Goddess Worship As An Alternative To Patriarchal Religion

This article examines the role of women in Islam, Christianity, and Judaism as depicted in their respective religious texts. It suggests that Christianity and Judaism have experienced distortions over time, focusing on the New Testament and the Hebrew and Samaritan Torah as the primary texts. The study explores themes of creation, family, and society within these religions. The Bible and Torah describe Eve's temptation and Adam's fall, whereas the Quran attributes the temptation equally to both Adam and Eve, emphasizing devotion and piety over gender. In contrast, Judaism and Christianity exhibit clear patriarchal elements, imposing restrictions on women's authority and roles within the family. The patriarchal structure in Islamic societies is suggested to stem more from cultural influences than from religious doctrine, with elements from Israelite traditions infiltrating Islamic culture and jurisprudence under the guise of religion. The study employs a comparative methodology for its analysis.

Reconstructing the relationship between women and Sacred Scriptures is a complex task, and requires a deep survey in the texts and history of religious societies. Introducing the subject, I would like to recall a theme suggested by Maria Luisa Boccia in Ravenna in a conference on Muslim feminism 1. Boccia said that all cultures, all traditions, all human thinking do not belong to ourselves, to us (women) as women, because human history has not considered women able to think. They was not a thinking being but rather a thought one, a product of the mind. Women have often mediated and spread a mindset, a culture that was not their own, which have not any feminine connotation. It was men's thought, because men were the only ones deserving this sphere of the human being. Unfortunately, religious thinking did not make an exception. Concerning this argument, I would also mention Carla Lonzi. She wrote that every man is born with a tradition of leading men behind him, a tradition of respected and influential people they can use as their models; women, instead, have to struggle and to face many problems attempting to find these figures, provided that there are any. We could find some examples in the Scriptures and in the religious history, but we could find it barely and after great efforts, because they were usually undervalued and then forgotten. Significant figures, women of great importance often are not taken into consideration as they deserved. It is important to recognize the fact that religions have been abused for a long time, and still today, in many situations, they are manipulated by the power to control both men and women. Religions have been for a long time and still today are a powerful and effective tool of oppression and restriction, especially over women, in the hands of a power that is, globally, still masculine. Nonetheless, increasingly voices from different religious traditions, are suggesting a new interpretation of religion and its Scriptures highlighting how its universal message of equality has been repressed by the prevailing patriarchal system, which in the past excluded almost totally women from the sphere of knowledge. Concerning the Muslim, these voices are part of an heterogeneous and unorganized movement we can call Muslim feminism, whose members have been active all over the world since the 90's of the latest century. Muslim feminism's hermeneutic, moves towards three main directions:  Deconstructing folk myths and common traditions that are not sustained by the text of Koran, for example those about the description of Creation and of the events in the Garden of Eden, which comes from a biblical inspiration, and have been used to support the thesis of the superiority of men.

As Emile Durkheim says religion is not just about worshiping a sacred entity but it is worship of society itself. Religion is an important social institution which plays an important role in shaping the morality in individual’s life. Hence this paper focuses on exploring the ways in which an established religious text like bible can be interpreted by different strands of society especially with respect to the role and status of women. This paper focuses on fundamental aspects of society such as marriage, sexuality and adultery and explores this with the lens of biblical narratives and norms. This work encompasses various perspectives of interpretations of text and their linkages with theoretical aspects in the gender discourse.

Abstract This entire book is a focused amplification of the sixteenth chapter of my book, The Seven Ways That Man Died.” It expounds certain details of the implications of the curse that was placed upon the relationship between man and woman. To further detail this facet of the curse of death, I felt it necessary to put forth this investigative synopsis on the diverse aspects of misogyny and machismo, and chauvinism or sexism, their definitions and the distinctions between the two. From there, in broad strokes, an analysis of the impacts these phenomena have had in the philosophies, religions, societies, and the most expansive and influent cultures of the world was done. In the same manner, this unambiguous inquiry includes referential markers in which the circumstantial ambiance and referential antecedents of any given misogynistic culture have dominated both secular and religious societies as well as the theoretical framework that underscore each one of these indications upon the basis of sustained, though abbreviated, conclusions. Above all, an attempt was made to manifest clear shreds of evidence of the indisputable appearances of misogyny in the Bible and that seeming approval and, even the apathy of God concerning the mentioned subject. The methodology that I have employed to realize this investigation has been the analysis of data in historical writings be they philosophical, sociological psychological, as well as religious; this includes the Sacred Scriptures of the Bible. Albeit briefly, it has been sought to examine the record of evidence and view the correlation between the universal repercussions seen in societies throughout history, as well as the dominant aspects that the philosophies and the influences of some of the world’s greatest religions have left in their wake because of said influences. A careful exegesis has been done in some relevant passages of the Torah, as well as other sections of the Gospels and Pauline Epistles of the New Testament. The results of this hermeneutical examination will present a compellingly viable explanation for the existence of misogyny and its origin, and of what has been, and what has not been the will of God in these striking manifestations of sexist discrimination throughout human history. This examination brings a harmony to the message of the redemptive work of the death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ in fallen humanity to the original purpose of God the Creator in His fallen creation and the historical and reconciliatory message of the Holy Writ. In conclusion, it will be shown that Jesus Christ came to free humanity from the curse that has destroyed the relationship between man and woman and that His teachings illuminate humanity’s darkened understanding. In the same context, light is brought upon some vital Mosaic and Pauline texts as put forth in the Scriptures.

2013

A considerable degree of attention has been devoted to the coping strategies available to feminists interested in maintaining their allegiance to existing religious frameworks. 1 When confronting texts that have been sancti fi ed by tradition that are problematic either on the theological level (e.g., texts which reveal a preference for male imagery in conceptualizing the nature of the divine) or on the anthropological plane (e.g., texts that belittle women or deliberately limit their active participation in certain aspects of religious life), those who wish to remain within the fold will seek various methods of accommodation. At times these will involve negotiation and compromise; at other times, more substantial revisions will be accomplished over time, via supplementation or reinterpretation of the existing literature. In this chapter, however, I would like to discuss one problematic aspect of this type of accommodation which bona fi de feminists themselves, to the extent that they pledge allegiance to any form of monotheistic institutionalized religion, must to some extent share. My hope is that this will open up discussion as to how such objections should be tackled in religions that are text and law oriented. In true feminist tradition, I would like to approach this question from a personal perspective, by recounting some of my own experience with this issue. In the year 2004, I published a book that discusses the challenge that the feminist critique raises for traditional Judaism. 2 Undoubtedly, there are many practical instances of inequality to women in the rabbinic tradition-women's unequal obligation to perform Chapter 9

This entire book is a focused amplification of the sixteenth chapter of my book The Seven Ways That Man Died. It expounds certain details of the implications of the curse that was placed on the relationship between man and woman. To further detail this facet of the curse of death, I felt it necessary to put forth this investigative synopsis on the diverse aspects of misogyny and machismo, and chauvinism or sexism, their definitions, and the distinctions between the two. From there, in broad strokes, an analysis of the impacts these phenomena have had in philosophies, religions, societies, and the most expansive and influent cultures of the world are done. In the same manner, this unambiguous inquiry includes explicit markers in which the atmosphere and referential antecedents of any given misogynistic culture have dominated both secular and religious societies. It also establishes the theoretical framework that underscores each one of these indications upon the basis of sustained, though abbreviated, conclusions. Above all, an attempt was made to manifest clear evidence of the indisputable appearances of misogyny in the Bible and the seeming approval and even apathy of God concerning the subject. The methodology I have employed to realize this investigation has been the analysis of data in historical writings, be they philosophical, sociological, psychological, or religious; this includes the sacred Scriptures of the Bible. - 10 - Albeit briefly, I have sought to examine the record of evidence and view the correlation between the universal repercussions seen in societies throughout history, as well as the dominant aspects that the philosophies and the influences of some of the world’s greatest religions have left in their wake because of said influences. A careful exegesis has been done in some relevant passages of the Torah, as well as other sections of the Gospels and Pauline Epistles of the New Testament. The results of this hermeneutical examination will present a compellingly viable explanation for the existence of misogyny and its origin, and of what has been and has not been the will of God in these striking manifestations of sexist discrimination throughout human history. This examination brings a harmony to the message of the redemptive work of the death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ in fallen humanity to the original purpose of God the Creator in His fallen creation and the historical and reconciliatory message of the Holy Writ. In conclusion, it will be shown that Jesus Christ came to free humanity from the curse that has destroyed the relationship between man and woman and that His teachings would illuminate humanity’s darkened understanding. In the same context, much-needed light is brought upon some vital Mosaic and Pauline texts as put forth in the Scriptures. In all, my most sincere desire is for the edification of the Body of Christ and for the manifestation of the love, power and victory of Christ to prevail in all things.

The woman is "in all things inferior to the man" was the opinion of a first century Jewish historian, Flavius Josephus. A contemporary of Josephus (Rabbi Judah) said a man must pronounce three blessings each day: "Blessed be the Lord who did not make me a heathen; blessed be He who did not make me a woman; blessed be He who did not make me an uneducated person." Jewish Rabbis in the first century of the Christian era were encouraged not to teach or even to speak with women. It is said in Jewish wisdom literature that, "he that talks much with womankind brings evil upon himself and neglects the study of the law and at the last will inherit Gehenna (hell)" In view of this low status of women, it is not surprising that Jesus was often criticized for associating himself with women, even prostitutes. It is in this oppressive context that Christianity was born. Where does the Woman fit in, in this context? Do her religious background and traditions limit her progress just like the Jewish woman or is she being exposed to better opportunities? Is she free to express her God-given talents and potentials?

Ulum Islamiyyah

The study attempts to highlight feminists’ critics against traditional Christian theology on women. Traditional Cristian theology or known as Biblical or Christian patriarchy by the feminists has allegedly been studied and comprehended from a patriarchal perspective of male dominance hence misrepresentation of female scriptural image within the Bible. In this study, feminists’ critics on issue pertaining to women in the Bible were selected and analyzed its specifics before scrutinized further from Qur’anic point of view. The study finds that despite the feminists’ claim of image defamation of women in the Bible, the Qur’ān on the other hand represented its female subjects in the most acceptable non-discriminative manner. Women as depicted in the Qur’ān were purged of any offensive and denounced outcomes of their own existence and nature. Utilizing scriptural-textual analysis method, the study embarks on deriving points of comparison between the two scriptures highlighting agreements...