Christianity - Is God Male?

whats an ecofeminist

someone who is interested in both the environment and women’s rights

what is panentheism

the belief that the universe is the visible part of God

what does immutability mean

unchangeable

whats docetism

the heresy that Jesus did not suffer on the cross because his body was not human

what does impassibility mean

having no human feelings

is God male?

-the original language of the Bible speaks of God as ‘Father’

-God is referred to as ‘He’

-Jesus, the son of God, is male and the Holy Spirit is spoken of as ‘He’

in the NT, how is God’s fatherhood conveyed in two distinct ideas

1. God as creator of the world

2. the relationship between God and Jesus. Jesus called God ‘Father’ and taught his disciples to do the same

what passages portray God in female terms

-Isaiah 66.13: God is described as a comforting mother

-Matthew 23.37: Jesus uses a motherly illustration of himself

-Luke 15:8-10: he compares God to a woman searching for a lost coin

how does the Bible make it clear that God is neither male nor female

Jesus himself said: ‘God is spirit’ (John 4:24)

what does Genesis 1:27 say

He can identify with the needs of all people, male and female, because he created them in His own image, ‘male and female he created them’

what is Sallie McFague’s argument?

God as Mother

who is Sallie McFague

American theologian who wrote from an ecofeminist perspective

what does she maintain

that all language used about God is metaphorical, names and titles (e.g king and father) are simply ways in which we think about God

what do the metaphors used often turn into

idols and we end up worshipping the metaphor instead of God

by using the metaphor of God as mother, what is she not saying?

that God is a mother, or even female, but that the image of Mother highlights the certain characteristics of God, e.g love for the world

what does she develop for God’s relationship with the world

3 metaphors

what is her 1st metaphor

Mother - corresponding to the traditional title ‘Father’; doctrine of creation, justice’ agape love; the love God has for the world

what is her 2nd metaphor

Lover - corresponding to the traditional title ‘Son’; doctrine of salvation, ethical element of healing

whats her 3rd metaphor

friend - corresponding to the traditional title ‘Spirit’; doctrine of eschatology; companionship, philia

what does the masculine energy, philia, convey

God’s sovereign rule had led to the abuse of the natural world and the domination of women

if God is called mother, what does it follow

that the world is no longer rules over by God but is part of God’s body or womb

to harm nature…

is to harm God (panatheism)

what does she argue that maternal images of God giving birth, nursing, comforting and caring highlights

humanity’s reliance on God

why should God not be imagined in female/feminine terms

because ‘the first refers to gender whilst the second refers to qualities associated with women’

why does McFague warn against sentimentalising maternal imagery

we cannot suppose that mothers are naturally loving, comforting or self-sacrificing because these are social constructions

why have some theologians rejected McFague’s concept of God as mother as unbiblical

Jesus asserted that God was ‘Father’. if he was wrong on this fundamental point, how can we trust him on anything?