Urban theology of social inclusion: Ethnography on Faith-based Food Assistance in Finland

Drawing from critical ethnography in urban, faith-based food assistance in Finland, this paper investigates 1) how and what kind of social inclusion (and possibly, exclusion) emerges in food assistance through the politics, practices, and lived experiences, and 2) what kind of lived urban theology these dynamics denote? The data was collected in 2020–2021 in six faith-based food banks aiming for social inclusion and community development. The data is analyzed by employing the theoretical concepts of social in- and exclusion and utilizing the lenses of lived urban theology. The findings propose that the participants perceiving themselves as socially excluded identify themselves as the ‘Others’ also within food assistance. Different framings, social distances, and power hierarchies further contribute to the dynamics of social in- and exclusion, addressing that the food banks are yet hesitant to imagine themselves as a source of liberation, that would challenge structural, epistemic inequalities.