ABSTRACT
The early years of the twenty-first century mark a tipping point in the human story. For the first time in history a majority of human beings live in urban communities, presenting contextual theologies with a new defining context for theological reflection. 1 Cities are ambivalent places. Vibrant city-space can be experienced as confusion and its breathless excitement as threatening disorder. The anonymity of the crowd can be the site of alienating loneliness. The diversity of the city can stimulate a fear of difference or its joyful celebration. Such contrasting expressions of the urban experience are highlighted by popular culture. Television and film can present the city as a home for gangsters (Boyz ’n the Hood in the USA, Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels in Britain 2 ] or as a place of diversity and challenge [White Teeth, Babyfather, East is East, Brick Lane and Britz]. 3
