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Isabel Phiri

Biography
She is among the founding matriarchs of the Circle of Concerned African Women Theologians.

Early Life and education[edit]
Isabel Apawo Phiri (famously known as Phiri) was born on Nov. 8, 1957 in Zambia where her parents lived shortly before returning to Lilongwe in Malawi where her birth was registered. She lost her biological father at the age of two years and was raised by her mother and maternal grandparents. Phiri is deputy general secretary for public witness and diakonia for the World Council of Churches. Previously, she was dean and head of the School of Religion, Theology, and Classics at the University of Kwa-Zulu Natal  She is a founding member of the Circle and served as the general coordinator for six years (Phiri 2019).

Isabel attended a Catholic boarding school, where she focused on Bible studies. She attended an Assemblies of God church as a young girl, which she enjoyed, but her mother insisted she be baptized as a member of the CCAP. Being obedient to her mother’s wishes, Isabel was baptized at the Katimba Church in the Blantyre Synod of the CCAP in 1967.

In 1981, Phiri graduated from Chancellor College with a Bachelor of Education in Religious Studies and History. She studied with John Parratt, a scholar from England who specialized in Asian and African theology (Parratt 1993, 1995). Phiri particularly loved studying African traditional religions. Phiri also realized that, as an educator in Malawi, she needed to be familiar with religious traditions beyond her own. She grew up with relatives who practiced other faiths, including Gershom Migochi’s uncle, who was an imam (Phiri 2015, 8).

Women were underrepresented in higher education in Malawi, and the university was seeking to hire more women lecturers. After her graduation, Phiri was hired by the Religious Studies Department at Chancellor College on Parratt’s recommendation. While serving as a staff associate, she spent a year teaching in a Catholic girls’ school to develop her skills. In 1982, she went to Lancaster University in England, where she earned a master’s in education, with a focus on religious education and New Testament studies (Phiri 2020).

Early Career[edit]
After completing her degree, Phiri returned to Malawi to teach in the Theology Department at Chancellor College. She was appointed lecturer in African theology, New Testament studies, and religious education and stayed in this post from 1983 to 1990. She was active in the academic community and sat on several university committees and boards. She was elected secretary for the Theological Society of Malawi from 1984 to 1986. In 1987, she joined the editorial board of the Journal of Religion in Malawi and has remained on the board ever since. She also served for five years as the moderator for Bible knowledge for the Malawi School Certificate of Education examinations, becoming chief examiner for Bible knowledge paper 1 in 1989 (Phiri, pers. comm., December 29, 2020).


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