This article aims to continue the conversation initiated by Denis O'Sullivan in the 2008 issue of the "Adult Learner". O'Sullivan raises several important points about the nature of Irish adult education and the need to develop a rigorous theoretical basis for the authors' work. The authors wish to engage with O'Sullivan's observations of the prevalence of "redemptive" discourses in Irish adult education. In particular, the authors reflect upon O'Sullivan's concern regarding ways in which adult educators can "maintain a transformative role while respecting the integrity of students as co-participants in the process" (2008, p.14). In their response, the authors briefly outline their understanding of the relationship between praxis and theory and how this shapes their concept of the roles the learner and educator play in adult education.