COVID-19 is a tragic and overwhelming story of a global health crisis that shook the world leaving a trail of suffering and death. According to the WorldOMeter the global rates of infection and deaths continue to rise and as of 24 March 2021 the number of infections were 125, 134, 855 and 2,750,958 deaths. In South Africa the numbers were 1, 538, 961 infections, 1, 465,204 recoveries and 52, 251 deaths. Behind these numbers are stories of heartbreak, loss, survival and trauma.

The measures taken to curb the pandemic such as social distancing, sanitizing, lockdown, closure of educational institutions and workplaces exposed the deep-seated inequalities in our society making COVID-19 a pandemic of inequality. The pandemic has had a differential impact and nowhere is this most evident than in its impact on women in general, and poor women in particular. COVID-19 is also a gendered pandemic that demands gender mainstreaming in all responses and interventions. It is in response to this context that The Circle of Concerned African Women Theologians (The Circle) in South Africa started a conversation on how best to respond to the multiple crises COVID-19 has caused for women.

Isabel Phiri, former continental coordinator of The Circle, described the source of African women’s theology as stories and experiences of women. She further explains the nature of theology as inclusive of all women within and outside of academia. The following quotation states this clearly:
African women’s theologies take women’s experiences as its starting point, focusing on the oppressive areas of life caused by injustices such as patriarchy, colonialism, neo-colonialism, racism, capitalism, globalisation and sexism. It sees a need to include the voices of all women, not just theologians, because it acknowledges that the majority of African women are engaging in oral theology.

This book embodies the vision of The Circle described by Phiri as it contains stories, poems, artwork, songs and theological reflections by women of all ages ranging from 12 years to over 60! The structure was inspired by Catholic Women Speak: Bringing our gifts to the Table. One of the unique features is the different writing styles and forms the stories have taken. The unique choice of expressions has been retained as the aim is to let the stories be heard as told by women – with no demand for adherence to formal literary styles. It was felt that the demand for particular types of writing would exclude rather than include all.