3C: religion, equality and discrimination Flashcards
1
Q
Who was Mary Daly?
A
- an America radical ecological feminist philosopher and theologian
2
Q
The contribution of Mary Daly>
A
- the goal of human life is for all people to be free to engage in a journey of growth, becom8gn creative and fulfilled individuals, freely participating in communities that are healthy and liberating.
- however the opposite has been the case - especially for women. Instead of the freedom of be on a journey of growth, women have been trapped into oppressive roles
- Daly sees society as having created a ‘sexual caste system’ which places the female gender beneath the make gender. The church has played a role in helping culture maintain this caste system.
- it is time for women to overcome this system and structures which force women into ‘non-being’
3
Q
Mary Daly - God is not a noun:
A
- problem is females are treated as objects - as nouns.
- one of the themes in theology that has helped to turn women into objects is the static view of God. God has been defined as a noun rather than a verb.
- patriarchal images of God reinforced the notion of God as a noun: a whit bereaved man in the sky. This God must be dethroned says Daly.
- There are three versions of this noun-God p:
1) God as a stop-gap
2) God as otherworldliness
3) God as a judge of sin - these images are static and are doing nothing to inspire creativity, dynamism or growth.
4
Q
Mary Daly - God is a verb:
A
- Mary Daly says that we need to consider God as a verb. This is because to see God as a process of becoming with the universe as a force that helps us to become the people we are meant to be.
- however simply changing from male language to female language for a good will not address the issues but simply perpetuate the idea of a God as abound
- we must think of God as a transforming power, the power of being for all persons.
5
Q
Mary Daly - the need for sisterhood:
A
- Daly believes the Cburch is too bound to patraxrchy ro ever become a place where women can find the transformation they seek.
- she calls herself a post-Christian and calls upon women to be ‘antichurch’ and leave this patriarchal structure.
- the term ‘sisterhood’ sepsis to finding relationships with other women in order to oppose the lovelessness of a sexually hierarchical society
- in doing so they will be criticised by males but will have support from the ‘sisterhood’. It will have no dogmas, no hierarchy and will assist in bringing women out if patriarchal spaces and often a path where that can develop
6
Q
What is ordination?
A
- a rite that sets apart certain individuals for specific roles in the Church.
- today ordination services in many different denominations involve the Church gathering together and offering prayer, the laying on of hands abs the invocation if the Soirig in the lives of thisdit is setting aside for specific roles.
- it is rare to find women in publicly recognised leadership positions in the Church until the last few decades.
- most theologians through the centuries have argued that women’s ministry should be restricted in line with admonition in the New Testament.
7
Q
Arguments against women in ministry:
A
- God chose to incarnate ‘himself’ in the form of a male
- Christ appointed only men as the Apostles
- ordarinign women would destroy the unity and catholicity of the Church which had, for centuries ordained only men
- scripture forbids the leadership of women
- women have differnet roles compared to men
- priests and bishops represent Christ at the altar
8
Q
Arguments for women in ministry:
A
- Jesus did not seem to restrict his message and teaching to men
- many passages in the Bible refer to ministry in inclusive terms
- women were ordained to be the diaconate in the early church
- not ordaining Simeon has been a pert if the historical suppression of women
9
Q
Female ordination in 1970s?
A
- on rare occasions some women were ordained or given public leadership positions in the church since the time of the Reformation.
- however it wasn’t until the 1970s that women’s ordination became standard practice in established denominations
- in the Church of England the vote to ordain women passed by a narrow margin in 1992
- by 1993 the Chruch voted to allow individual congregations to opt out of accepting women priests
- in 1994 newly 1500 women were ordained in the Church of England but over 470 male clergy protested by leaving the Church (many joined the RCC which allowed them to function as married priests)
10
Q
Ordination of women throughout time:
A
- RCC: women cannot be ordained as deacons, priests or bishops
- late 1960s that women were ordained as deacons and priests in parts I’d Anglican Communion and only since 1990s that have been ordained as Bishops.
- although this is only in a minority of the member churches that compose the Anglican Church.
11
Q
What are continuing issues with ordination of women?
A
- the proportion of unpaid women clergy has increased in many church bodies that ordain women
- ordained women have had to fight for maternity rights in some denominations
- interview commuters have been chakenwgdbti produce guidelines on appropriate or inappropriate questions - e,g, asking about whether they are planning to have children
- many congregations who belong to church issues that so ordain women are reluctant to accept a female minister
- women find it difficult to access ‘senior pastorates’ or the role of Bishop - with lack of experience used as an excuse.
12
Q
Who was Rosemary Radford Ruether?
A
- an Americana feminist schooler and Catholic theologian
- was jailed for her participation in civil rights demonstatdions in 1960s m she advocated women’s ordination and is pro-choice.
13
Q
Radford Ruether’s views:
A
- the church should be reformed to become a community that manifests liberation.
- it should:
+ be free from patriarchy and androcentric language
+ fight against oppression of women
+ have an inclusive approach to leadership
+ accept the full and equivalent nature of both genders
+ remove clericalism
14
Q
Ruether - androcentric theology:
A
- it js not a universal human experience:
+ a male creator God creates imago dei
+ males are more in God’s image than females are
+ men are more human than women
+ a man-God is needed for salvation
+ the image of God as a male is idolised
