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Original Article:

http://feminismandreligion.com/2011/12/06/reformer-revolutionary-

or-rationalist-three-types-of-feminism-by-kile-jones/

Reformer, Revolutionary, or Rationalist?Three Types of Feminism By Kile JonesDecember 6, 2011

tags:Kile Jones,Martin Luther,Mary Daly,rationalist,reformer,revolutionary,Rita Gross,Roman Catholic Church

Guest Contributor

What do Martin Luther and Mary Daly have in common?

They both realized that they could not reform the Roman

Catholic Church from the inside-out. They came to

believe that some institutions, even those dear to the heart,

are not worth saving. One of the most significant

differences between Luther and Dalyaside from the

obvious differences in time, culture, race, class, and sexis that Luthers faith in God remained intact whereas

Dalys did not. Mary Daly, due to her positions on

Catholic thought, came to represent what is now referred to

as Post-Christian Feminism (or Post-Religious Feminism).

Post-Christian feminism, as seen in the writings of Mary

Daly, Daphne Hampson, and Sarah Sentilles (each with

differing takes), argues that there are certain incompatible

values between Christianity and feminism, and as a result of this, Christian feminists ought to consider how to

respond to this incompatibility. As Rita M. Gross states inFeminism and Religion, The most difficult question

facing a feminist who discovers her traditional religion to be patriarchal and sexist is what to do next, (107).

So the question remains: should feminists reform Christianity from the Inside-out or abandon the Church

altogether?

Those who attempt to reform their religious institutions from the inside-out are innumerable. I can think of

Rosemary Radford Ruether and Elisabeth Schussler Fiorenza as examples of Christian feminists who opt ou t of

the post-Christian ideology. These scholars are usually referred to as Christian reformists, since they believe that

genuine reform is needed and possible. Ruether is fine with women leaving the Catholic Church because they want

to be ordained through some other denomination, but regarding herself she says, I am very committed to keeping or

trying to support the continuance of progressive perspectives in Catholicism (italics mine).*

Fiorenza also calls for great change to occur within the Church. One of Fiorenzas bold proposals is: organize to

take over the only democratic office in the Roman Catholic Church: the College of Cardinals. Both Ruether and

Fiorenza would agree with many of the critiques posed by post-Christian feminists, but the manner in which Ruether

and Fiorenza choose to respond is quite different.

Rita Gross points out how both Mary Daly and Carol P. Christ differ from the reformists. She says,

Their works are especially valuable because each began as a radical reformer, publishing important books and

essays in which they hoped to make sense of biblical religions and to call them away from their sexism. Eventually

each became convinced that this effort would fail because patriarchy is too integral to the outlook of those religions

(Feminism and Religion, 147).

Gross avoids the question over who is correct, the reformists or the revolutionaries, by pointing out both want

patriarchal religion to change, and although there may be some principled differences between them, they share

many of the same goals.

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One of my liberal Catholic friends once compared the Church to a family. He said, Just because your family has

problems doesnt mean you should abandon them. I thought about this for a while, considering its merits, and

finally got up the courage to ask, What if your family is abusive? I knew at this point we would ultimately

disagree, but at least the point became obvious. We had different takes on the negative vs. positive impact that the

Roman Catholic Church has on the world. We also had different criteria for what abusive means. Another

problem I had with the family analogy (we can call it the prosapia analogy) is that, to the average Catholic, the

Magisterium, the Episcopacy, the College of Cardinals, and the Roman Curia are generally more distant than the

individuals own family (You may be able to cal the authorities to report abuse by a family member, but try getting

the Pope arrested!). Certainly it is easier to hold your family accountable than an institution as large as the Roman

Catholic Church. Despite these differences, I felt I understood the overall point of his analogy: we may be born

into structures (e.g. the Church, the State, and humanity) that have oppressive tendencies, but we have a

responsibility to reform these structures from the inside out.

Finally, there is a third category understood as secular feminists who find principled objections to the content of

religious symbolism and the ways in which institutionalized religion has translated them into practice. The works of

Ayaan Hirsi Ali, Annie Laurie Gaylor, and Ophelia Benson are just a few examples of this type of feminism. These

feminists think that organized religion not only promotes sexism and patriarchy, but that the spiritual or

mystical beliefs espoused by these institutions serve to keep women in a state of permanent subjugation.

Although critical of spiritual beliefs, it can be said with some confidence that the primary target of their

frustrations is organized religion. Ali, primarily known for her strong criticisms of Islam, expresses her views quiteclearly: A womans lack of social equality and freedom is a direct consequence of the teachings ofIslam. Gaylor,

the co-founder of the Freedom From Religion Foundation, unabashedly asserts that, Organized religion always has

been and remains the greatest enemy of womens rights.

While sorting out ones own views on which method is best, one has to keep a few questions in mind. Firstly, does

Christianity have an essentially misogynistic core? Can Christianity be Christianity without its patriarchal

characters (e.g. the Trinity, or as Mary Daly refers to them, the Supreme All Male Cast)? Secondly, is the

institutional character of Christianity worth saving? Finally, which method is most likely to bring about genuine

change for women? Which method will bring change about quickest and with the most beneficial long-lasting

consequences? To answer these questions is to answer the main question of this article: reformer, revolutionary, or

rationalist?

Although I agree with the rationalist and revolutionary over the reformer, I applaud much of the work done bywomen to change the misogynistic tones of their religion. I cannot help but find it hard to believe that Christianity

can eventually be morphed into something non-patriarchal. If one were to act like Thomas Jefferson and cut out all

of the misogynistic passages in the biblical text, I believe we would have a very small bible! If somebody started a

tradition based on this new bible I would be less averse to it than to traditional Christianity. This, of course, is

highly unlikely, and is the reason I choose to promote the social critiques of the revolutionary and the logical

critiques of the rationalist.

See Rosalind Hinton, A Legacy of Inclusion: An Interview with Rosemary Radford Ruether, CrossCurrents, Spring 2002, Vol. 52, No 1.

This article was originally posted onState of Formation.

Kile Jones is a Ph.D. in Religion student atClaremont Lincoln Universityworking on the intersections between

secularism, atheism, and religious belief.

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