A Hopeful Gamble: Living the Faith as Migrant Workers and Transnational Mothers
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
3-2023
Abstract
This article is based on a qualitative research study involving Filipinas who are both migrant workers in Kuwait; Italy; Hong Kong and Taiwan and mothers of children aged between 0 and 18 years at the time of their departure from the Philippines. The article seeks to answer the following question: how does one’s Christian faith assist women in coping with labour migration and the resulting transnational mothering? In an analysis of data gathered from the participant mothers; the concept of ‘strategising to gain access to a better life’ emerges as central to how the participants navigate transnational mothering as labour migrants. In particular; the participant mothers identify their faith as one of the factors in which they invest. From a theological perspective; such ‘investing in faith’ is interpreted as an integral component of an ongoing spirituality that is hinged on an active relationship with God. On the one hand; their experience of living the faith reveals encountering the sacred in mundane events; amidst the challenges associated with labour migration and transnational mothering. On the other hand; their experience of hopeful gambling attests to the reality of evil or ‘dis-grace’ in the here and now.
Recommended Citation
Reyes-Espiritu, M.A.M. (2023). A hopeful gamble: Living the faith as migrant workers and transnational mothers. Studies in World Christianity, 29(1), 10-36. https://doi.org/10.3366/swc.2023.0416
