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Some Definitions and Statements - Feminism and Feminist
Theology
Consider the definitions/statements below, and reflect on the
questions that follow
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Author
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Definition
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Sandra Schneiders,
Beyond Patching, Paulist, 1991, p. 15.
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Feminism, I would propose, is a comprehensive ideology which is rooted in women's experience of sexual oppression, engages in a
critique of patriarchy as an essentially dysfunctional system, embraces an alternative vision for humanity and the earth, and actively seeks to bring this vision to realization."
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Elisabeth Schussler-Fiorenza,
The Power of
Naming, Orbis, 1996, p. xvii.
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"Feminism is the radical notion that women are
people."
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Kaye Ashe,The Feminization of the Church? Sheed
and Ward, 1997.
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Feminism is a major philosophical, political, social and
religious movement which requires a profound intellectual conversion.
In unmasking a false sexual hierarchy, feminism invites a rereading of history, language, law, the economy, marriage, the family, sex roles, child rearing, ethics, theology, scripture, and spirituality. It calls for a rearranging of our minds and for new ways of relating. It calls for a redefinition of power and authority and for a redistribution of power. As such, it is scary!"
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Anne E. Carr, "The New Vision of Feminist
Theology," Freeing Theology: The Essentials of Theology in Feminist Perspective edited by Catherine Mowry LaCugna, Harper, 1993
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"Catholic feminist theology derives from the emergence of feminist consciousness among large groups of Roman
Catholic women in the last three
decades. This conscious-ness, touching the depths of women's personal identity and integrity, occurred for some as a result of the wider, inter-national movement of women for liberation, equality, respect and influence. But the specific Catholic awareness was itself a catalyst and a source of leadership in the wider movement. As women's studies - the academic arm of the women's movement - developed, religion and its reflective discourse in theology were perceived early on to legitimate patriarchy and sexism in society's institutions. In this way religion and theology elicited feminist analysis and critique. When home and family life, education, the churches and synagogues, and the various professions all came under feminist academic scrutiny, scholars pointed out that religious and theological views of women had helped to shaped subordinating social structures and women's own negative self-perceptions. The emergence of feminist consciousness has been described as a blinding flash of light. It blinds in that it disorients and disturbs the viewers; it is light in the way it vividly illumines the whole landscape."
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Elizabeth A. Johnson.She Who Is: The Mystery of God
in Feminist Theological Discourse. Crossroad, 1993, p.32, 33, 38.Â
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"The goal of feminist theology is not to make women
equal partners in an oppressive system. It is to transform the
system."p.32 "To even the casual observer it is obvious that the Christian community ordinarily speaks about God on the model of the ruling male human being. Both the images that are used and the concepts accompanying them reflect the experience of men in charge within a patriarchal system. The difficulty does not lie in the fact that male metaphors are used, for men too are made in the image of God. Rather, the problem consists in the fact that these male terms are used exclusively, literally, and patriarch-ally."p.33 "Speech about God in the exclusive and literal terms of the patriarch is a tool of subtle conditioning that operates to debilitate women's sense of dignity, power and self-esteem."p.38
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Kwok Pui-Lan"The
Future of Feminist Theology: An Asian Perspective."
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"Asia is the home for over half of the
world's population. Divided into seven major linguistic zones, Asian people have lived for centuries in a multiracial, multicultural, and multi-religious world. Asian mental constructs, approaches to reality, ways of life, and spirituality are in many ways radically different from those of people in the West. Asian women theologians must try to decipher the cultural codes of the people, delve into the rich resource of Asian traditions, and learn to speak the language of poor women in that continent, before they can construct a theology that touches the Asian soul."
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Delores S. Williams,"Womanist Theology: Black
Women's Voices"
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"The concept of womanist allows women to
claim their roots in black history, religion, and culture. The origins of womanist are in the black folk expression "You acting womanish," meaning, in the words of Alice Walker, "wanting to know more and in greater depth than is good for one . . . outrageous, audacious, courageous and willful behavior." A womanist is also 'responsible, in charge, serious.' "
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Ada Maria Isasi-Diaz,"The Task of
Hispanic Women's Liberation Theology - Mujeristas"
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"As a mujerista I believe that we need to change
radically the society in which we live. Simply influencing society will not result in the changes that are needed to bring about peace with justice in our world. We see mujerista theology as a distinctive contribution to the theological enterprise at large which challenges particularly non-liberative theological under-standings. For us theology is a praxis - a liberative praxis having as its goal the liberation of Hispanic women, which cannot take place at the expense of any other oppressed group."
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"The agenda of feminist theology is broad.Indeed it
is no exaggeration to say that it intends a re-construction of
Christian Theology and practice that is as far-reaching as anything that has happened in the church since the reformation. Fundamental to the project, of course, is a re-thinking and re-imaging of God, in order to break away from the link between patriarchal domination and the images we use of God. Recasting the language that we use about God so that it is gender inclusive rather then gender exclusive is of fundamental importance. This is true of theology, liturgy, hymns, prayers and ordinary conversation. Other areas of struggle rest in the issues of church structures, ordination, theological training, attitudes to sexuality and the stereotyping of women in the church.
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Elizabeth A. Johnson. Women, Earth, and Creator Spirit. 1993 Madeleva Lecture in Spirituality. Paulist, 1993Â
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"Feminist thinking prizes dialectical connectedness
that flourishes in a circle of mutuality. This has obvious implications for the idea of God. If relation is at the heart of the universe, if mutuality is a moral excellence, then the
deity of God does not consist in being over against and superior to, but expresses itself in freely drawing near and being connected in mutual relation. This is precisely the way
Creator Spirit is present and active in the world."
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Ivone Gebara,"The Trinity and Human
Experience," in Women Healing Earth: Third World Women on Ecology, Feminism and Religion, Orbis, 1996.
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"There is a real fear in
all of us of daring to doubt certain ideas, of raising questions about things we were taught that have been set forth as truths we have to accept. Religious institutions often create this fear is us, fettering our ability to think critically about faith issues."
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Which of these gives you the best "feel" for the meaning of
feminist theology - why? |
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Women theologians from every country are challenging
non-liberative theological constructs. What are the common foundations between Asian, Black and Latin-american views of feminist theologies and those of their western sisters? |
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Carol Lee Flinders, in her book At The Root of This Longing:
Reconciling a Spiritual Hunger and a Feminist Thirst, Harper, 1998.states on page 6: "Beyond the question of how offensively patriarchal a particular religion might be is a much more basic
one: how deeply have I allowed negative readings of 'woman' to penetrate my own thinking and to undercut the feelings of personal sovereignty that any sort of religious commitment
requires-and once I've determined that, what can I do about it?" What is your answer to this? How deeply have you assimilated negative readings regarding your womanhood? What effect has
this had on your relationship with God. |
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