gender and sexuality

Question 1

the views of women between the 2nd and 5th century

Answer 1

tertullian - “the devils gateway” because western thought caused people to hate anything associated with the body and women were related to the body rather than the mind

Question 2

the views of women before the 2nd century

Answer 2

Were allowed to hold authority eg Phoebe was a deacon, Junia was an apostle

Question 3

what did convents allow women to do?

Answer 3

allowed women to study arts eg Hildegaard de Bingen

Question 4

who was Hildegarde de Bingen?

Answer 4

An Abbess who wrote letters, poetry and music expressing very progressive beliefs about feminism

Question 5

How did martin luther influence the role of women?

Answer 5

head of the protestant reformation, very sexist, reduced the role of women in authority

Question 6

the views of women in the 19th century

Answer 6

cannot be overly educated because that is a masculine trait, wasn’t until 1870 that women were allowed primary education

Question 7

who was catherine booth and what were her beliefs?

Answer 7

co founder of the salvation army, said women should be able to preach because it is more in their nature to be poetic and persuasive, since we are all just vehicles of Gods Gospel.

Question 8

Why did opinions of women change after the war?

Answer 8

women were shown to be useful by getting jobs, proving they could do the same things as men

Question 9

why does a change in views of women affect our ability to interpret the bible?

Answer 9

How do we interpret sexist passages of the bible when we have progressive views - how can we follow the living tradition and find new meaning of sexist texts?

Question 10

what is liberal theology?

Answer 10

analysing the bible using modern thought and reasoning rather than faith

Question 11

what is biblical criticism?

Answer 11

systematic and critical examination of biblical texts, examining the language and translation, form of writing used, and the context and author of the text

Question 12

what is liberal biblical criticism?

Answer 12

bible should be studied like an ancient document - using higher criticism- examining how passages interact with one another and lower criticism- the content of the passage itself

Question 13

what was Karl barth’s hot take on biblical criticism?

Answer 13

he suggested we can’t use liberal criticism on the bible because its not a development of enlightenment values, its purpose is instead to challenge human assumptions so we cannot use human reason to judge the scripture because scripture is the judge of human reason

Question 14

how do fundamentalists critique biblical criticism?

Answer 14

there is no point trying to critically interpret a text that is supposed to be taken literally because everyone should be able r=to access and read the bible

Question 15

what passages support gender equality?

Answer 15

• romans 16:1 - “phoebe, a deacon of the church… the benefactor of many people”
• romans, Paul describes Priscilla and Aquila as fellow workers
• Junia was an apostle in the church
• galatians 3:26 - “ you are all children of God… there is no male or female for you are all one in christ”

Question 16

what passages oppose gender equality?

Answer 16

• Ephesians 5:22 “ wives submit yourselves to your husbandsas you do to the lord”
• Corinthians 14:34 - “women should remain silent in the churches”

Question 17

What does Timothy 2:8 say?

Answer 17

• “women should dress modestly”
• “I do not permit a woman to assume authority over a man”
• “women will be saved through child-bearing”

Question 18

catholic church view on gender equality

Answer 18

complimentarian - equal status but they have different roles

Question 19

Natural law views on gender equality

Answer 19

people should live in a way that reflects their inherent nature and that men and women should complement each other

Question 20

what is the early church view of gender equality

Answer 20

not much is known about female ministry but pope Gelasius I opposed women being part of the eucharist

Question 21

apostolic succession is an issue for gender equality because…

Answer 21

Jesus’ apostles were men, so it may not be permitted for women to be part of the apostolic tradition

Question 22

protestant views on gender equality?

Answer 22

No one has authority because of the priesthood of all believers and sola Scriptura but women can interpret the bible for themselves

Question 23

AO2 plan - “The bible doesnt support equality between men and women”

Answer 23

• Ephesians 5:22 - “wives submit yourselves to your husbands” - not equal
  ^ However also talks about slaves and masters so clearly outdated and we can discard both passages
• corinthians 14:34 - “women should remain silent in churches”
  ^ part of a set of letters to Corinth, could be responding to a specific issue
• Timothy 2:8 - “ I do not permit a woman to assume authority over a man”
  ^ “authentien” actual meaning unknown because it was not seen anywhere else in bible

Question 24

describe the process of allowing ordination for women

Answer 24

• 1920 briefly mentioned but overturned
• Florence Li Tim-Oi stepped in as a temporary priest during the war
• 75/78’ spoken about again but outruled by the house of clergy
• 81’ it was allowed, 85; the law was passed and 87’ the first female bishop was anointed

Question 25

why do people oppose conscration of female bishops?

Answer 25

apostolic succession was only men therefore any sacrements performed eg confirmation may be seen to be void if its done by a woman

Question 26

how did married anglican priests respond?

Answer 26

thought the COE no longer had proper ministry and so moved to the catholic church instead

Question 27

what is liberal feminist theology?

Answer 27

idea that based on modern thought, patriarchy is illogical by denying women basic equality

Question 28

what is biblical feminist theology?

Answer 28

God is loving and caring, nbut this is most often a feminine trait so why is God a man? Also looks at the importance of women in the bible eg women were the first people to see jesus in the Garden

Question 29

what is radical feminist theology?

Answer 29

talks about how we can talk about God in a way that makes sense in the modern world

Question 30

daphne hampson’s views

Question 31

Rosemary Radford Ruether’s views

Answer 31

• member of the RC church
• past, present and future all help our understanding of God
• said jesus was a feminist because he wanted equality for all, often sided with minorities

Question 32

why, according to ruether, is christ woman-like?

Answer 32

• exemplifies female traits like healing or caring
• was not driven by power rules and punishment, driven by love and care for others
• Jesus wanted peace and forgiveness not war

Question 33

why are women closer to nature?

Answer 33

• child bearing is a natural process for every life form

Question 34

what are the two choices when it comes to feminism and Christianity?

Answer 34

• Daphne = christian claims cant be true because its inevitably sexist so we need to find a new way to talk about God
• Ruether = we can see female influence in the new testament and in the forces of nature so its still compatible with christianity

Question 35

AO2 plan - “christianity and feminism is incompatible”

Answer 35

• Daphne - yes incompatible because
  ^ but Ruether suggests
• Daphne - yes incompatible
  ^ but Ruether suggests
• Daphne - yes incompatible
  ^ But ruether suggests

Question 36

how did christians view celibacy

Answer 36

• preferable to marriage
• “if they cannot control themselves, then they should marry”
  ^ celibacy is for those with control, marriage is those without

Question 37

why was celibacy better for monastic tradition?

Answer 37

christians preferred to devote their life to god rather than have a family, because the early church thought the world would end so it was pointless having kids