How do Ruether’s and Daly’s feminist theologies compare with regard to sexism and patriarchy in Christianity, as it has developed in the mainstream churches? Flashcards
(25 cards)
Introduction:
Context
Feminist theology critiques Christianity’s historical and ongoing relationship with sexism and patriarchy, highlighting how these systems have shaped Christian doctrines, institutions, and spirituality.
Introduction
Focus
This essay compares Rosemary Radford Ruether’s and Mary Daly’s feminist theologies in relation to sexism and patriarchy in mainstream Christianity.
Introduction
Overview
Ruether offers a reformist and integrative feminist approach, believing Christianity contains redeemable elements that can be reclaimed and reinterpreted to support feminism. Daly takes a radical, separatist stance, arguing Christianity is irredeemably patriarchal and must be rejected.
Introduction
LOA
While both acknowledge the pervasive patriarchy and sexism in Christianity, Ruether’s theology emphasizes reform through reinterpretation of scripture and tradition, viewing Jesus and Christian symbols as potentially inclusive and liberating, whereas Daly rejects Christian structures entirely as irreparably sexist and patriarchal, advocating for a new female-centered spirituality outside the Church.
This fundamental difference marks Ruether as more optimistic about Christianity’s capacity for change, and Daly as more radical and separatist.
Paragraph 1
Main Body Paragraph 1: Mary Daly – Radical Rejection of Patriarchy in Christianity
Main Body Paragraph 1: Mary Daly – Radical Rejection of Patriarchy in Christianity
A01: Maleness of God as patriarchal power
Maleness of God as patriarchal power: Daly asserts that the portrayal of God as male legitimates male supremacy in society; “If God is male, then the male is God.” This theological symbolism makes male dominance appear natural and unquestionable.
Main Body Paragraph 1: Mary Daly – Radical Rejection of Patriarchy in Christianity
A01: God as a verb
God as a verb: Daly proposes changing the concept of God from a fixed masculine noun to a gender-neutral, dynamic verb (‘be-ing’), which challenges the notion of eternal male authority and opens space for change.
Main Body Paragraph 1: Mary Daly – Radical Rejection of Patriarchy in Christianity
A01: Bible and Church as irredeemably sexist:
She highlights explicitly misogynistic biblical passages (e.g., 1 Corinthians 14:34, 1 Timothy 2:12, Ephesians 5:22-33) that enforce women’s silence, submission, and inferiority, and the story of Eve as source of sin as tools of female oppression.
Main Body Paragraph 1: Mary Daly – Radical Rejection of Patriarchy in Christianity
A01: Complicity of Christianity in patriarchy and violence
Complicity of Christianity in patriarchy and violence: Daly connects Christianity with the perpetuation of violence (e.g., rape, genocide, war) through patriarchal justifications, citing brutal biblical war accounts (Numbers 31, Deuteronomy 21).
Main Body Paragraph 1: Mary Daly – Radical Rejection of Patriarchy in Christianity
A01: Critique of liberal Christianity
Critique of liberal Christianity: Daly and Daphne Hampson argue that even liberal reinterpretations are insufficient because they still hold the Bible as sacred scripture, which subtly perpetuates sexist paradigms subconsciously.
Main Body Paragraph 1: Mary Daly – Radical Rejection of Patriarchy in Christianity
A01: Sisterhood as alternative
Daly advocates a separatist ‘Sisterhood’ — a non-hierarchical, dogma-free female community that rejects patriarchal Church structures and provides a sacred healing space for women.
Main Body Paragraph 1: Mary Daly – Radical Rejection of Patriarchy in Christianity
A01: Female superiority and separatism
Daly claims female spirituality and knowledge are superior due to patriarchal oppression of women’s development, and that women’s separation from men is necessary for liberation. This is radical and controversial, as critics see it as reverse sexism or segregationist.
Main Body Paragraph 1: Mary Daly – Radical Rejection of Patriarchy in Christianity
Evaluation
• Daly’s analysis of the maleness of God is powerful in exposing how theological symbols uphold patriarchy and male power.
• Her concept of God as a verb is innovative, encouraging a fluid spirituality that challenges fixed gender binaries and social structures.
• However, her wholesale rejection of Christianity may overlook potential for reform; it risks alienating those who find spiritual meaning within Christianity.
• The separatist solution, while offering healing, is arguably impractical in a mixed-gender society and can be critiqued as promoting female supremacy rather than equality, possibly reinforcing division.
• Daly’s emphasis on biblical literalism in her critique neglects the complexity of interpretation and the potential for critical re-readings.
• Overall, Daly’s theology is effective in highlighting structural patriarchy but limited by its radical separatism and rejection of reform.
Paragraph 2
Main Body Paragraph 2: Rosemary Radford Ruether – Reformist Feminist Theology
Main Body Paragraph 2: Rosemary Radford Ruether – Reformist Feminist Theology
A01: Patriarchalization of Christianity
Ruether acknowledges that mainstream Christianity has been shaped by a patriarchal process (“patriarchalization”) which distorted original inclusive teachings.
Main Body Paragraph 2: Rosemary Radford Ruether – Reformist Feminist Theology
A01: Biblical and historical evidence for feminism:
She points to the early Christian female imagery (e.g., Sophia, divine wisdom as female), the non-gendered nature of God (Yahweh as ‘no name’), and the presence of female leaders like Montanist prophets.
Main Body Paragraph 2: Rosemary Radford Ruether – Reformist Feminist Theology
A01: Jesus as gender-inclusive liberator
Ruether argues Jesus subverted patriarchal expectations by rejecting warrior Messiah imagery and instead embodying a servant, self-sacrificing king aligned with female wisdom and care.
Main Body Paragraph 2: Rosemary Radford Ruether – Reformist Feminist Theology
A01: Golden thread of liberation
She highlights a ‘prophetic-liberating tradition’ in the Bible emphasizing God’s defense of the oppressed, Jesus’ outreach to marginalized women (e.g., Samaritan woman at the well, adulterous woman), and key texts like Galatians 3:28 promoting equality “there is neither male nor female.”
Main Body Paragraph 2: Rosemary Radford Ruether – Reformist Feminist Theology
A01: Critique of patriarchal interpretations
Ruether challenges the traditional male-centric interpretations of Jesus and scripture, advocating for a feminist hermeneutic that can redeem Christianity by focusing on its liberative core and rejecting patriarchal distortions as idolatry.
Main Body Paragraph 2: Rosemary Radford Ruether – Reformist Feminist Theology
A01: Christianity’s potential for reform
Ruether believes Christianity can be reformed to support feminist values and gender equality by revisiting the historical Jesus and reinterpreting scripture in its liberating context.
Main Body Paragraph 2: Rosemary Radford Ruether – Reformist Feminist Theology
Evaluation
• Ruether’s historical and theological scholarship provides a hopeful, constructive path that retains Christian identity while addressing sexism.
• Her use of early female divine imagery and the golden thread supports the argument that Christianity is not inherently sexist but corrupted by patriarchal reinterpretation.
• However, some may critique her as too optimistic about reforming such a deeply patriarchal institution. The extent of patriarchalization may be so extensive that reform could be limited or co-opted.
• Critics may argue her reading of Jesus’ feminist intentions is speculative, given ambiguous biblical evidence and Jesus’ limited explicit feminist advocacy.
• Additionally, her approach still depends on retaining the Bible as authoritative scripture, which feminist critics like Daly argue inevitably perpetuates patriarchal paradigms.
• Nonetheless, Ruether’s theology is valuable for providing a framework that many Christians can accept without abandoning their faith, making it more practically influential.
Conclusion
Summary
Both Ruether and Daly recognize and critique the entrenched sexism and patriarchy in Christianity’s history and doctrine, but diverge sharply in their responses.
Conclusion
Comparison
Daly’s radical separatism and rejection of Christianity contrasts with Ruether’s reformist hope to reclaim a feminist core within Christianity.
Daly emphasizes the maleness of God and patriarchy as irredeemable, advocating a new female-centered spirituality. Ruether sees patriarchal Christianity as a distortion of a more inclusive faith centered on liberation and equality.
Conclusion
LOA
While Daly exposes the depth of patriarchy’s grip on Christian symbolism and institutions, her approach risks impracticality and alienation through separatism.
Ruether’s theology, though sometimes optimistic, offers a more constructive and inclusive model for confronting sexism in Christianity by reforming rather than abandoning it.
