Dievišķā Transcendence Un Imanence Ekofeminismā: Divine Transcendence and Immanence In Ecofeminism.
How near or how far is God from this world? How interested in, present and involved in it? Or, quite the opposite - how indifferent to it, distanced and uninvolved in it is he? This is one of the key questions in Christian theology. The answer to it is both theoretically and practically significant....
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | Latvian |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
LU Akadēmiskais apgāds
2018
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| In: |
Cel̜š
Year: 2018, Issue: 69, Pages: 23-44 |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (kostenfrei) Volltext (kostenfrei) |
| Summary: | How near or how far is God from this world? How interested in, present and involved in it? Or, quite the opposite - how indifferent to it, distanced and uninvolved in it is he? This is one of the key questions in Christian theology. The answer to it is both theoretically and practically significant. Its significance can be well observed in the variety of theologies of the second half of the 20th century and the early 21st century, especially in those related to liberation issues. In ecofeminism, which is focused on the care for women and environment, for the most part the emphasis is laid on the close proximity, direct presence and active involvement of God in the processes of the world on behalf of all creatures. Namely, the divine immanence is far more important than his transcendence. However, ecofeminist thinkers who work within the framework of Christianity find it important to maintain the divine transcendence and attempt to balance it with his immanence. This article discusses the relations between the divine transcendence and immanence in ecofeminist theologies constructed from the perspective of Christian theology. First, the main issues of ecofeminism are explained. Ecofeminism is focused on the care and justice for women and the non-human world which has to be recovered and freed from the patriarchal system of hierarchical, dualistic thinking patterns and attitudes. Then the divine transcendence-immanence problem is reviewed in both Christian theology and feminism. It is explained how in the contemporary feminist and ecofeminist theologies the immanence of God with its emphasis on God's proximity, presence and involvement in the world has become more important than his transcendence. Third, two ecofeminist theological approaches to the transcendence-immanence problem are discussed. These are the Christian panentheistic theologies of Rosemary Radford Ruether (who uses the concepts of Gaia and God) and Sally McFague (who uses the metaphor "world as God's body"). Then the use of Wisdom/ Sophia in ecofeminism is considered by looking at it first as an Old Testament figure and then second as the central concept in the sophiology of Russian theologian Sergei Bulgakov. Christian ecofeminist theologians (Ruether, McFague and others) formulate the vision of the relations between God and world with the goal of fostering a responsible theoretical and practical activity in the areas of ecology and environmental protection. They creatively use the traditions and sources of both Western and Eastern Christianity to construct God-world relations in non-patriarchal ways and bring together the ideas of Christianity and ecofeminist organic understanding of the Earth. In discussing the issues of contemporary feminism and ecofeminism, they maintain the presence of both the immanence and transcendence of God which is characteristic of Christianity. It all results in panentheistic ecofeminist theologies which emphasize the sacramentality of all creation and its connection to God and remind concerning the inextricable link between humanity and the universe, as well as of humanity's unique role within it. The foundation of Christian ecofeminist theologies, discussed in this article, is panentheism, which states that God and world are interrelated by God being in the world and the world being in God. Panentheism is a valid alternative to both theism and pantheism and allows a better solution to the divine transcendence-immanence problem. The ecofeminist theologies which are reviewed here are rather positive and full of hope, as are a majority of theologies which claim to carry the idea of liberation. Their panentheistic outlook is expressed creatively and diversely with the help of metaphors, figures and theological concepts. These theologies aim to balance the feminine and the masculine in both God and creation as well as to emphasize the proximity, presence and involvement of God in it, especially in the area of removing its imperfections. But this is the problem with panentheism - it cannot adequately account for the presence of faults, sin and evil in the world. If the world is divine per se, God becomes the source of evil. Wisdom or Sophia is a significant concept which helps to express the transcendence and immanence of God in his relation to the world. Sophiology, one of the theological schools of Russian Orthodox theology, finds a particularly systematic account in the theology of Sergei Bulgakov. His theology is a significant source for feminist and ecofeminist theologies and it needs to be explored and applied even more. Particular attention should be given to two aspects. First, more attention should be paid to its "emancipating aspects" which are related to such values of feminism as mutuality in relationships, inclusiveness, and renouncing of domination and contradictory dualisms. Second, its theological aspects should be explored. They express Sophia as the essence of God and as God's loving, living and multifaceted self-revelation in the world and to it. Integration of sophiology as a single theological system into the theologies of ecofeminism is one of the future projects of theological research and construction. |
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| Contains: | Enthalten in: Cel̜š
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.22364/cl.69.2 |