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Christianity,gender and Sexuality - Coggle Diagram

- - - - Swiss Theolgian Karl Barth challenged the Liberal approach to Biblical criticism. Barth argued that the Christian message in the Bible is not a development of enlightenment values. Its role was to challenge ordinary human assumptions.
        It is wrong to say that human reason can be used to Judge scripture. In fact, scripture is the judge of human reason
  - - - the virgin birth of Jesus
      - belief that Christs death was an atonement for Sin
      - the infallibility of the scripture
      - the bodily resurrection of Jesus
      - biblical inspiration
- - - - Christian complementarians-argue that men and woman are of equal importance in the sight of God-however they have different and complementary roles, in marriage, family life, society and also in the organisation of the Church
  - - - Within Catholic thinking Natrual Law suggests that people should live in a way that reflects their inherent nature. If men and woman have different natures. It followed that they should take different roles in life. This does not mean that one is more valuable than the other, but just that they are different.
    - - Pope Gelasius I-wrote in 494 opposing woman taking part in the celebration of the Eucharist, so it is clear that some were taking on teh role that was later reserved exclusively for men.
    - - This is the passing on of the authority form one generation to the next by the laying on of hands at ordination going back to the apostles
        
        This means that the ordination of woman in the early church was limited to minority sects and condemned
        
        That whilst other Churches, following the reformation, ordain woman this does not follow the historical tradition of the Churches as a whole
        
        As well as this the church follows Christ himself in choosing only men for this ministry
        
        Finally Jesus chose only men to be his “Twelve”-but in his positive dealing with woman, he rejected the social convention of his day. Jesus, therefore showed the model for a high view of woman which nevertheless excludes them from the leadership of the church.
  - - - During the time off the Protestant reformation ordination was not practised by either men or woman.
- - - - in 1944 Florence Li-Tim-Oi was ordained as a Priest in China-to fill the role of a lack of men in the Church. This would help pave a way in woman’s ordination to Church.
        
        In the lat e1970s female ordination was again discussed and lost in the House of Clergy. With those opposed to the ordination of woman argued that the Church of England did not have the authority to overturn the tradition of male-only ordained ministry in the Apostolic succession.Many more felt that it would damage the relationship with from the Church of England-to the Roman Catholic Church.
        
        In 1981, the Synod agreed that woman could be ordained as deacons legislation was passed in 1985, and the first ordination of woman deacons took place in 1987. The proposal to ordain woman to the priesthood was finally received the required majority in all three houses of Synod in 1992, and on 12 March 1994, the first 32 woman were ordained as priests in the Church of England.
        
        Elizabeth Jane Holden became the first female bishop in the Church of England-when she was consecrated as Bishop of Stockport in January 2015.
- - - - A biblical strand looks at the idea of God as loving and caring-qualities associated with woman. It also points to the importance of woman within the accounts of the life and teaching of Jesus
      - A radical strand that has ,moved beyond Christianity, which seeks to find ways to speak to God which are true to our present day ways of thinking which will be gender inclusive
      - Liberal feminist-A liberal stand presents the patriarchal system as illogical denying women the fundamental right to equality with men
    - - Daphne Hampson is a post-Christian Theolgian, who taught at St Andrews.
        
        hampson holds that Christianity is not true, and defines “Christian”, as a position as the belief that there was a uniqueness about the events surrounding Jesus of Nazareth
        
        Hampson disregards the idea that Jesus was resurrected, or that he had a special relationship with God. For Hampson this idea simply “Does not make sense”
        
        Furthermore, Hampson finds Christianity not moral, believing that people must take responsibility for themselves, she does not think that people should be referring to a revelation in history, or a transcendent God
        
        For Hampson Christianity believes in a God that is totally different form human beings, so they obey Gov instead of excercising moral choices freely. Christians cannot it’s start from the present because they belive in a transcendnat God, who has revealed Godself in History, so they must always take what they think to be God’s word into consideration.
        
        The Consquence of this, is that the outlook of the past is brought to the present. This means according to Hampson, Christianty has become “irredeemably sexist”. Therefore it comes to look only Natrual that being Male should be the norm for mankind. While being a woman is see as the “Other”, option.
        
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    - - Rosemary Rurther is a feminist libertarian Theolgian and member of the Roman Catholic Church. Rurther believes that Christianty is a religious culture which can be re-states in feminist terms.
        
        Rurther sees a parallel between jesus’s teaching in the Gospel and feminist critique of society today. For example social injustice, and religious hierarchies at the time of Jesus were the result of male domination. Jesus will side with the oppressed and outcasts of society, including woman.
        Ruther sees Jesus exemplifying female traits of healing and caring, as well as male traits of power and authority. And in this sense Jesus exemplifies both male and female features.
- - - - Early Christians believed that the world was coming to an end-so there were more important things to do then have children.
        Later on as life was expected to continue, many religious leaders were expected to Mary and have children.
        
        Celibacy grew to be very important to woman, proving them with an intellectual environment for them to flourish, free from male domination and responsibilities. Today celibacy is widely practiced amoung monks,nuns, and Roman Catholic clergy.
        
        In the Orthodox Church, priests may be married when they are ordained but they cannot marry after their ordination. Bishops may not be married. Roman Catholic Church also require their priests to not be married.
        
        In Contrats many Protestant Evangelical Churchesd would prefer their clergy to be married with a family, following the advice in 1-Timothy-3-1-17-they argue that a celibate man fails to live up to the biblical requirements for a church leader to be the husband of one wife, and to have an orderly family life
  - - - Within the Church, marriage became a sacrament, a special means of receiving God’s grace. Moreover following the reformation, the balance shifted in favour of marriage, with a family being seen as god’s blessing.
        
        Modern View
        
        Since legal registration of marriage does not now require a religious ceremony, the Christian element in marriage can be seen by some as an optional extra, over and above the legal and financial commitment of a couple. But this raises the question of whether or not a secular marriage in a registry office is a full marriage in the Christian sense.
        
        The Christian marriage ceremony states that it is a commitment for life. The problem then becomes what to do with those who divorce
        
        Today Marriage is often seen primary as a relationship offering satisfaction to the partners who enter into it, rather than as a sacrament whose purpose is to establish a family
        
        Moreover further problems are raised with those who have entered into single sex marriage
  - - - Within the Catholic Church there is a distinction between tendencies, and acts. So someone may Expereince themselves as gay, but may not choose not to engage in same-sex-activity. Some argues that those with Homo-sexual tendencies should refrain from any form of sexual-activity.
        
        Much of the problem faced by homosexuals within the Christian Churches stems for Biblical texts that appear to condemn homosexual activity.
        
        Leviticus-2013-“If a man has sexual relations with a man as one does with a woman-both of them have done what is detestable. They are to be put to death-their blood will be on their own heads”
        
        1-Corinthians-6-9-10-“Do not be deceived-neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulters noir men who have sex with men nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkardss nor slanderers nor swindlerers will inherit the kingdom of God.
        
        Leviticus-18-22-“Do not have sexual relations with a man as one does with a woman-this is detestable”
  - - - however judging the mood at the time in first century traditional Palestine it would have been impossible for a man to live as a woman-or-vice-versa.
        
        Arguments against allowing change of gender
        
        if all people are created by God, it could be argued that God, who does not make mistakes, gave transgender people their body for a reason, so they should be content with the gender Giod gave them
        
        The Early church was strongly opposed to surgery which tampered with sex identity, for example men who had been castrated were not permitted to be ordained as priests.
        
        Those who believe it is wrong to change gender argue that all the passages which relates to homosexuality also apply to those who change their gender, since surgical gender transition cannot change their sexual nature that a person is born with. If a transgender femake sleeps with a man, it is the same as if two men engage in a homosexual act, and is therefore condemned.
        
        Arguments in favour of allowing change in gender
        
        The First creation story says that when god created humanking, in the images of God, he created them, male, and female. This means that switching gender is simply choosing one aspect of God;s over another
        
        In his letter to the Galatians Paul says, “There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave, nor free, nor is there male and female, fo r you are all one in Christ”-Paul seems to be saying that for Christians gender identity has no importance, therefore changing one’s gender is off little importance
        
        Alternatively a transgender person could claim that God created them as a whole, with the nature of one gender and the body of another, giving them the responsibility of choices about how to live their life.