Gender and society

Men superior to women

Aristotle

• influential to western views

• scientific approach

• naturally inferior

  • right for men to rule women

  • women submit

  • in same way NATURAL for non-human animals to be governed by humans

  • conclusion from observing how women in society behaved

  • “the m is higher, the f is lower, that the male rules and female is ruled”

Aquinas

• 13C Summa Theologica

• women inferior in physical strength and intelligence

  • created by God this way

  • part of natural variety and order of world

  • x bc eve, since creation

• “defective”

• special high place in heaven for women e.g. VM who waited at foot of cross when J crucified

  • commended for love of God

men and women = diff but equal worth

• mainstream

• all equal in sight of God

  • complementary characteristics which equal each gender for diff complementary roles

  • occupations

• some C argue diff skills = women shouldn’t be priests/ positions of authority

  • shouldn’t have role where represent Christ e.g. blessing eucharist

  • Cat and Ort. churches

    • J chose men as disciples

    • God came to world as man, only man can represent him in sacraments

• denom that do ordain women

  • argue God calls ppl to ministry without gender discrimination

  • e.g. CoE

women superior to men

• unambitious to aim to be equal to men

• fem theo Mary Daly: women’s abilities and knowledge superior to men

  • believes women ought to govern world, would result in > peaceful society and better for environment

families

• “alternatives are on average worse, especially if they are systematically generalised” Don Browning - “World Family Trends”

  • 2 parent biological family genearlly best, but not all biological fathers and moterhs competent parents

• social scientists understand family = social institution

  • pattern of behaviour well established in society

  • performs function

  • social unit where each member has role and gains sense of belonging

  • work well = everyone protected and supported

• family performs function

  • e.g. care of young children and elderly

  • some work, others domestic tasks

  • everyone shares benefit of wage and clean home

family = culturally/ socially determined

• e.g. industrialised society tend to live in smaller family units

  • do diff kinds of work in diff parts of country

  • unusual in UK for 1 houshold to have several gen

• > rural areas, tend to live i nlarger family units

  • men - hunting, women - care for children, grow crops and prepare food

• many societies divide work by gender outside and within family unit

🙂 family culturally/ socially conditioned

• nothing wrong with what constitutes normal family changing as society changes

  • e.g. homosexuality

• if societygives women equal rights in workplace, nothign wrong with roles of household canging so man stays at home and woman goes to worl

  • / both work

☹ family = culturally/ socially conditioned

• C: family created by God

• family = gift/ sacrement, ideal way of life

• rules of God shouldn’t change

  • views on ideal of heterosexual couple/ hierarchical family life should be preserved

changes to families in modern society

• decline in marriage

• cohabiting couples grew by 29.7% between 2004-2014

  • fastest growing type of family in uk

• law allowed same-sex marriages in 2014

  • just after, 4850 same-sex marriages

• decline in religious wedding ceremonies

feminism and C church

• incompatible = abandon (Daly)

• need changes to be made within structure of C practice, worship, leadership to give women > equality (Ruether?)

• focus on God as feminine, motherhood

societal change

• 1928 women allowed to vote on equal footing to men

• early 1960s birth control

• 1967 Abortion Act

OT gender roles - equal

Genesis

• ‘created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; m and f he created them’

• ‘Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it’

  • have same roles and responnsibilities - reproduction, stewardship

Proverbs

• A capable wife

  • “she gets up while it is still night”

  • “she provides food for her family”

  • “out of her earnings hse plants a vineyard”

  • very capable - successful

  • equal worth

  • (still helper bc bolstering husband, but still partnership, still important in relationship)

OT gender roles - men superior

Genesis

• “helper” for Adam

  • ‘then the Lord God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man’

  • man = source of woman’s creation

  • helper for men

• ‘I will make your pains in childbearing very sever; with painful labour you will give birth to children. Your desire will be or your husband, and he will rule over you’

  • women role = submit to husband

Luke gender roles

Mary and Martha

• “Mary has chosen what is better and it will not be taken away from her”

• J’s ministry sought to challenge and change society

• traditional gender roles challenged

• Mary - faithful disciples praised

• women’s faith just as important

Ephesians - St Paul gender roles

• ‘submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the Church’

• “head” either = husband has authority over life

  • OR = “source of life” (Gen from rib)

  • emphasis on relationship rather than authority

• OR Christ’s headship manifested thru his death

  • marital relationship = echo of Christ’s words: “love one another, as I have loved you” (John)

  • man becomes head of wife IF loves wife enough to be willing to die for her

• unlike household rules of Romans/ Greeks

  • C rules ordered by principle of love

• husbands must never harm wife’s dignity

St Paul’s words gender roles

Galatians

• “there is no diff between Jew and Gentiles, between slaves and free ppl, between men and women, you are all one in Christ Jesus'“

  • equal

Corinthians

• “women should remain silent in the churches”

  • not allowed to express ideas/ have authority, subordinate to men

Timothy

• “anyone who does not provide for their relatives, and especially for their own houshold, has denied fiath and is worse than an unbeliever”

Cons Prot gender roles and feminism

• critical of “liberal ideologies”

  • = family breakdown, destabilising of society and traditional values

• fem → confused gender roles

  • unrealistic expectations

  • disappointment and disssatisfaction

• social lib and fem (sec and C forms) = increased divorce, dysfunctional families and sexual immoraltiy (esp. homosexuality)

  • “corrupt” young minds and undermine “American dream” (happy and prosperous nation)

• equal but diff

  • gender roles ordered by God in creation and after fall

Cons prot motherhood and parenthood

• women → wife and mother → create domestic heaven so husband can escape from external role

  • strong

  • =/= position of weakness

• Eve name = “mother of all living things”

  • 1st mother

  • similarly, mother’s role = bring life itno world, nurture and lead to knowledge and love of God

• Timothy: woman wrking outside home → diminishes man’s role and responsibilities to wife

• Proverbs - a capable wife

  • woman may work given doesn’t itnerfere with domestic duties

Cons Prot types of family

• heterosexual

  • Bible’s account of order of creation

• research published by McLanahan and Sandefur (USA 1994)

  • children do < well edcuationally and couples < happy in blended families, single parent families, same-sex, non-married cohabitating

• critical of contemporary sec fem and social trends

  • e.g. rise in cohabitation and same-sex relationships

  • → eroticisation of W society

  • e.g. Foucault: love = pleasure, =/= committment

  • relationships have become too private and egocentric

  • not outward looking to church attendance and contributing to society

• couples expect too much from relationships

  • C marriage has permanent clear roles = stronger reason to make families work

Catholic response

• applauds fem → raises dignity

• BUT suspicious of secular agenda, diminishes gender diff between men adn women

  • diminishes gender diff between men and women

Pope Francis

• gave women right to vote in synod of bishops

  • vatican body that gathers world’s bishops for periodic meetings

  • upheld ban on ordaining women as priests

• appointed several women to high-ranking Vatican positions (but not dicasteries)

Mulieris Dignitatem

• letter by Pope JPII “On the dignity and vocation of women” (1988)

• set out to correct gender roles

• references bible, church tradition and NL

• focus on paradigm of Mary, Mother of God and theotokos (God-bearer)

  • M → special role of women in salvation

    • birthed JC, illustrates human virtues of obedience and dignity for m and f

M.D. on gender roles

• response to fem accusations of patriarchy

• BOTH imago dei

• =/= man = active principle, woman = passive

• BOTH equal and active BUT in diff ways

  • woman → wife and mother

  • man = head, but marriage = mutual relationship of equals

  • “head” =/= dominion

• women take m roles = confuse genders

  • “dangerous effects”

  • undermine dignity as mother

  • BUT protect women’s rights which protect dignity, esp. those abused/ marginalised

• rejects gender as entirely culturally and environmentally determined

M.D. on motherhood and parenthood

• women’s unique role

• shift in social attitudes to women’s equality = +ve

• rejects fem notion: motherhood = demeaning

  • diff to fem Beauvoir and Freidan

1. Mary = model of motherhood (special value from God)

2. Mystery of gen

   1. ordained by God, allowed by power of HS

3. special gift of having child: visibly 1 flesh

4. mutuality

5. active motherhood: man learns from mother

   1. “his nature not psychologically predisposed to parenthood”

M.D. on types of families

• sociological evidence → children need to be raised in intact families (heterosexual and married)

  • psychologically stronger

• Catechism rejects cohabitation

  • “human love does not tolerate “trial marriages””

• x same-sex marriages

Cat Fem responses to gender roles

• arose with 2nd wave of fem

• inspired to reform

• =/= sec fem (church essentially flawed) BUT teachings have become institutionally patriarchal

• wish reformed church to have bigger role in society, x purely secular views on family and developing C spirituality which enhances gender relationships

• church consciously and unconsciously written women out of C history

  • in 1st C communities, women played equally significant role to men

• Elisabeth Schuessler Fiorenza: women leaders e.g. Priscilla (Acts), Phoebe (Romans)

  • “our heritage is our power”

• Catharina Halkes: J’s teaching on KoG requires spiritual transformation

  • f = learn to develop gift of care into public spher

  • m = give up privileged sense of entitlement and learn virtue of care every day

Cat Fem responses to motherhood and parenthood

• motherhood overly romanticised

  • = option =/= burden

• difficulty in M.D.: focus on motherhood

  • underlying patriarchal basis

  • guilt women → work outside family → bad wife/ mother

Cat Fem responses to non-traditional families

• Mary as model of human and womanly purity

  • BUT 1st Cent, younger girl of marriageable age still virgin =/= virtuous = failure

• for Latin American single parent families

  • Mary = inspiration

  • failure, but remains open to God and finds spiritual strength to create and sustain family

• seek to broaden Church’s narrow view → > inclusive, < judgement

lib prot C responses to gender roles

• > ready to accept secular insights of sociologists, psychologists, biologists

• interpret Bible = sourcebook of experience, =/= revelation

• Bible covenant to focus on what means to be human in relationship with God

• e.g. fem and Foucault right to liberate gender from sex

  • from controlling power of Church

  • find own identity in society and family

  • if there is “no longer m and f”

    • can have same-sex parents/ diff allocated roles

• BUT sex not just about physical pleasure, focus on friendship, companionship and love

lib prot responses to motherhood and parenthood

• no imperative to aspire to parenthood

  • not all adults make very good parents

  • better to seek diff vocation

• Mary Mother of Chirst as symbol of womanhood = stereotypical

  • shouldn’t simply dismiss moral, spiritual, emotional benefits of parenthood

non-traditional families

• J’s ministry demonstrated that KoG based on new social order

  • > inclusive, non-hierarchical, non-judgemental

  • ministry aimed at marginalised e.g. women and sexual outsiders

• J’s example - > flexible

  • “justice love”

• evidence from sociologists e.g. Jessie Barnard

  • important point = children feel loved, secure and provided for

  • never been 1 kind of family

• NT: C family also refer to all members of C community (church)

  • related thru love and faith not kinship

• conservative C view too restrictive

  • > realistic and supportive needed

  • family life not easy

🙂 cons prot

• equal value

• stability - clear roles

• consistent with Bible

• high moral standard

  • +ve environment for children

  • flourishing

☹ cons prot

• p on women

• refusal to adapt to modern society → dividing numbers

• women’s role → motherhood rather than own value

• very limited options for life

• literal interpreation of biblical text - always flawed

🙂 lib prot

• not literal → correct → Bible inconsistent → > flexible → > pratical

  • can uphold J’s ministry

• own role and identity, freedom

• not everyone meant to be parents

  • diff callings

  • alr famly, just be disciples to J

• parenthood = choice =/= obligation

• emphasis on J’s ministry - inclusivity, justice

• > realistic

• focus on what it means to be human in relation to God rather than fixed social hierarchies

  • faith, religion > gender roles

☹ lib prot

• diminishes power and value of church

  • too individualistic

  • C religion = community

• Bible =/= ultimate source of info and value

• can lead to radical approaches to genders

  • impractical

  • change requires consensus

• ends up being secualr, not religious view

• uses clear and absolute guidance on gender roles

  • can cause confusion

🙂 Catholic

• bestows significant dignity and importance on woman’s role as mother

• clarity

• consistent with Cat tradition

• M.D. focus = woman

• husband helps her in parenthood, he learns from her

• NB - Ephesians

☹ Catholic

• Mary = 1 example =/= correct path

  • could cause guilt

• discriminatory to women and same sex couples

• many women in gospels and in early church held importance without being mother

• assumes men not suited to being parents

🙂 fem cat

• acknowledges women that played significant roles in 1st C communities

• motherhood = option, gift =/= burden

• re-evaluate while retaining C

  • x secular

  • relies on biblical teachings

    • St Paul and evidence from origins of C faith - Phoebe

• recognises patriarchal roots of church practices

• can be woman and be catholic - retain faith

☹ cat fem

• still challenge to cat tradition - rejects key teachings of m.d.

• unrealistic expectations to request/ require cat teachings to change - cannot

  • true, universal, eternal

• internal conflcit undermines cat church