I would like to point you in the direction of a brief article that takes a different tack on the marriage issue.
It is brilliant in it’s simplicity, and makes a cogent point easy to understand.
It can be found at http://www.religiondispatches.org/blog/sexandgender/755/.
Enjoy the chuckle, but give serious thought to the implications.
Continued from Part 4, or go to the beginning and view the Table of Contents.
I will resist the urge to recap the arguments so far. They are here, after all, to find and read in the first four parts. In this section I want to speak of why this topic is important in the first place. Nothing like waiting until the end to do that, is there? Ultimately, what I have to say on this will be based on two central beliefs.
(i) As long as it falls short of idolatry, the image that each of us has of God can serve be valuable for our faith lives. It is one thing to say, “I find an affinity with a male or female image of God that informs my personal spiritual journey,” and a whole different thing to say, “God is male – to say otherwise is blashemy, a sin or whatever.” We have a right to envision God in the way that is most comfortable to us, as long as we remain cognizant of the fact that it is just an image.
(ii) When it comes to public worship or study, however, our personal image of God needs to be left at the door. In this situation, we may be responsible not just for our own spirituality, but that of others as well. To formalize or otherwise restrict public worship and theology to that of our own is to reach the point of idolizing our own rationality, or irrationality as the case may be. Continue reading ‘God as Mother – Innocence Lost (Part 5)’
Continued from Part 3, or go to beginning at Part 1.
EMASCULATION OR UN-MASCULINIZATION OF GOD
Opponents of inclusive imagery and language about God often claim it is bordering on blasphemy, with a significant number of those making the case being women. Proponents cite myriad reasons for its legitimacy. For now, let’s begin by looking at the arguments for the masculine image of God, so we can determine what’s at stake in changing our approach.
Except for Mormons, many who believe there is a God-mother beside the God-father, and some non-trinitarian sects, most adherents of Christians sects believe that the totality of God is wrapped up in the trinitarian formula, “Father, Son and Holy Ghost (Spirit).” To change that formulation, many think, is to attack the very nature of God and to lead people away from the “true” God. Besides the fact that God does not need protecting, on which I hope we would all agree, then what is in need of protection is a tenet of faith – a dogma – a way of understanding God. The way in which we speak of God does not change who and what God is. The tenacity with which people hold onto specific images prompts us to ask, “What is really at stake?” Continue reading ‘God as Mother – Masculinity Lost? (Part 4)’
Continued from Part 2. Or go to Table of Contents
Feminine images of God still abound in scripture, as discussed in Part 1. Those images, however, are simply those that have survived the expurgation by 3rd and 4th century “masculinizers” of the text. I know, that’s not technically a word – at least it wasn’t, but it is now. Examples could be used from the texts that were omitted, like the Odes of Solomon, but they are not part of the canon and so would be open to ridicule. Examples of passages still in the Bible have already been covered. To make the point on how images have been expunged, I will simply examine the instance of El Shaddai – Almight God – as the case in point. Continue reading ‘God as Mother – Imagery lost (Part 3)’
Continued from here or go to Table of Contents.
A LIBERATION THEOLOGY FOR THE “FIRST WORLD”
A major roadblock to a serious discussion of liberation theologies in dominant culture is the assertion that they are essentially Marxist in nature. This accusation has been proffered by not only “First World” governments, but by the Western churches including the Roman Catholic Church. Since explicating the philosophies of Marx is not the point of this paper, it will have to suffice to address the barest of arguments. First, the West in general, and the U.S. in particular, is somewhat irrational in its fear of Marxism. Marx was, first and foremost, a philosopher – albeit one who believed in praxis. The philosophy of Marx does not line up particularly well with what the West understands as Marxist politics, namely Communism as practiced in the 20th century: Continue reading ‘Liberation Theology and Globalization – Part 5’
Continued from here or go to Table of Contents.
THE UNDEVELOPMENT OF THE DEVELOPED WORLD
The dominant U.S. theology of entitlement seems to conflict with not only liberation theologies, but most theologies that include political and social action as essential tenets. Such European notables in political theology as Jurgen Moltmann, Johannes Baptist Metz, and Dietrich Bonhoeffer were joined by Reinhold Niebuhr and John Howard Yoder of the U.S. In his 1972 book The Politics of Jesus, Yoder detailed the biblical evidence which justified his belief, “Jesus is, according to the biblical witness, a model of radical political action …”[1] Disturbed by theological thought that separated Jesus from the political sphere, he attempted to prove that faithful Christian disciples should adopt Jesus’ political approach. Continue reading ‘Liberation Theology and Globalization – Part 4’
This isn’t original to me, either. I just don’t know who to credit.
A GUIDE TO UNDERSTANDING GAYS
(prepared for heterosexuals, or neanderthals – you pick) Continue reading ‘A Guide to Understanding Gays’
Continued from here or go to Table of Contents.
USING THEOLOGY TO PROSPER
As in the U.S. women’s battle for the vote, the fall of the Berlin Wall and the ‘end’ of apartheid in South Africa, to name a few momentous occasions in recent social history, change of this magnitude requires partners. In each of these instances of striving for justice, significant numbers of allies within the dominant Western cultures had to be enlisted. Men voted to recognize (not give) women’s right to vote; pressure on East Germany and South Africa from other countries seem to have played a substantial role in changes experienced in those areas. Allies, from within the U.S. and European cultures, are likely to be needed, in the long run, to aid in the battle against widespread impoverishment. Continue reading ‘Liberation Theology and Globalization (Part 3)’
On Saturday, January 24 2009, the Albany Presbytery voted to approve the constitutional amendment to three sections of the Constitution of the Presbyterian Church (USA). The primary change was to section G-6.0106b, the wording of which technically denied ordination to LGBT people seeking positions as deacons, elders or ministers. Before examining the potential effects on each ecclesiastical level of the church, you might want to check out the old and new wording. To do so, click here.
In some respects, this vote has the potential to have a major effect on the Presbyterian Church (USA), if it approved by 81 more presbyteries. It quite possibly will also be somewhat significant for the local presbytery. But, for the local church, little will change except that leaders will not be able to name a third-party as the reason it chooses not to ordain LGBT elders. The primary impact of this amendment is that it puts responsibility for determining the suitability of candidates for deacon, elder or minister squarely on the church body that approves the ordination – session for church officers and presbytery for ministers. Continue reading ‘Albany Presbytery Votes Pro-GLBT’
Continued from here or return to Table of Contents
THE ECONOMICS OF OPPRESSION
It may be, on one hand, quite right to point out that the general populations of these dominant cultures have neither made the decisions to dominate nor benefited directly in the economic spoils of domination. Actions empowered by monarchs and popes have been replaced by those instituted by presidents, prime ministers and corporate moguls. It may even be true that the portion of the U.S. or European populations that has profited the most is the elite – those with significant holdings of stocks, bonds and privilege.[1] While these things may be true, for the general population to claim no enrichment or complicity is to turn a blind eye to the obvious truths of economy and quality of life. Continue reading ‘Liberation Theology and Globalization (Part 2)’
Today, I received an e-mail communication from New York Pride Agenda announcing Governor Paterson’s appointment to fill the seat left open by Hillary Clinton. The announcement read: Continue reading ‘Gillibrand to be New York Senator’
Continued from: God as Mother – more traditional than you might think. Or go to Table of Contents
WHAT DID JESUS DO?
The most common reason given for calling God “God the Father”, “Father God” or “Father” is that Jesus did, and told us to do so as well. That is true, of course, only when you read a translation of the New Testament in something other than Greek. Greek had some interesting abnormalities that affect translation – unusual facets that were easy to miss, or to ignore, depending on your perspectives or intentions. Continue reading ‘God as Mother – lost in later tradition (Pt 2)’
Continued from Deconstruction and the Hermaneutic of Suspicion or go to Table of Contents
GENESIS 1:26-28 – THE IMAGE OF GOD
Underlying much of feminist biblical hermeneutics, obviously, is the issue of equality of the genders, with many feminists directly addressing the issue of “the image of God” or imago dei. This concept originates with Genesis 1:26-28, and is picked up in a few other biblical texts, most notably 1 Corinthians 11:7-8. The problem with the imago dei from the viewpoint of feminist theology is not so much the meaning of “made in the image of God”, which has generated all manner of exceedingly complicated theological discourse since Iranaeus’ misconceptions were corrected by Augustine of Hippo[1], but rather the question of who was made in the image of God. Continue reading ‘Feminist Perspectives and Gen 1:26-28 (Part 5)’
Continued from: Feminist Theology or go to Table of Contents
DECONSTRUCTION AND THE HERMANEUTIC OF SUSPICION
Elisabeth Schüssler Fiorenza has been a leading advocate of a hermeneutical approach that incorporates a “dual emphasis on deconstruction and reconstruction.”[1] This process necessitates delving into what is ambiguously stated, omitted from or is inferred in a passage, as well as what is said. It calls into question the patriarchal formulation of orthodoxy, including the process of rejecting other ancient works in the development of the canon, as part and parcel of the church’s historical approach to marginalizing women. Continue reading ‘Feminist Perspectives on Biblical Authority (Part 4)’
Continued from Biblical Authority or go to Table of Contents
FEMINIST THEOLOGY
Many groups with special theological interests found considerable fodder in the development of this multiplicity of investigative approaches to scripture, among them various kinds of “Third World” liberation theologies and, of particular interest here, feminist theologies. It is difficult to represent a norm for feminist theology, since there are several schools of thought. The common denominator, as expressed by Letty Russell, is a theological approach of advocacy for women that “represents a search for liberation from all forms of dehumanization … advocating full human personhood for all.”[1] Continue reading ‘Feminist Perspectives on Biblical Authority (Part 3)’
LISTED ON WEBRINGS:
Rev Andy Little
MINISTRY FROM TWO POLES 
Recent Comments