Christianity 3C- feminist theology

Feminist theology

Examines theology, religious history and religious communities and recognises the part religion has played in the continued oppression of women

Key scholars

Rosemary Radford Ruether and Mary Daly

Androcentricism

Focused or centred on men; placing the male sex or gender associations at the centre of history and culture

RRR- contribution to feminist theology

-negative reaction in churches to theologians or preachers referring to Hid as “she”

-biblical and theological traditions have reflected the view that men are more authentically human than women

-Genesis used to show sin is the fault of women due to the “fall”

-OT and NT refer to women being “subject” to men (Genesis 3:16 and Ephesians 5:24)

-idea of males being closer to god than females is idolatry

Other historic ideas about women

Aristotle- women are “misbegotten males”

Augustine agreed

Aquinas- male female hierarchy is not just a result of sin but a part of the natural order created

RRR- androgynous nature

Ideas of masculinity and femininity come from our culture and socialisation- men tend to identify with left brain and women right brain, but we both have two sides to our brain regardless

Mary vs Eve

Women restricted to characteristics either of Mary or Eve dependent on their perceived virtuousness

Mary- virgin birth, passive, gentle, meek, obedient

Eve- temptress and bringer of sin into the world

(Could link to Madonna Whore paradigm in English)

Marginalised forms of Christianity

Montanism- inspiration of HS in prophecy given to both men and women, evidence women are given equal status to men in ministry of montansit churches

Gnostics- writings viewed women as Apostles and described the nature of God as having both male and female principles

(Both came to be seen as heretical by church “fathers”)

Quakers- included women in leadership

Shakers- promoted view of god as bisexual or androgynous

Prophetic tradition (Ruether)

Sees feminist theology as part of prophetic tradition in the Bible, prophets of Israel fought against oppression of the poor, didn’t specifically fight sexism but made principles that fought against all forms of oppression

1) God’s defence and vindication of the oppressed;

2) a critique of dominant systems of power and their power holders;

3) a vision of a new age where injustice ends under the reign of God;

4) a critique of the religious ideology maintaining injustice

View of Jesus Feminist theology has to reclaim (Ruether)

Where his maleness is of no importance

Romanticism movement

Saw industrialism and violence as a result of male traits

Issues with romanticism

Leaves women trapped in romantic ideal of what a woman should be

Liberalism

Rejects traditional role models and uses church reform as a step to reform wider society- link to suffrage movement

Problems with liberalism

Doesn’t critique the way power in male dominated fields functions and perpetuates sexism in lower classes

Marxism

Both men and women should be viewed as equally able to contribute to society

Problems with Marxism

Women still expected to work more in the home than men, not valued for themselves but rather their productivity for the state

Ruether’s hope for women in the church

That the church can be free of patriarchy and will manifest in a prophetic liberation style found in the Bible- free of the patriarchy and changes language used for God and is committed to fighting oppression, wants a new understanding of leadership

Mary Daly- contribution to feminist theology

Women have been trapped in oppressive roles and that their biology is destiny, reduced to objects of men’s desires and tools to accomplish male goals

Society creates a “sexual caste system”, a hierarchy placing the female below the male, the church playing a big part in keeping this in place

Mary Daly- God is not a noun

Three versions of noun God

• God as a stop gap (being used as an explanation for the unknown)

• God as otherworldliness (gives rewards and punishments after death)

• God as judge of sin (insists on rules and establishing roles for men and women)

  Says this view of a static God has helped turn women into objects

God as a verb- Mary Daly

Must think of God as a transforming power of being for all persons, then we can come to see that

• Original sin isn’t disobedient but turning women into objects who are forbidden to develop outside of their biological destiny

• Salvation is not passive acceptance of doctrine or worship of a God-man, but participating in being a becoming

• Worshipping the God of the patriarchy, which includes the god man Jesus, is a form of idolatry, Christian commit “christolatry” and “bibliolatry” when they insist that biblical forms of patriarchy are the final truth

• Our goal is to struggle to be free human beings

• If there is no fall, frowning judge and no punishment then there is no need for a saviour

Matter of life and death (Mary Daly)

Treating women as objects is at the heart of all human violence as violence becomes permissible when we no longer see human beings as on a valuable journey of being and becoming

Leads to the unholy trinity of rape, genicide and war

Mary Daly- Need for sisterhood

Nearly all organisations are to some degree patriarchal and so we have to seek the support of other women- no hierarchy, no dogmas, and will help bring women out of patriarchal spaces

Ordination

Becoming a priest

Arguments for ordination of women

-Early church had female leaders, inclusive and egalitarian

-Romans 16:1 (St Paul)

Sister Phoebe Devon of the church sent to Rome with teachings of Jesus

-Early followers of Jesus were both men and women

Johanna and Susanna bankrolled Jesus

Further arguments for the ordination of women

-Catacombs of St Priscilla (2nd-4th C), when being a Christian in Rome was illegal:

Earliest painting of Mary and Jesus

Picture of women presiding over Eucharist

Picture of a woman wearing clothes only allowed for ordained priests (alb)

-Junia female disciple

More arguments for the ordination of women

-Evangleism needed women as well as men as the women could enter female spaces and talk as men and women were very separate

-Damages women to exclude them from ordination

-Jesus gave MM a surname- Magdalene means tower- implies strength and power

• No one evidence to suggest MM was actually a fallen woman

Arguments against the ordination of women

RCC- not in the nature of womanhood

Pope Francis 2010- to ordain a woman was a serious crime- pope Leo agreed

Junia later altered to Junias

Jesus incarnated as male, priest therefore has to be male “this is my body”

Scripture forbids leadership of women

St Paul- “let your women be silent in the church”

12 male apostles

Traditional since legalisation of Christianity

Impact of feminist theology on lives of believers- RCC attitudes

Male and female are equal but different- only men called by God to leadership in the church

Pope JP2- apostolic letter 1997 saying women can never be ministers

Pope Leo- women can’t be ministers

Catholic women’s ordination campaign

Catholic women strike- Global Witness for Equality- women with paid jobs in the RCC called to withhold labour during lent

Result of women being ordained in CofE

People joined RCC in protest, legislation allows people to opt out of having female ministers, bishops who have ordained women are considered “tainted” and flying bishops were created who do not ordain women

Conservative and evangelical Protestant churches may not accept ordaining female priests