. I was struck by the case study 

on including the ageing in the Rwandan church, and the 

observation of how often development practice 

prioritizes investing in the younger generation to build 

the future, to the exclusion of the older population. 

This also serves as a reminder that at its core, inclusion 

is about people. Chapter 9, by Oenone Chadburn, 

highlights the role of localization in the work of 

inclusion, through an emphasis on partnerships, 

expounding on the roles of time and trust, funding and 

finance, dignity and delivery. There is a strong call for 

local organizations to be at the decision-making table! 

Let us remember that welcoming people into 

community often cannot be done without addressing 

systemic injustices.   

Third, why inclusion does not end with building 

relationships. Inclusion addresses injustice. The 

theological framework for inclusion outlined in the 

book builds on Miroslav Volf’s work in explaining a 

theology of embrace (Volf 1996), which highlights the 

role of relationships and acknowledging interpersonal 

power dynamics, through explicitly calling out that 

relationships are impacted by systems and inclusion 

requires justice (62). In her own contribution to the 

book, editor Nina Kurlberg adds to the theology of 

embrace the concept of “inclusion as shalom justice 

through the power of the Spirit of God” (66). 

Relationships are critical and yet insufficient to 

inclusion. They must be paired with systemic justice 

and breaking down barriers that exclude. In a chapter 

on gender issues, for example, Prabu Deepan joins 

Kurlberg to argue that “Inclusion requires the active 

interrogation of systems, processes, norms and attitudes 

in order to challenge unequal values, power and status” 

(194). We must acknowledge oppressive systems and 

structures that inhibit the fulfillment of the kingdom call 

to inclusion and justice. Exclusion roots in injustice and 

perpetuates injustice. The work of addressing systemic 

injustice requires collaboration and partnership. Case 

studies throughout the book highlight how critical it is 

to partner with diverse stakeholders – including local 

churches, Christian and other faith-based organizations, 

local governments, and communities.   

Fourth, what inclusion can look like in practice 

across contexts. The book is rich with case studies from 

diverse contexts and provides a unique contribution to 

the literature by showcasing diverse ways of fostering 

inclusion and addressing oppressive cultural norms and 

systems. This includes a look at peacebuilding and 

religious diversity, emphasizing the roles of 

imagination, hospitality, and embrace, and continuing 

with exploring the pilgrim identity, reflecting on the 

prevalence of migration throughout Scripture, and 

solidarity with migrants through recognizing how all 

Christ-followers are spiritual pilgrims on this Earth. 

There are also case studies on the Latin American 

Campaign “As Born Among Us,” fostering hospitality 

to migrants within churches and communities, and 

Tearfund’s Transforming Masculinities approach, 

casting a new vision for masculinity grounded in the 

example of Jesus, that “is not about maintaining the 

status quo or teaching people how to use their power 

well: it is about dismantling unequal systems” (193). In 

chapter 11, Jessie Fubara-Manuel explores building 

welcoming, honoring, and inclusive churches and 

communities for the elderly in Rwanda. She tells how 

she learned from women living with disability and HIV 

in Nigeria, and how a holistic view of healing included 

both a transformed identity and physical healing.  

Theologies and Practices of Inclusion provides a 

thorough and thoughtful exploration for those seeking 

to learn about inclusion grounded in theology and 

embodied in development practice through partnership 

with local communities. I closed the book with a 

refreshed vision for the work of inclusion, inspired by 

the example of our friends and colleagues at Tearfund, 

reminded that this work is not optional for people who 

follow Jesus and is critical in the development sector (in 

addition to our own selves, families, neighborhoods, 

and churches!). May we be people who follow the 

example of our king, creating welcome for those 

excluded and on the margins through dismantling 

unjust systems, following the examples of trailblazing 

brothers and sisters around the globe who are ushering 

in a more inclusive kingdom.  

 

References 

 

Myers, Bryant. 2011. Walking with the Poor: Principles 

and Practices of Transformational Development. 

New York: Maryknoll. 



Christian Relief, Development, and Advocacy 4(1),  Summer 2022 

Redfield, Book Review  48 

  

 

Stevenson, Bryan. 2014. Just Mercy: A Story of Justice 

and Redemption. New York: One World. 

Volf, Miroslav. 1996. Exclusion and Embrace: A 

Theological Exploration of Identity, Otherness, and 

Reconciliation. Nashville: Abingdon Press. 
 

 

Rebecca Redfield serves as the senior listening, 

monitoring, and evaluation manager at HOPE 

International and as a Co-Chair for the Accord 

Research Alliance. She and her husband, Jordan, 

reside in Lancaster, PA. 

 

Author email: rredfield@hopeinternational.org 

 

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