PAPER PRESENTATION

Sub: Feminist Theology

Topic: Feminist Christology:

1. Can a Male Savior Save Women?

2. Understanding Jesus Movement and the "Discipleship of Equals" in the bible
3. Jesus Christ-the Theological Basis and Principle for Gender Justice

Lecturer: Ma'am Tonchinsangla

Presenters: Kinito, Viboto, Surenshi, Hutoli, Titokali, Talienla (Group 7)

Respondents: Hokito, Kalep, Limeka, Lino, Tolika, Viketo (Group 4)

Introduction

Christology is one of the important themes in feminist theology. The gender of the Son of God as
a Christological problem is controversial. As Christology gives the higher rank of Jesus
maleness of ontological significance which signifies that Jesus' humanity does not represent
women at all. Thus Feminist have problem with Christology because Jesus is considered as a
male and the Christian churches consider him as a unique God-bearer. But yet the feminist
Christology deal with the different task of explaining the God or humanity of Jesus for women
and creating a Christology model of message to the experience of feminist. Therefore this paper
will also attempt to discuss on the argument as to whether a male savior save women and the
attitude of Jesus towards women and the theological basis and principles for gender justice.

1.Can a male Savior Save Women?

Western Feminist theologians like Ruether, Elizabeth S. Johnson and others have questioned
whether a male savior can save women? Christianity has never said that God was literally male,
but it has assumed that God represents pre-eminently the qualities of rationality and so sovereign
power. Since it is men that were assumed to be rational, and women less so or not at all, and men
who exercised public power, normally denied to women, the male metaphor was seen as
appropriate for God, while female metaphors' for God came to be regarded as inappropriate and
even 'pagan'. The logos who reveal the *father was presumed to be properly image as male,
even though the Jews Wisdom tradition had use the female metaphors, Sophia, for the same idea.
The maleness of historical Jesus re-enforced this preference for male identified metaphors, such
as Logos and 'Son of God', over the female metaphor of Sophia.

In God's self, God is neither male nor female (or humanly gendered at all). But our metaphors
for God must include both male and female. This cannot be done simply by adding together
"Rosemary Radford Reuther, Introducing Redemption In Christian Feminism (Sheffield: Academic Press,
1998),83.
patriarchal masculine and feminine gender stereotypes, or even giving a male God a 'feminine
side, for this leaves women without full humanity

1.1 Jesus as the New Humanity:

Feminist theology has Jesus Christ, The liberator as its foundation. At the same time, it raise
question about the meaning of Jesus Christ since He came to earth as a male. However the
growing women's consciousness is post-moderm world is in conflict with the orthodox doctrine
of the person and work of Christ. Traditional Christology is defined by masculine symbols,
language, and characters that support patriarchal dam nation over women. Therefore, it
legitimizes the secondary status of women in the patriarchal world. According to "Androgynous
Christology", its sees Jesus Christ as the representative of the New Humanity that unifies male
and female. However, the very concept of andogyny presupposes a physic dualism that
identifies maleness with one-haltf of human capacities and femaleness with the other. As long as
Christ is presumed to be normatively a male person, androgynous Christology will carry an
andocentric bias."

1.2 Jesus Relationship with Women

Jesus, a male savior is presented as the one who concen for women. He treated women equally
as men. His treatment of women as revolutionary, nowhere in the gospel it is seen that Jesus
treating women as inferior being, rather gave them equal standing with regard to responsibility.
Jesus showed women great courtesy, compassion and honour. He treated his mother with great
tendemess (John 19:26-27). He received the jars and anointed of a sinful women who had been
caught in the act of adultery (John 8:3f) by the scribes and the Pharisees Jesus was gentle to her
and refused to condemned her. He demonstrated his love towards her by cutting across all form
of injustices to women."

13 Jesus a male Savior stands for women liberation

Jesus is a model for the liberation of women. In his time, women were considered as non-person.
Jesus takes a stands against this socio-religious situation by talking to women (John 4:5-42) and
defending women in public attention to the hemorrhaging women who touches Him (Luke 8:43-
48). He heals women, appreciates and reward them (Mark 7:29) welcom them, and defends
them (Mark 14:3-9). The attitude of Jesus to women as it has been presented in the New
Testament is a transforming force and a motivating factor for his followers. Reuther is insisted
that what is important about the particularity of the man Jesus is not the biological fact of his

Rosemary Radford Reuther, Introducing Redemption In Christian Feminism (Shefficld: Academic Press,
1998), 83.
Lalnghakthuami, Understanding Jesus Indigenous Women's Perspective (New Delhi: ISPCK.2014), 119-
120.
Priscilla Ngullie, Created in His Image: The Concept of Women from a Biblical Perspecive (Dimapur
Bright Printer, 2013). 39-40.
maleness, bit the iconoclastic, prophetic and liberat ing praxis of his ministry towards the
marginalized and the oppressed

The gospel account of Jesus' conversation with women is many and varied. His whole life was a
message of liberation because He liberated the people who are being oppressed by the society or
community. Jesus never allowed the social isologues of caste or race or sex to construct his
identity or limit the identity and potentiality of the others, rather He constantly critique and
rejected the system an structure that denied people their human worth and dignity. The full
liberation of women cannot be achieved only through liberation from the social oppressive
structures. But it can be achieved only through liberating Jesus Christ who is their Christ and
liberator from traditional Christ chain and from whom Jesus broke down all barriers"

2. Understanding Jesus Movement and the "Discipleship of Equals" in the Bible

Women in the Biblical texts are presented indirectly and though male eyes. They are not heard in
their own voices; the Old Testament gives no unmediated access to the lives and thought the
Israelite women. Earle Bennet Cross says that Hebrew women do not stand on the same level
with men and the society in any period of time. Unlike this, a major change and the attitude
towards women are seen in the New Testament times. Jesus movement was critically of the
existing patriarchal family structure and created new form of community. It was egalitarian in
terms of class with the bias in favour of the poor. The value system of the original Jesus
community developed under the hegemony of the poor. It provided for a participation of women
which was far reaching and unusual under the condition of the time.

2.1 Jesus' attitude towards women

Witherington rightly stated that "Jesus was a reformer of patriarchal society, sometimes making
suggestion that would have been considered radical in Jew ish context The key to an
understanding of Jesus' attitude to women is perhaps to be found in Matthew 5:28. Jesus does
not caution his followers against looking at women, but against doing so with lust. Women were
recognized as subject in their own right, as fellow human being, as fellow disciple and not just
the objects of men's desire (John 4:7-12). Jesus broke the strict Jewish custom with boldness. He
did not hesitate to speak with the women (John 4:7), to teach a women (Luke 10:37), or to call a
women daughter of Abraham (Luke 13:16). Though Jesus was Jewish male brought up in an
antro-centric, patriarchal society, yet he respected women as person of dignity and word. Jesus
had women leaning from him as disciple in travelling with him in service. He engaged in
theological dialogue with women. He helped women in need and in sin without depasing them.

Colin J.D. Green, Christology in Culural Perspective(Michigan: Wm.B. Eardmans Publishers Co.
2003), 226.
Priscilla Ngullic, Created in His Image: The Concept of Women from a Biblical Perspectve (Dimapur
Bright Printer. @O13).42-43.
'R. L. Hnuni, Vision for Women in India: Perspecdtive from the Bible, Church and Society (Bangalore:
Asian Trading Corporation, 2009), 278.
This attitude leads to radical difference in the way that Jesus treated women and also in the way
that he expected his followers to treat women.

2.2 Criteria of Discipleship:

The criterion of discipleship is first of all to be called by Jesus. This call is inclusive,
irrespective of sex, race and class. A disciple is anyone who denied herself/himself for the sake
of the reign of God and follows Jesus (Mk 8:34) who ever leaves everything to follow Jesus (Lk
5:11).

Elizabeth S. Malbon, in her article "fallible followers: women and men in the Gospel of Mark"
says that "disciples" are ordinary people, imperfect, faulty weak, uneducated, who do not hold
position in the society. Malbon extends her idea of discipleship beyond the twelve and says that
the "call to discipleship" is both open-ended and demanding; "followership" is neither exclusive
nor easy. In her further development of the "discipleship of equal," Fiorenza uses the Greek term
diakonia, which means literally 'waiting at table.' and which is usually translated as service or
ministry. In its original sense the term means actual material service, waiting at the table and
menial tasks. The servant hah low social position, was dependent on her or his master/mistress,
and could not command respect. Despite the negative social connotation of its original meaning,
"service" has the keys symbol for the revival of a "servant ecclesiology" selfless service is
central to Christian identity and community.

2.3 Discipleship of Equals in the Bible

The phrase "Discipleship of equals" is coined by Elisabeth Schussler Fiorenza, a leading feminist
critique in New Testament studies. A disciple of equal is founded on the notion that all human
beings, despite their difference of gender, race, intelligence, and so on, are equal because God
created each one. Everyone is made in the image of God (Gen 1:27).

Paul's affirmed that discipleship of equal in his Epistle to the Galatians (3:26-28). "For through
faith you are all children of God in Jesus Christ. For all of you who were baptized into Christ
have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jews nor Greek, there is neither slave nor
free person, there is not male and female: for you are all one in Christ Jesus." Within the
Biblical doctrine of the church as the One Body of Christ, there is no different treatment of males
and females. All are referred to as the sons of God; all are referred to as "Pride of Christ". All are
instructed to give birth to the offspring of the Holy Spirit (Galatian 5:22-23). All are told to
develop the spiritual gifts bestowed by the spirit without regard for race or economic class (1Cor
12:13) or age or sex (Acts 2: 16-18). The child or slave who occupies the lowest place between
patriarchal structures becomes the primary paradigm for two discipleship-communities. Such
R. L. Hnuni, Vision for Woman in India: Perspective from the Bible, Church and Society (Bangalore:
Asian Trading Corporation, 2009). 279.

Lalinawmi Raltc, "Discipleship of Equals", Envisioning A New Heaven and A New Earth, edited by
Lalrinawmi Ralte, Florance Robinson, Corinne Scott and Narmala Vasanthakumar (Delhi: ISPCK, 1999), 69-70.

4
true discipleship is not measured on the father or master position but on that of the child or slave.
This can be seen in the paradoxical Jesus saying: "whoever does not receive basileia of God like
a child or slave shall not enter it (Mark
10:15).
3.Jesus Christ-the Theological Basis and Principle for Gender Justice

Jesus' Movement is a challenge to religious authority embodied in past and institutionalized in

the hands of a privileged group of interpreters. Jesus does not meant that He and His followers
are to be like servants or slaves as society understands the "good slaves", that is, as one who
unquestioningly subjects himself or herslf to the existing social order of bondage. Jesus use the
term servant for himself and his disciples in a prophetic- religious sense, presupposing a special
relation to God, by becoming servant of God; can one becomes freed of all bondage to human
masters. Only then as a liberated person, can one truly become "servant of all". giving one's life
to liberate other rather than to exercise power and rule over them."

As Jesus begun to preach and perform it in actions for those who "heard him gladly". Was the
experience of the reign of God already present both in signs and wonders and in celebratory
meals that broke down the divisions in Jewish society between the "pure" and in "impure". The
division between the pure and the impure was observed among the Jews and it marginalized
many classes of people. Women were marginalized as the secondary status in relation to both the
temple holiness and rabbinic study by their very nature as women. The religious laws also
marginalized the vast majority of poor and uneducated Jews and the most intimate division
between thr holy and the unholy divided male and female. Jesus message was that God's
coming reign was not to be prepared for simply by repentance was already presented in our midst
in anticipatory signs, Jesus himself as its initiator, as a joyful good news was that these
separations had been overcome in an overflowing graciousness of God. All the hopeless ones,
including women in every category. Samaritan or Canaanites received not only healing,
forgiveness and hope but gathered in a joyful banquet in which, by sharing with each other their
small provisions, they created abundance together, so that twelve basket were required to gather
up all that remained after the feast (Markó:43, Luke 9:17).

Conclusion

Christianity appears to be inclusive promise of redemption in Christ without regards to gender.

Women should be considered in the light of Jesus' attitude towards them. He asked the people to
follow his footstep and break the socio-cultural tradition walls that marginalized women from the
full ministry to serve the Lord. Jesus had concern for the poor and under privileged and gave

Elisabeth Schussler Fiorenza, "Discipleship of Equals" A critical Feminist Ekklesia-logy of Liberation (

New York : The Crossroad Publishing Company. 1994).220-221.
"Rosemary Radford Reuther, Sexism and God- Talk: Towards a Feminist Theology (Boston: Beacon
Press, 1983), 121.
"Rosemary Radford Reuther. Introducing Rademption in Christian Feminism (Shefficld: Academic Press,
1998). 14-15.
equal regards for women and men. Thus, women should be given equal opportunity as men in
the church or society by not setting the boundaries.

Bibliography
Fiorenza, Elisabeth Schussler. "Discipleship of Equals" A critical Feminist Ekkiesia-logy of
Liberation. New York : The Crossroad Publishing Company, 1994.

Green, Colin J. D. Christology in Cultural Perspective. Michigan: Wm.B. Eardmans Publishers

Co., 2003.

Hnuni, R. L. Vision for Women in India: Perspective from the Bible, Church and Society.
Bangalore: Asian Trading Corporation, 2009.

Lalnghakthuami, Understanding Jesus Indigenous Women's Perspective. New Delhi: ISPCK,

2014.

Ngullie, Priscilla. Created in His Image: The Concept of Women from a Biblical Perspective
Dimapur: Bright Printer, 2013.

Ralte, Lalrinawmi. "Discipleship of Equals". Envisioning A New Heaven and A New Earth,
edited by Lalrinawmi Ralte, Florance Robinson, Corinne Scott and Narmala Vasanthakumar.
Delhi: ISPCK, 1999.

Reuther, Rosemary Radford. Introducing Redemption In Christian Feminism.Sheffield:

Academic Press, 1998.

Reuther, Rosemary Radford. Sexism and God- Talk: Towards a Feminist Theology. Boston:
Beacon Press, 1983.