Gender and theology (OCR A-Level Religious Studies): Revision Notes

Mary Daly

The exclusive use of male language for God and the belief that only men can represent God as leaders in the Church and society means that Christianity has failed to represent women.

Mary Daly and Patriarchal Religion

• Men throughout history have utilised religion as a tool to oppress women and force them into subordinate roles.
• Women therefore have to move beyond religion to progress and flourish and religion is what is keeping women from achieving their potential.
• Female oppression is a product of cultural and historical impact as a consequence of Christianity's unholy trinity, rape, genocide, and war. Tertullian: "Women are the devil's gateway."

Augustine: Women are not made in the image of God

Aquinas: Women are misbegotten males

Concerns with religious terminology

"If God is male then male is God"

• Patriarchal religion perpetuates these sexual roles which are seen as natural.
• God the father is an inadequate representation of God or his character and has been used to justify male domination and superiority.
• We need a new way of describing God as the old language is androcentric.
• Women need a new spirituality.

Daly's critiques of modern theologians

Bonhoeffer: says women should submit themselves to their husbands.

Barth: Claims women are subordinate to men

Pope Pius XII: Women's liberation is achieved from motherhood.

Fletcher: Fletcher is a personalist who denies the communal aspect required for the liberation of women.

The consistent sexist attitudes that religious theologians distribute suggest a key link between religion and repressive attitudes.

Rape

• Daly sees rape as a symbol of violent oppression
• It is a mentality and a way of thinking about a group which oppresses them
• The symbol is representative of the mental and physical violence that women are subjected to.
• The powerful in society use culture, religion, and politics to diminish female power and influence within society.
• Women forget inequality within society and become divided amongst each other, preventing them from moving beyond the stereotypes and gender roles.
• Daly argues that there is a connection between the mentality of rape and the phenomenon of war.
• Rape is often a product of war, for example, thousands of Bengali women were raped by Pakistani soldiers.

The treatment of women in the Bible

"Now kill all the boys and kill every woman who has slept with a. Man, but save yourselves every girl who has never slept with a man."

Same-Sex socialism

• Daly argues that there is a phenomenon of sexual caste.
• There is a hierarchy that gives males and females unequal power.
• The hierarchy continues because of sec-role socialisation
• Girls and women have always been socialised into taking passive roles whilst boys have always been dominant.

Genocide

• Genocide is representative of male enlightenment, believing they can do what they like.
• rape obj citizens all those who can be cast into the role of victims of violence.
• Individuals then become a part of a group of raped people.

War

• War is an inevitable result of male-dominated politics
• Acts of war and violence are associated with manly virtues→ men doing courageous acts to defeat the enemies.
• The belief that acts of violence are necessary to defeat enemies is a very masculine idea of power.
• The language used to talk about war, portrays it as a selfless and powerful act as opposed to the suffering and harm it causes.
• "Phallic morality" has been used to justify the state of war.