Ancient Taboos And Gender Prejudice

This book explores the struggling genesis of a women's movement in the Orthodox Church through the ecumenical movement of the twentieth century at a time when militant conservatism is emerging in Orthodox countries and fundamentalism in the diaspora. Offering an understanding of the participation of women in the Orthodox Church, particularly during the 50 years of the membership of the Orthodox churches in the World Council of Churches, this book contributes to the ongoing debates and feminist analysis of women's participation, ministry and sexuality in the life and practice of the Church universal. The book reveals both the positive contributions to ecumenism and the difficulties confronting Orthodox women wishing to participate more fully in the leadership and ministry of their church.

What is the role of gender in Eastern Christianity? In this volume, Orthodox experts of different disciplines and cultural backgrounds tackle this complex question. They engage critically with gender issues within their own tradition. Rather than simply accepting pervasive assumptions and practices, the authors challenge readers to reconsider historically or theologically justified views by offering nuanced insights into the tradition. The first part of the book explores normative positions in Orthodox texts and contexts. From examinations of Scripture and hagiography to re-evaluations of monastic, patriarchal, and legal sources, it sheds new light on gender issues in Orthodox Christianity. The second part considers how gendered expectations shape individuals’ participation in Orthodox liturgical life and how ecclesial contexts inflect gender theologically. The chapters reflect diverse Orthodox voices brought together to foster new understandings of the ways gender shapes Orthodox religious lives and beliefs. Rethinking what has been inherited from tradition, the authors proffer new perspectives on what it means to be a man or woman within Orthodoxy in the twenty-first century.

In this contribution the author examines the interpretation of 1 Timothy 2:12 and of the Acts 18,26 in the patristic tradition. From an analytical reading of the patristic texts, where the aforementioned scriptural passages recur, the author deduces the essential traits, through which the role of the woman in the church and in the family is expressed.

The Orthodox Christian tradition has all too often been sidelined in conversations around contemporary religion. Despite being distinct from Protestantism and Catholicism in both theology and practice, it remains an underused setting for academic inquiry into current lived religious practice. This collection, therefore, seeks to redress this imbalance by investigating modern manifestations of Orthodox Christianity through an explicitly gender-sensitive gaze. By addressing attitudes to gender in this context, it fills major gaps in the literature on both religion and gender. Starting with the traditional teachings and discourses around gender in the Orthodox Church, the book moves on to demonstrate the diversity of responses to those narratives that can be found among Orthodox populations in Europe and North America. Using case studies from several countries, with both large and small Orthodox populations, contributors use an interdisciplinary approach to address how gender and religion interact in contexts such as, iconography, conversion, social activism and ecumenical relations, among others. From Greece and Russia to Finland and the USA, this volume sheds new light on the myriad ways in which gender is manifested, performed, and engaged within contemporary Orthodoxy. Furthermore, it also demonstrates that employing the analytical lens of gender enables new insights into Orthodox Christianity as a lived tradition. It will, therefore, be of great interest to scholars of both Religious Studies and Gender Studies.

An ecumenical and interfaith gathering, 'Where We Dwell in Common Pathways for Dialogue in the 21st Century' took place in Assisi in April 2012. This volume presents highlights from this historic gathering and invites readers to become involved as the conversation continues.

A groundbreaking, comprehensive, and interdisciplinary analysis of women’s experiences in World Christianity Women in World Christianity: Building and Sustaining a Global Movement is the first textbook to focus on women’s experiences in the founding, spread, and continuation of the Christian faith. Integrating historical, theological, and social scientific approaches to World Christianity, this innovative volume centers women’s perspectives to illustrate their key role in Christianity becoming a world religion, including how they sustain the faith in the present and their expanding role in the future. Women in World Christianity features findings from the Women in World Christianity Project, a groundbreaking study that produced the first quantitative dataset on gender in every Christian denomination in every country of the world. Throughout the text, special emphasis is placed on women in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, the period of Christianity’s shift from the global North to the global South. Easily accessible chapters – organized by continent, tradition, and select topics – introduce students to the wide variety of Christian belief and practice around the world. The book also discusses issues specifically relevant to women in the church: gender-based violence, ecology, theological education, peacebuilding and more. This textbook: Provides a balanced view of women’s involvement in Christianity as a world religion and how they sustain the faith today Introduces students to female theologians around the world whose scholarship is generally overlooked in Western theological education Discusses women’s essential contributions to Christian mission, leadership, education, relief work, healthcare, and other social services of the church Complements the growing body of literature about Christian women from different continental, regional, national, and ecclesiastical perspectives Explores the contributions of contemporary Christian women of all major denominations in Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America, North America, and Oceania Helps students become more aware of the unique challenges women face worldwide, and what they are doing to overcome them Women in World Christianity: Building and Sustaining a Global Movement is an excellent primary textbook for introductory courses on World Christianity, History of Christianity, World Religions, Gender in Religion, as well as undergraduate and graduate courses specifically focused on women in World Christianity.

Historically, European churches have played a large part in the provision of welfare. Responsibility, however, has gradually shifted to the state - a shift that forms an integral part of the process of secularization and one that has been readily accepted by European populations. But what happens when the state itself begins to recede - a process that is occurring in most, if not all, European societies for a wide variety of reasons? The implications for welfare are considerable, not least for the role of the churches which begin to resume the responsibilities previously shed but in new and different ways. This book looks at the connections between religion and welfare in Europe, exploring in detail eight European societies - Finland, Norway, Sweden, England, Germany, France, Italy and Greece. The different theological traditions, different church-state relationships and different welfare regimes are all examined. The analysis is based on first hand empirical research which considers not only the changing situation on the ground, but attitudes towards this within a range of different constituencies - the churches, local government and the general public. Particular attention is paid to the significance of gender in both the process of change and in attitudes towards this. Welfare and Religion in 21st Century Europe: Volume 1 represents comparative research at its best and highlights key policy implications for the future. A companion book, Welfare and Religion in 21st Century Europe: Volume 2 explores thematically the changing nature of religion and welfare and the new relationships that are emerging between the religious and the secular, and between church and state in the 21st century.

This book is concerned with the presentation and analysis of certain dogmatic issues such as christology, ecclesiology, pastoral work, anthropology, faith and bioethics among many others-all meant to illustrate how Christian thoughts stands between traditionalism and radicalism. It is both a dogmatic study and a historical overview of the topic.