Gender and society Flashcards
Background
The Christian Church has lagged behind changes in social attitudes (and UK
laws), particularly on issues such as
contraception, abortion and Pre-marital sex, and gender issues
such as attitudes to homosexuality.
Background Example
For example, the Church of England
still formally disallows homosexual
gay partnerships in the Clergy,whilst professing to welcome gay
Church members. Gender issues also include attitudes to
transsexuals and the political implications of feminism.
Essential theories
Gender is fixed by objective human nature, either by God or by our
inherent biology (e.g. genes)
Existentialist theories
Gender is determined by social discourse (Foucault), by upbringing
(Freud), or by social conditioning (including religious conditioning)
Feminism
A movement and a philosophy emerging from the Enlightenment
emphasis on equal rights, but embracing theories of power and
social conditioning
Sex
The biological and physiological characteristics that define men and
women
Gender
The state of being classified as male or female or transgender
(typically used with reference to social and cultural differences
rather than biological ones)
False Consciousness
Beliefs and behaviour induced by social attitudes and values which contradict the true interest (economic, political or social) of a person
Patriarchy
A system of society or government in which men hold the power and
women are largely excluded from it
Eternal Feminine
Simone de Beauvoir’s term to describe the role of woman as some
idea imposed by men (submissive housewife, sex object, etc)
Hermeneutics of Suspicion
is a phrase coined by Paul Ricoeaur. It is the suspicious study of the interpretation and
meaning of texts/scripture. It is a reminder that words may not always mean what they seem to mean, e.g. analogy or irony.
What do we need to be suspicious of, according to Ricoeur?
We need to be suspicious of the motives, values, and culture of
those who wrote the text, according to Ricoeur.
Which two interpretations are to be ‘merged’ when reading
scripture?
The two interpretations that need to be merged are the world behind
the text (the culture of Jesus’ day) and the world in front of the text
(our own culture).
What does Fiorenza argue?
Fiorenza argues that theology is the product of each writer’s
experience, which is determined by their historical and social
context, and is culturally conditioned to serve particular interests.
What does Ruether argue?
Ruether argues that the Bible is deeply patriarchal, reflecting a
hierarchical society with males in charge, and that these archaic
social relationships continue to influence contemporary injustices.
What lies behind the interpretation of the Bible?
Behind the interpretation of the Bible lies the acceptance of Aristotle’s biology, which views women as secondary to men and
lacking full human status.
Ephesians 5:22-33
Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, 26 that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, 27 so that he might present the church to himself in splendour, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.[a] 28 In the same way husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29 For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just
as Christ does the church, 30 because we are members of his body. 31 “Therefore a man shall leave his
father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” 32 This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church. 33 However, let each one of you love his
wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband.
Genesis 1:27
Genesis 1:27 states, “So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them”.
1 Timothy 2:12
But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence.
Changing Idea of Family
From nuclear to reconstituted
From extended to nuclear
From two parent to one parent
From married to cohabiting
Stats about changing society
The fastest growth has been in cohabiting couples followed by lone parent families in the
decade 2005-2015.
Christian Views: Augustine
In ‘Confessions’, Augustine lists the virtues of his mother (Monica)
– patience, mildness, obedience, selfless service, temperance, piety and an aversion to gossip.He also describes his long-term relationship with a concubine. So, women have one of two roles – mother or lover.
Augustine 2
Augustine sees men and women of equal rational
capacity, but women are by nature submissive because they are weaker.
Aquinas’ view
Aquinas argued that women are inferior to men in physical strength and also in intelligence.
Aquinas also used the word ‘defective’ of women.
Aquinas noted that there is a special place in heaven for women such as the Virgin Mary and the women who waited at the foot on the cross when Jesus was crucified. He commended them for their love of God.
