Towards Friendship-Shaped Communities: A Practical Theology of Friendship. Anne-Marie Ellithorpe

Acknowledgments

      At the beginning of a book that seeks to articulate a practical theology of friendship, I firstly acknowledge God, people, and land as sustaining me throughout this writing project. I express my gratitude first and foremost to the Creator, the ultimate source and sustainer of all life, love, and friendship.

      I am deeply grateful for the friends, communities, traditions, and resources that have provided various forms of inspiration, sustenance, and support in the crafting of this book. This project builds upon my doctoral journey and thus I express my heartfelt thanks to my supervisors, Dr. Neil Pembroke, Dr. Charles Ringma, and Dr. Irene Alexander for their mentoring, insight, and friendship. I also wish to express my gratitude for the support provided by an Australian Government Research Training Program (RTP) Scholarship and an Australian Postgraduate Award as I pursued this research through the University of Queensland’s School of Historical and Philosophical Inquiry. This project goes beyond my doctoral work with a more explicit focus on Indigenous values, understandings, and experiences. I am particularly thankful to Rev. Dr. Rangi Nicholson for his encouragement and mentoring in this regard. He has been an invaluable Māori language adviser and cultural consultant.

      Others who have encouraged me with the importance and contemporary relevance of this work include Dr. Susan Phillips, Rev. Dr. Patricia Dutcher-Walls, Rabbi Dr. Laura Duhan-Kaplan, and Dr. Paul Wadell. Several anonymous reviewers of my book manuscript have also emphasized its timeliness; I am grateful for their positive and constructive feedback. I have discovered various conversation partners through the libraries

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