My Feminist Perspective of Authority – Part 1 by Elise M. Edwards
Originally posted on the Feminism and Religion project
I make a distinction between power and authority. Authority is a personal characteristic based on a relationship... more
I make a distinction between power and authority. Authority is a personal characteristic based on a relationship of trust between me and a text, a person, or their work. Power, on the other hand, is operative with or without trust.
This past weekend, I had the honor of participating in a workshop on Living Texts: Celebrating Feminist Perspective and Theo/alogy, Authority, and the Sacred in the Academy. The workshop was organized for the Women’s Caucus of WECSOR, a regional association of national organizations who study religion. I was delighted to connect with new friends, mentors and sisters interested in feminism and religion,
Feminism In Theology By Andrew Tripp
Originally published on the Feminism and Religion project
At the outset, I need to name and own my identities as a large white male. I have privilege and voice that makes me... more At the outset, I need to name and own my identities as a large white male. I have privilege and voice that makes me hesitant to even write to the audience of this blog. While I consider myself a feminist, I have met some who have told me that as a man I cannot be a feminist. Such folks have told me that I lack the existential knowledge of the systemic pressure put on women, and at best I can be an ally. With that said, if it was not for feminism in theology, I do not know if I could be a theologian.
Get Your Laws off my Body! by Elise Edwards
Originally published on the Feminism and Religion project.
After considering Virginia’s Transvaginal Utrasound Bill in light of the womanist critique, I wonder if... more
After considering Virginia’s Transvaginal Utrasound Bill in light of the womanist critique, I wonder if religiously-motivated lawmakers considered that they alone do not have access to God’s intentions, but that the divine spirit is operative in a pregnant woman as well, would they be so willing to negate her moral agency?
On Tuesday, the senate in Virginia approved a law that would require women to get an external ultrasound before an abortion. This is a scaled-back version of an original bill that mandated transvaginal ultrasounds prior to abortions. According to this Washington Post article, opponents like Sen. Janet D. Howell describe the measure as “state rape,” since it is the state, not the woman and her doctor who decides that she must undergo this procedure requiring the insertion of a probe into the vagina. Although proponents of the bill say that it is designed to give women more information about a fetus’ gestational age and development, most would agree that it is ultimately intended to discourage the women from having an abortion.
Feminist Theologies: Past, Present, and Future
Originally published on the Feminism and Religion project
On February 7, 2012, a panel discussion focused on the past, present, and future of feminist theologies took place at... more On February 7, 2012, a panel discussion focused on the past, present, and future of feminist theologies took place at Claremont Graduate University to celebrate the release of TheOxford Handbook on Feminist Theology. The panel was organized by John Erickson, moderated by Grace Kao, and featured Karen Torjesen, Rosemary Radford Ruether, Gina Messina-Dysert, Zayne Kassam, and Sheila Briggs as presenters. What resulted was a terrific discussion about women, religion, and feminist theologies. Many were in attendance and participated in the panel; for those who were unable to attend, here is a video of the presentations from that evening. We look forward to you sharing your thoughts and comments about the past, present, and future of feminist theologies.
REMEMBERING MERLIN STONE, 1931-2011 by Carol P. Christ
Originally published on Feminism and Religion project
In the beginning…God was a woman. Do you remember?” Feminist fore-mother and author of these words Merlin... more
In the beginning…God was a woman. Do you remember?” Feminist fore-mother and author of these words Merlin Stone died in February last year.
I can still remember reading the hardback copy of When God Was a Woman while lying on the bed in my bedroom overlooking the river in New York City early in 1977. The fact that I remember this viscerally underscores the impact that When God Was a Woman had on my mind and my body. Stone’s words had the quality of revelation: “In the beginning…God was a woman. Do you remember?” As I type this phrase more than thirty-five years after first reading it, my body again reacts with chills of recognition of a knowledge that was stolen from me, a knowledge that I remembered in my body, a knowledge that re-membered my body. My copy of When God was a Woman is copiously underlined in red and blue ink, testimony to many readings.
Where do Cats Go?: Reflections on Death Post Patriarchal Christianity by Sara Frykenberg
Originally posted on the Feminism and Religion project.
The reason I am speaking about death today is two-fold. First, I have been somewhat preoccupied with the concept... more
The reason I am speaking about death today is two-fold. First, I have been somewhat preoccupied with the concept of death since entering a new decade of my life. I no longer believe in the evangelical vision of heaven I learned about in my youth; but as an uncomfortable “un”-Christian, I also have no satisfactory vision to replace it. Or rather, there are many visions I find appealing, but none that I “believe in,” as I had believed in heaven. My family is getting older, my parents have been sick in the last few years, and I often feel that I have more to lose now than I used to.
My second reason for considering death today is that last Wednesday, Mimi, our family cat of 24 years—yes, 24—passed away. After spending all nine of her lives living, Mimi could no longer eat and was suffering. My mother had her put down after we all said goodbye; we held a funeral for her and buried her among the lilies in our yard, her home.
Body, Nature, Ancestors by Carol P. Christ
Originally published on the Feminism and Religion project.
Some years ago, womanist theologian Karen Baker–Fletcher asked about ancestors following a lecture I gave on the body... more Some years ago, womanist theologian Karen Baker–Fletcher asked about ancestors following a lecture I gave on the body and nature. I have since come to realize that ancestors are a missing link between the two: we cannot speak adequately of embodiment and interdependence in the web of life without recognizing the ancestors whose lives made ours possible. Our mothers quite literally gave us our bodies. All of our ancestors gave us their genes. Care and callousness with origins going back longer than conscious memory was imprinted on the psyches of our parents and grandparents and transmitted to us. All of our ancestors give us connections to place. While many black people in America can recite oral histories that begin with slavery in the United States, I come from a family where stories of origin for the most part were not valued or told.
Does Humor Have a Place in Religion? by Barbara Ardinger
Originally published on the Feminism and Religion project.
Is there anything funny about the divine? Any joke-telling gods? From the days of Abraham until today, the gods and... more
Is there anything funny about the divine? Any joke-telling gods? From the days of Abraham until today, the gods and their preachers are a very earnest lot intent on saving us from our sins and building congregations.
Like it or not, we neopagans are still children of the society we’re endeavoring to change. Some of us seem to want to switch patriarchy to matriarchy, but that’s just swapping Big Daddy for Big Momma. It’s still a hierarchical arrangement with the deity at the top of the mountain. Immediately below the “arch” are angels, men, eagles, lions, and other superior beasts. At the bottom of the mountain are women, mud, and matter. (In case you don’t recognize it, this is the 18th-century Great Chain of Being.)
Any humor in spiritual and religious writing? The Hebrew Bible (which Christians refer to as the Old Testament) is a collection of laws, canonically approved versions of history, prophetical preachings, and poetry. The Christian Bible (aka New Testament) give us different approved versions of history, plus further preaching, plus myth and mysticism.
Does Humor Have a Place in Religion? by Barbara Ardinger
Originally published on the Feminism and Religion Project.
Is there anything funny about the divine? Any joke-telling gods? From the days of Abraham until today, the gods and... more
Is there anything funny about the divine? Any joke-telling gods? From the days of Abraham until today, the gods and their preachers are a very earnest lot intent on saving us from our sins and building congregations.
Like it or not, we neopagans are still children of the society we’re endeavoring to change. Some of us seem to want to switch patriarchy to matriarchy, but that’s just swapping Big Daddy for Big Momma. It’s still a hierarchical arrangement with the deity at the top of the mountain. Immediately below the “arch” are angels, men, eagles, lions, and other superior beasts. At the bottom of the mountain are women, mud, and matter. (In case you don’t recognize it, this is the 18th-century Great Chain of Being.)
Any humor in spiritual and religious writing? The Hebrew Bible (which Christians refer to as the Old Testament) is a collection of laws, canonically approved versions of history, prophetical preachings, and poetry. The Christian Bible (aka New Testament) give us different approved versions of history, plus further preaching, plus myth and mysticism. The writings of the medieval Fathers of the Church are famously grim and misogynistic. The Qur’an offers ethical guidance and moral preaching. In the Far East, the Tao is also profound, as are the preachings of the Buddha. The writings of Confucius present instructions for maintaining the correct social order (another version of that Great Chain). The great stories of Hinduism are filled with wonder, adventures, and philosophy. But they’re not very funny.
These are the standard texts of the standard-brand religions, and though I’ve greatly oversimplified them—no offense intended to anyone—I think it’s safe to say that while we can have conversations filled with humor, gentle or ironic, with followers of these religions, we are unlikely to discern anything funny in the holy books. From the beginning, spiritual writing has been unrelentingly and highly serious.
One of the blessings of the Goddess religion—spiritual feminism or feminist spiritualism—is playfulness. I know many neopagans who are extraordinarily creative. I’ve been to some truly inventive rituals. I have read hilarious jokes and postings in the social media.
Goddess Meditation: Pattini by Laura Loomis
originally posted on the Feminism and Religion Project
I first became interested in Goddess spirituality because of my love of storytelling. Centuries-old stories... more
I first became interested in Goddess spirituality because of my love of storytelling. Centuries-old stories yield multiple layers of meaning, and can be told many different ways to get at different truths. In this respect, the written word is both a blessing and a curse. It preserves stories that might otherwise be lost; who knows what tales were told about the Venus of Willendorf, or the giant heads on Easter Island? But it also gives rise to the idea that there is a single “right” version of sacred stories. Adam and Eve can be a meditation on choice and responsibility, but the insistence on taking the story literally can turn it into a command to disbelieve science.
I’ve been working on some meditations about the connection between Goddess spirituality and political activism. Last weekend, with people across the country rising up against Proposition 8, I was reminded of a story from Sri Lanki, about the Goddess Pattini.
Tags: tags: Adam and Eve, goddess, Goddess Devi, How a woman became a Goddess, Kovolan, Laura Loomis, meditation, Pattini, Goddess Spirituality, Feminism, Religion
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Residing in a Liminal Space: Finding a scholarly home at the Institute for Thealogy and Deasophy by Patricia ‘Iolana
originally published at the Feminism and Religion Project.
For years I was outside of traditional academia. I can no longer count the times I have heard that my research... more For years I was outside of traditional academia. I can no longer count the times I have heard that my research and my theories were highly radical and would never find a home or a place of acceptance. Early in my career, while still in the States, a number of my colleagues tried to convince me to take a traditional theological stance, and join the world of orthodox faith tradition. What my well-meaning colleagues never considered was that in asking me to alter my way of being, they were asking me to deny myself, my understanding of the Numinous, and negating that there were other people in the world who think and feel as I do. I would rather cut off my nose to spite my face. Needless to say, I continued on, even though it often meant blazing my own trail off the safe and ‘beaten path.’ I trusted that I was on the right path and that the Divine would lead my way. In other words, I had faith—loads of it, and in the end it paid off.
A Next Wave of Scholarship by Kwok Pui Lan
Published in the Feminism and Religion Project
I came to the United States in 1984 to begin my doctoral studies at Harvard Divinity School. It was an exciting time... more
I came to the United States in 1984 to begin my doctoral studies at Harvard Divinity School. It was an exciting time to do feminist theology and religious studies. Womanist ethics just began to emerge, as Dr. Katie Geneva Cannon has just completed a dissertation on the subject at Union Theological Seminary in 1983. I count it as a blessing that she was teaching at the Episcopal Divinity School, just on the other side of the Cambridge Common.
The mid-1980s saw the paradigm shifts in feminist studies in religion, as womanist, mujerista/Latina, Asian and Asian American women began to articulate their own theological understanding. If Womanspirit Rising (1979) was a reference text for our field, which contained essays by white women, we had the first reader by radical women of color, This Bridge Called Our Back(1981).
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Download (.docx) Sacred Space by Amy Levin
Feminism and Religion
by: Amy Levin
I normally don’t get too personal in my blog posts. I figure if I’m going to take up space on the blog I might as well... more I normally don’t get too personal in my blog posts. I figure if I’m going to take up space on the blog I might as well offer up something other than me, my voice, my body, and instead some good old fashioned commentary on those categories of feminism and religion “out there.”
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Toward a Goddess model of soteriology
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Religions answer people’s questions about death and afterlife, and provide support to overcome tangible problems of... more
Religions answer people’s questions about death and afterlife, and provide support to overcome tangible problems of life, such as poverty, illness and strife, and to make sense of life amidst them. Traditional religions thus developed their concept of salvation from the problems of life, the world’s ills, and ultimately the perceived consequences after death. Christianity developed an entire religion around soteriology, and means to salvation became the central interpretation on Jesus Christ’s mission, life, death and resurrection narratives. Modern seekers of feminine spirituality often come out from heavily soteriological religions in which sense of guilt is part of their indoctrination process. In proposing alternatives to those “salvation-based” patriarchal faiths, thealogians have not yet developed a coherent soteriology to adequately respond in a pastoral setting. The lack of working soteriology in a Goddess faith may be a driving factor in its inability to penetrate classist barriers and keeping the Goddess faith mostly an intellectual exercise and a social experiment by and for the university-educated, white middle-class women; and work toward a Goddess model of soteriology is essential in making feminine spirituality a living tradition shared and accessible by, and meets the needs of, people of all socioeconomic, ethnic and cultural backgrounds.