Selina Stone BA, MA, PhD

• PhD in Theology and Religion, University of Birmingham, 2021
• MA in Theology, Politics and Faith-Based Organisation King’s College London, 2014
• GradDip in Biblical Studies and Theology, Mattersey Hall College (2012)
• BA in French and Spanish Studies, University of Birmingham (2010)

I work part time as Lecturer in Theology at St Mellitus College and part time as a freelance researcher, consultant and speaker. I am currently leading a team undertaking a research project on the wellbeing of BAME/UKME Clergy in the Church of England.

As Lecturer at St Mellitus College I bring together theology and religious studies in a postgraduate module on theologies and practices of power within Christianity, and an undergraduate political theology module with an emphasis on liberation and social justice.

My PhD thesis ‘Holy Spirit, Holy Bodies?: Pentecostalism, Pneumatology and the Politics of Embodiment’ (2021) examined the historic absence of critical theological reflection on class, race and gender within Pentecostalism and the impact of this neglect on Pentecostal theology, spirituality and practice in Britain today. 

My research and teaching explore themes I first began exploring as a practitioner, while working as a community organiser and programme director at the Centre for Theology and Community from 2013-2017. 

Areas of Interest Include:

• Social Justice in Theology and Practice
• Womanist Theological Ethics
• Pentecostalism and Black Spirituality
• Christian Social and Political Action
• Church Trauma, Spiritual Abuse and Theologies of Power

Selected Talks and Conference Activity:

• “The Spirit and Scarred Resurrection: Embodying and Materialising Pneumatology in the Midst of Oppression,” Panellist, The American Academy of Religion, November 2021.
• “Towards a Political Pneumatology: The Spirit, Inequality and Progressive Pentecostalism in Britain,” Keynote Address, Örebro School of Theology, Sweden, October 2021.
•  “’Evangelicalism and Race: A Transatlantic Reckoning’ A Response to Vincent Bacote, Reckoning with Race and Performing the Good News: Towards A Better Evangelical Theology,” Invited Panellist, Tyndale Conference, July 2021.
• “Sisters in the ‘Hostile Environment’: A Womanist Response to Theologising Brexit,” Invited Panellist, The Society for the Study of Theology, April 2021.
• “Pentecostal Spirituality, Pneumatology and Social Justice,” Invited Lecture, Ridley Hall, Cambridge, March 2021.
•  “The Christian Gospel and Social Justice,” Keynote Address, Regents Theological College, UK, February 2021.
• “Justice as Means and Ends: Decolonising Strategies for Social Change and the Vision for the Future,” Panellist, Institute for Global Innovation, University of Birmingham, July 2020. 
• “Progressive Pentecostalism: Theologies of Power and Practices of Social Change,” Panel Chair and Presenter, European Academy of Religion, Online, June 2020.
• “Living in a Time of Pandemic: A British Caribbean Perspective,” Panellist, Bexley-Seabury Theological Seminary, Chicago (online), May 2020.
• “Politics in the Spirit,” Keynote Address, The Queens Ecumenical Theological Foundation, Birmingham, February 2020.
• “Liberation at the Margins: Socio-political Engagement by African Caribbean Pentecostals in the UK,” Panellist, GloPent Conference, Basel, Switzerland, February 2020.

Additional Roles and Contributions

• Regular contributor to church groups and Christian events discussing theology, faith and social justice including St Paul’s Cathedral Institute for Adult Learning (2019), Tearfund (2020) and Premier Digital (2021).
• Regular contributor to faith resources such as BRF daily devotionals for women (2019, 2022) and London Institute for Contemporary Christianity blog (2020).
• Theological Advisor to Senior Clergy in the Church of England on Black/womanist/Pentecostal perspectives, social justice and inclusion.
• Advisory Group Member for The Church Urban Fund and Theos research project on Social Action, Discipleship and Church Growth (2017 – 2020)
• Advisory Group Member for the Archbishops’s Commission on Housing (2019-2020)