When I began my fieldwork, that particular feeling – in its most detestable form as insecure arrogance – gripped me too. It was also still there, unfortunately, when I completed my fieldwork. By naming a methodological orientation towards ‘transformative practice’, I could sneak in my desire to make my church more progressive. Sure, I wanted our teaching–learning to be mutual. But I also wanted the scales to be slightly tipped so that a little more teaching came from me to them. I didn’t realize at the time that the transformation I was seeking wasn’t quite the one I thought.
