gender and theology

what is post-christian theology?

• religious thinking that abandons christian thought
  → daly

what is reform feminist theology?

• religious thinking that seeks to change christian thought
  → ruether

what do feminists have issues with in religion?

• theology is predominently white men

• we talk about god in male terms

• view men are more like god than women
  → shown by men being priests

• view that women are created to be subordinate to men and rejecting this = sinning

explain mary daly context

• post-christian theologian (wanted christianity to die)

• argued throughout history men wanted to oppress women and religion is used to enforce this

• inspired by nietzsche:

  • men have caused lots of pain and suffering throughout history

• also inspired by marx:

  • revolutions require some struggle

what is transvaluation?

• humans need to be freed from self-imposed cultural prisons

• for society to progress, the idea of god needs to be killed and need a change in values

• patriarchal world has 2 forms:

  • foreground
    dominated by appolionian values
    → false world which sucks life out of women
    → calls leaders ‘snools’
    → female snools are people who accept anti-feminism

  • background
    deeper reality which is more natural and energetic
    in touch with nature and allows freedom of women
    
    need to escape to background!!!!

what quote does nietzsche say about transvaluation?

‘god is dead and we have killed him’

explain mary daly and becoming and be-ing

• being human is a creative and ongoing process

• no perfect point where we know what it means to be human

• only women can understand the creative process of be-ing

explain mary daly and god as a verb

• solution to god

• god needs to be castrated by referring to him as a ‘she’ and changing to verb

• noun of god is unchanging, fixed and therefore the maleness of god leads to patricarchy

• verb of god means he can change and progress
  → more revolutionary and no gender
  → unjust god can be changed in nature
  → allows flexibility to help oppression

• change to be-ing from ‘a being’

explain mary daly and god as a patricarch

• 'if god is male then male is god’
  → husband dominating his wife represents god

• christianity is made up of patriarchal views to oppress women

• god needs to be castrated and his maleness needs to be removed

• examples of patricharcy from theologians: bonhoeffer, tertullian, augustine

• it is wrong women can’t be ordained since jesus was male, this allows men to control church and society and therefore women

• a male god allows men to feel like they are in charge and can oppress women → e.g. epstein, almost always men doing it to women

• entire system of theology and ethics is a product of males trying to force patriarchal values on women

explain mary daly and view of god’s maleness

• god being male has given people the concept power is a male thing
  → calls this false spirituality

• christian idea of god’s maleness is just an invention by patricarchy to justify its power

• association between masculinity and divinity means male supremacy can be seen as a fact and it won’t be challenged
  → belief in male god is a tool of male power

what does tertullian say sexistly? (old)

‘women are the devil’s gateway and responsible for the fall’

what does bonhoeffer say sexistly? (modern)

women need to submit to husbands

what does augustine say sexistly? (old)

women aren’t made imago dei and there’s something less about them

only share imago dei when united with men

explain mary daly and new spirituality

• quintessence is the highest essence → gives life and vitality to whole universe

• god isn’t in the chuch, he’s in nature

• quintessence is blocked by violence, porn, poverty
  → need to rediscover through nature

• most holy trinity will be created by radical feminists:

  • love

  • power

  • justice

• spinsters and spinners

• unites all women with elemental forces of nature

• links it to nature and the seasons, and female goddesses from the past such as Karli from Hindusim who is a powerful figure associated with destruction

what’s a limitation of new spirituality?

pantheistic - nature is god
christians believe we can learn something about god through nature but ultimately we shouldn’t worship nature, we should worship god

explain mary daly and human nature

• appollonian self
  passive self
  being behind AP veil alienates people from naturally creative and imaginitive self
  about power, control, patriachy and domination

• dionysian self
  energetic and creative self, only women can have this
  about creativity, nature, liberation and feminine energy

explain mary daly and the unholy trinity

result of hierarchal patriarchy

1. genocide
   catholic church commits genocide when it forces women to have unwanted children as a result of rape and anti-abortion
   also believes that they promote genocide with support of war and slaughter of innocent children
   

2. war
   symbolises very worst of appolonian values praised by church
   process of un-veiling shows how inconsistent moral theologians and politicans are to defend one war but condmen other compassionate forms of killing
   → abortion and euthanasia
   → e.g. how can we bomb hiroshima but not have abortion?
   

3. rape
   phallocentric rape culture is based on power
   both literal and metaphorical rape
   insists metaphorical sense, christianity has been a major reason why women have been abused or mistreated
   male idea of god justified rape
   → e.g. epstein, rich powerful men use sense of untouchability to do what they want
   → armchair rapist: women are just an object of sexual desire and nothing else considered, current day porn is very dangerous for women

gives men phallocentric power!!!!!!!

what happens in numbers about rape in unholy trinity

moses tells isrealites to kill all the male children and women

spare lives of women who haven’t had sex and have them for yourself
→ however, moses says this and all people have been affected by sin if it was jesus, then it would be a lot more concerning, but moses can sin

explain mary daly and spinster and spinners

• uses term to describe women working together and creating through ‘nature’s cloth’

• single women will get together and ‘spin’ something beautiful

• transforms us into new spirituality into one free of patriarchy

explain mary daly and language

• words like hag, crone, nag, witch were made to disempower women
  → women need to use them to empower themselves and ‘spin’ a new meaning to them to allow spiritual freedom

• turn negative narrative into positive things

• women need a new non-patricarchal language

name 2 books written by mary daly

• beyond god the father

• gyn/ecology

explain mary daly and sisterhood

• church is irredeemably sexist and needs to be abandoned

• sisterhood of feminism should take its place and fulfil functions of religion without being patriarchal

• sisterood is about liberating women and helping them come together and unify

• it is an ‘anti-church’ with no hierarchy or dogmas
  → a sacred space for women to escape sexism and heal
  → most organisations need some sort of hierarchy and dogma (rules) to survive otherwise it is too subjective

• women are superior in knowledge and ability yo men and so should have more power → more peaceful
  → patriarchy has limited women’s growth

name 5 limitations of mary daly

1. chan
   the idea that god is a man is a misunderstanding
   he is a spirit with no gender at all and so therefore her argument falls apart
   → mary would ask why jesus was a man not a woman
   → jesus had to be a man to be taken seriously at this time, however, he isn’t an overly masculine one and is very in touch with his feminine side
   god understands both men and women
   using male language for god doesn’t exclude him from having feminine qualities
   → motherly images can be connected to him
   

2. abba
   jesus uses the term ‘abba’ which means daddy
   this doesn’t suggest power but tenderness and love
   → unlike father
   

3. fiorenza
   jesus is a proto-feminist (before his time)
   he cared for women and trusted them to share the message of his resurrection
   she thinks christianity should remain but be reimagined
   daly has too narrow of an approach to be taken seriously
   jesus corrects the badness before him like moses
   

4. other theologians
   narrow, exclusive, irrational
   (other fc)
   

how is mary daly’s view exclusive?

• alienates many women who don’t conform to her views
  → e.g. arguing that true friendship can only be from lesbians and lesbianism should not imitate male characteristics like butch lesbians

• aimed at white, lesbian, professional and western women
  → doesn’t include different ethnicities, class or sexualities

how is mary daly’s view narrow?

• dismissive of anyone who disagrees with her

• dismissive of major traditions in all religions → all patriarchal

• places them in the foreground as snools and says they’re all demonic/totalitarian

• insulting to those who aren’t

how is mary daly’s view irrational?

• misandrist

• demonisation of men as cause of rape culture is not the view many feminists have

• alienates men and demonises them who might actually agree with her

• a lot of men are feminist and a lot of women anti-feminist

• advocating for female supremacy by saying they are superior
  → just as sexist and dangerous and has similar ideas to segreationism which has been associated with bigotry throughout history

what does ruether say in response to mary daly?

• don’t take her too literally

• does have some insights though

• castrating god is extreme but killing patricarchy makes sense

name 4 strengths of mary daly

1. provides voice which allows for justice
   highlights issues affecting women such as sexual violence, reproductive rights and power imbalances
   bringing these topics into theology where it has been dominated by male experience means she can help bring voice to women
   allows for empowerment to change oppressive circumstances the live in
   

2. might actually make christianity more accessible
   reinterpretation of ideas and symbols since they are socially constructed
   concept of god doesn’t have to remain male and patriarchal and this can change
   god should be understood away from gender
   more adaptable to modern day society
   

3. sartre and existentialism
   view on being and human identity being a creative and ongoing process fits with more secular view of existentialism
   no fixed purpose of life→ born like a blank canvas
   contradicts teachings of aquinas in natural law
   → more applicable to modern day society
   

4. hampson- unholy trinity
   rejects idea that christianity is divorced from sexism
   all christians have this sexism due to the ancient tradition of christianity
   unable to ignore tradition of sexism even if they try to
   sexist views and themes will affect as long as they read it even at a subconcious level

name 3 differences between ruether and daly

daly: kill christianity
ruether: reform is possible and it can evolve

daly: ignores positive parts of christianity
ruether: jesus challenges patriarchy

daly: exclusionary
ruether: feminism should be inclusive

explain ruether context

• reform feminist theologian

• jesus and bible can be interpreted in a feminist way
  → so feminism is compatiable with christianity

• however, it is currently sexist as it has undergone patriarchalisation (where sexist views take over)

• both men and women were created imago dei and so there should be a basis for equality

explain ruether’s view of a male warrior-messiah expectation/christology

• the messiah was expected to be a warrior king who freed jewish people from slavery and oppression

• there would be a battle where the messiah would defeat the enemies of the jews and reign over earth for the rest of time
  → like king david
  → heavily associated with male gender roles so people expected male messiah

• however, jesus was not the expected type and preached forgiveness, non-violence, patience and humility

• instead of winning on the battlefield, he died on the cross in self sacrifice

• jesus’ maleness is not a necessary aspect of him and therefore he church should allow female ordination
  → if founder didn’t have to be male then why its priests?

• jesus is also presented in the bible as being with the poor rather than rich and successful
  → far away from stereotypical view
  → gender inclusive figure but been corrupted by patriarchalisation

explain ruether’s view of female wisdom

• in the old testament, god’s wisdom is often personified and described as female
  → greek word for wisdom is ‘sophia’

• if his wisdom can be personified, then the male image of god should not be seen as defining to who he is
  → he can be seen as both male and female

• femininity is just as much of a part of god as his masculinity
  → therefore, maleness is not a necessary part of his identity

• he rejected female stereotype and was on the side of women

• this male image of god makes people think he is exclusively male due to the incarnation
  → called the process of seeing jesus as necessarily male the patriarchalisation of christology

explain ruether view on language

• need to move away from constant and repeated use of male images in talk of god

• results in religious sexism → belief that god is male so males are closer to god

• femininity is then lower than maleness
  → leads to only men being ordained

• jesus’ maleness as part of god’s essence is not consistent with the golden thread as it implies women are less than men
  → god could have come in either form and god has no gender (should refer to neutrally)

what is ruether’s view on women being ordained

• jesus did not necessarily have to be male so priests shouldn’t

• possession of male genetalia is not the only part of humans that can represent christ at the altar

• female images in scripture for god

• jesus was the incarnation of wisdom
  → called the female wisdom principle

explain 3 ways patriarchilisation has occured according to ruether

1. women leaders were violently persecuted into non-existence in early christian days
   

2. female prophets in corinth who claimed direct experience of god are what cause paul to write women must be silent in church have have no authority over men
   → trying to fix situation where they were giving incorrect teachings about christianity such as stating you don’t need to believe in the resurrection
   

3. romen empire caused patriarchalisation where christianity became associated with strength and power

explain ruether and the golden thread

• golden thread is the theme of liberation (including feminism) in the bible
  → can disentangle the golden threat from patriarchal influences

• sexism and liberation are inconsistent with each other so they can’t both be god’s message
  → separating means christianity can be redeemable

• examples of golden thread:

  • freeing jews in edodus

  • treatment of marginalised people by jesus

  • jesus’ criticisims of religious views which push forward unjust social order

  • the golden rule

• golden thread gives standard to compare and judge other parts of bible and reject ones that don’t fit

• rest is influenced by their time of sexist views and has prejudices of the writers

• jesus’ maleness as part of god’s essence is not consistent with the golden thread as it implies women are less than men
  → god could have come in either form and god has no gender (should refer to neutrally)

name 2 examples of feminist causes by jesus (to fit with golden thread)

1. woman at the well
   tensions between jews and samaritans
   jesus started convo with samaritan woman at well askingn her for a drink
   shocked disciples and the woman
   showed his willingness to challenge discrimination at time
   

2. adulterous woman
   told whoever had not sinned to cast the frst stone
   control of sexual behaviour through violence and imprisonment throgh marriage is looked down on by jesus
   → jesus in favour for feminism

what does ruether say about death and resurrection as a symbol?

• ancient pagan religion based

• winter and life dies (like leaves)
  → ancient pagan cultures saw his as like a king dying and new life occuring to be like a goddess
  → resurrection is a symbol of a goddess

• there is truth in all traditions and possibly christianity can take ideas from this

• jesus lived as a man and resurrected with female energy

name a strength and a limitation of death and resurrection as a symbol

strength: jung- recurring human ideas/themes → death and rebirth
→ even though some stories are outside the bible, they might have truth due to patterns of human behaviour

weakness: not in the bible and so protestants would disagree

what does ruether say about the holy spirit?

• holy spirit should be understood in feminine terms

• holy spirit is what works in the world today to heal people and help relationships, etc

• we should prioritise the holy spirit

• sophia

name 2 strengths of ruether’s view of the holy spirit

1. pentecostal denomination
   holy spirit is very important to them
   this church is less hierarrchal and women can equallt recieve the spirit
   

2. shakers
   believe women are more receptive to holy spirit
   first coming of god was a man, second coming will be a woman at the end of time

what is a limitation of ruether’s view of the holy spirit?

• heresy- worshipping one aspect of christianity and prioritising that over others when they are all equal!!

name 2 limitations of ruether

1. open to criticism
   selected certain texts above others
   known as ‘canon within a canon’ → trying to find set of authoritive texts inside already authorative texts
   she didn’t deny this though and stated this is what christians have always done
   → have never treated bible as though everything was equally authorative
   

2. lack of liberation from prophets
   tolbert: old testament prophets do not speak about liberation of women
   ruether states this is because they are limited by their own world views
   but if they were speaking on god’s behalf as she implies they are, then surely they shouldn’t have a limited world view?

name 4 ways christianity is inherently sexist?

1. mary daly- language
   christianity is male dominted language
   we use male pronouns like he, him, his, father, son
   continued celebration of men in talk influences us to think men are superior to women
   → results in violence and oppression
   if god is male then male is god
   → christian view incarnation of god was a male makes sexism worse
   

2. mary daly- unholy trinity
   phallocentric view of morality where competition, aggression, rivarly and ruthlessness is celebrated
   shown in bible especially old testament with moses
   

3. mary daly- christianity is male dominated
   women blamed for the fall and idea of god as a man makes christianity sexist
   women need to stand against church and form an anti-church which is also anti-christ
   only through this rejection can we be freed of sexism
   

4. ruether- ignorance of female qualities
   constant images of god as male in our talk and imagery results in religious sexism
   leads to view that feminity is lower than maleness and therefore only men can be priests

name 4 ways christianity is inherently sexist?

1. ruether and view of messiah
   not the tradtional expected messiah that was expected
   maleness is not necessary
   on side of poor and downtrodden rather rich and successful
   → has compassion for women and oppressed
   female view of god as sophia
   → explains why and how jesus was in touch with feminine side
   support of holy spirit as feminine
   

2. church of england
   passed vote in 90s to ordain women as priests
   many believe women and men should have same chance to be priests
   true equality means men and women should have equal access in church and society
   CoE show secular views of feminist equality should be adopted and christianity is not inherently sexist

what book did ruether write?

sexism and god talk