At the Crossroads of Narratives

Abstract

Realities and narratives which shape the identity of Maghrébin women living in ormigrating to France have been minimally explored for purposes of informing missiontheory and practice in this religiously plural yet secularized nation. This paper offers anexploration of lived realities and ideological narratives that Maghrébin women maneuverin the contested nexus of secular French life and ethno-religious identity. The paperaccomplishes this by examining how gendered, migrant, ethno-religious, and racializedencounters shape Maghrébin women. The paper then demonstrates how French nationalismand la laïcité actively inform lived realities of Maghrébin women. The paper thenpresents the French national education system as a case study indicating how Frenchnationalism is codified and perpetuated so that Maghrébin women are excluded frompublic space. The paper then provides reflection on Christian mission theory in light ofMaghrébin women’s oft-contested identities in the hope of invoking more substantialreflection on Christian mission and witness in contemporary France and other centersof migration.