My first encounter with Sallie McFague’s article was jarring: her eco-feminist metaphorical approach to theology is somewhat unexpected to those unfamiliar with Religious Studies. Yet I suppose I have misjudged much of this field of study by unfairly coming to expect either wholly traditional or wholly radical claims. McFague’s approach, however, seems relatively moderate and reasonable in all its assertions, and its neo-Derridian deconstruction had my inner cultural analyst bursting with excitement. Aching to break away from the patriarchical tyranny of classical Christian theology, she is committed to a drastic reconstruction of traditional Christian dogma.
At first I wondered as to her motives: was this deconstruction fueled by a second-wave feminist desire to overthrow patriarchy, or the wishes of a tree-hugging ecologist on a mission to save the natural world (as suggested by her book’s title, Theology for an Ecological, Nuclear Age)? Apparently neither. It is after the first few paragraphs that McFague brings clear relevancy to her writing. She argues that the common interpretation of Jesus’ resurrection serves to negate God’s omnipresence. Traditionally it is understood that the resurrection represents a “personal, bodily translation into another world” (259) though which one can join the Savior. Thus while awaiting a later holistic reunion with God, one’s earthly, bodily present is in “between-time”, in limbo, lacking God in space and time. Thus McFague fears such an interpretation for its indirect implications: God, then, is not ‘omnipresent’ – He is only partially, selectively present. (260) She proposes, then, that the resurrection tale no longer be held as a mythology of transcendence, but rather as a “promise of G...
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...e need for metaphorical theology. The particular appeal of McFague’s style is, then, not necessarily her argument nor her logic: rather it is her open-minded approach to such controversial matters. For as McFague herself would openly admit, “there are, of course, different understandings on what is ‘better’” (265).
Notes:
[1] I particular enjoyed McFague’s observation that “a model is a metaphor with ‘staying power’” (278) as I have often wondered at what point a religious metaphor, such as ‘God as Father’, becomes accepted enough that it becomes used in the vernacular.
[2] McFague’s ‘metaphorical theology’ very much reminds me of George Carlin’s attempts to rejuvenate an outdated Jesus in Dogma. McFague, like Carlin’s Cardinal Glick, is trying to ‘re-package’ and ‘sell’ faith (or rather, The “Buddy Jesus”) by preventing a need, and relevancy, for religion.
In his conclusion, Chappell admits, “First approaching this story as an atheist, I was surprised and skeptical to hear so many of my subjects – whom I admired from afar – expressing what Bayard Rustin called “fundamentalist” views.” Chappell goes on to describe his reluctance to believe his subject’s testimony of “miracles” had it not been for their frequency and key to the beliefs of his subject’s choices. In a catch-22 situation, perhaps only an atheist could tell this story with an objective mind, but perhaps a religious mind could have given more clarity to certain aspects.
During the middle 1990’s the African-American female writer, Octavia Butler, published a series of dystopian novels, which served as social commentary on modern problems including the environment, the wealth gap, poverty, unemployment, scarcity of resources and political inefficiency. In “The Parable of the Sower”, Butler deftly utilizes the protagonist to question the efficacy of religion and the importance of philosophy in the face of the impending destruction of civilization. The protagonist, Lauren Olamina, invents a new religion in order to create a new future for humans on another planet. Throughout the book, Lauren asserts that her new religion, Earthseed, is in fact a religion. However, when measured against various definitions it can
By giving the biographies of architects Richard Neutra and Robert Alexander, Hines does nothing to remedy his aimless writing. He writes that Neutra had a variety of experience as an archi...
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Her choices of metaphors are simplistic explanations providing the backdrop for the emotional and spiritual connection we seek in following Christ. The symbolic comparisons of Mary Magdalene, her relationship to Jesus, mirrors some of Julian of Norwich’s personal spiritual journey of prayerful contemplation while seeking intimacy in her relationship to God.
“Metaphor.” Dictionary of World Literature: Criticism - Forms - Technique. Ed. Joseph T. Shipley. New York: Philosophical Library, 1943. 377-8.
In this short reflection paper I will be comparing the movie, “The Brook Ellison Story” and the book, “The Book of Job.” Both of these magnificent stories are highly respected by the public and they both give wonderful example of M.R. DeHann book, The Broken thing: Why we suffer. Some of the things that will be disgusting in this paper is a summary of both of these wonderful stories, how four out of the seven main questions for my search for meaning class best relates to both of these stories, which three out of ten “Key Principles of Catholic Social Teachings” closely relate to the two stories, and how both of these stories answer the question, “Does God Exist?” which is a popular fundamental question that was asked frequently in Agbonkhianmeghe Orobator book, Theology: Brewed in an African Pot.
In 1741 a Puritan preacher, Jonathan Edwards, delivered a sermon to a congregation in Enfield, Connecticut. He moved many people and helped them to become saved and trust in Jesus Christ. In “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God”, - which is the name of the sermon by Jonathan Edwards- the author uses each rhetorical appeal to connect with his congregation. The whole purpose of Edwards’ sermon was to try and get all the unsaved men in his congregation to trust in Jesus Christ as their savior and be converted. He was a very persuasive man who successfully reached out to his congregation by digging down deep and coming in contact with many people’s personal lives and making them think long and hard about why they are lucky enough to wake up every morning. In his sermon, Jonathan Edwards uses the three rhetorical appeals- ethical, emotional, and logical- to reach out to his congregation and try and help them to see why they should trust in Jesus Christ.
While McMurphy's actions and attitudes seem Christ like, soon, the book introduces McMurphy’s habits of gambling. Some of his Messianic qualities are clear even before the reader gets through half of the book. It is hinte...
Guetti, James. "Absalom, Absalom!: The Extended Simile."The Limits of Metaphor: A Study of Melville, Conrad, and Faulkner. Ithaca: Cornell, 1967. 69-108.
Friedrich Nietzsche certainly serves as a model for the single best critic of religion. At the other end of this spectrum, Jonathan Edwards emerges as his archrival in terms of religious discourse. Nietzsche argues that Christianity’s stance toward all that is sensual is that grounded in hostility, out to tame all that rests on nature, or is natural, akin to Nietzsche’s position in the world and his views. Taking this into account, Edwards’s views on Christianity should be observed in context targeted at those who agree with his idea, that G-d is great and beyond the capacity of human reason.
Being a devout Catholic, O’Connor’s “faith consciously informed her fiction. The difficulty of her work, she explained…is that many of her readers do not understand the redemptive quality of ‘grace,’ and, she added, ‘don’t recognize it when they see it. All my stories are...
“Workplace spirituality not only leads to beneficial personal outcomes such as increased job satisfaction, and commitment, but that they also deliver improved productivity and reduce absenteeism and turnover (“Workplace Spirituality”, 2015, para. 2). Research suggests that spiritual leadership provides a new perspective to influence employees and cultivates the relationship between leaders and employees. Thereby motivating everyone to work towards organizational goals, performance, and culture. The modernized corporate world forces leaders to confront the complex dynamics that are related to various challenges such as, social responsibility, differing opinions, and diverse workforces (Rauf,
...stressing is Meynell's apparently blithe ignorance of the best recent constructive work by Christian philosophers on topics of central concern to him. In addition to those I mentioned in the first paragraph of this review, Meynell should take some account of the work of such as Robert Adams, Bill Wainwright, and Bill Alston. Engaging and using their work would have supported and improved his.
C.S. Lewis was the 20th century’s most popular proponent of faith based on reason. As a child, he created an imaginary world where personified animals came to life, and later, he wrote the book, Chronicles of Narnia. How did he transform from a boy fascinated with anthropomorphic animals into a man of immense faith? His transformation to the Christian religion happened as his fame began to flourish. People wrote him, asking him about his claims about the truth of Christianity (Belmonte, Kevin). As I attended the drama of Freud’s Last Session, I was engrossed into the plot of the play and was constantly thinking about how it pertained to the objectives of the World Literature class. I not only connected the content of the play to its context, but I also reached out to apply the context to a discussion on a broader scale. I then discovered why the context of literature is imperative for true understanding of the w...