Natalie Wigg-Stevenson

Dissertation: Faith in my bones: An exercise in ethnographic theology

Occupation: Director of Contextual Education/Assistant Professor of Contextual Education and Theology at Emmanuel College (of Victoria University in the U. of Toronto)

Natalie Wigg-Stevenson (Ph.D., 2011) currently teaches Theology and directs the Contextual Education Program at Emmanuel College (Toronto, ON), where she also founded and directs the Teaching for Ministry (TFM) Program for doctoral students. Initially funded for five years by Lilly Endowment, Inc., the TFM Program draws on Natalie's experiences in Vanderbilt's Theology and Practice Program, adapting them for the particularly post-Christian Canadian context in which she teaches. Providing a group of doctoral fellows from across the theological disciplines with rich, contextual teaching experiences, space for pedagogical and vocational reflection, and resources to support their pedagogical research, the TFM Program seeks not only to equip a group of young scholars to be excellent teachers of ministers, but also to offer a distinctly Canadian contribution to ongoing conversations about theological education and practice in North America. Since graduating from Vanderbilt, Natalie has published "Reflexive Theology: A Preliminary Proposal," in Practical Matters (Spring, 2013) and is co-editing the 2013 International Academy of Practical Theology proceedings volume – One God, Many Stories – with Pamela Couture, Robert Mager and Pamela R. McCarroll. Her book, Ethnographic Theology: An Inquiry into the Production of Theological Knowledge, is due out from Palgrave Macmillan next year.