Sexism and God-Talk: Towards a Feminist Theology

Sexism and God-Talk is one of those rare books that hits the right topic at the right time–and that has endured. Its thesis is summarized by Rosemary Radford Ruether herself (the Georgia Harkness Professor of Theology at Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary) in her opening chapter and is worth “The uniqueness of feminist theology lies not in its use of the criterion of experience but rather in its use of women’s experience, which has been almost entirely shut out of theological reflection in the past. The use of women’s experience in feminist theology, therefore, explodes as a critical force, exposing classical theology . . . as based on male experience rather than on universal human experience.” The book presents a revisioning of theological topics from a feminist perspective, including the use of male and female images of the divine in worship; the relationship between images of women, the body, and nature in Greek, Hebrew, and Christian thinking; and a new, woman-centered look at images of both Christ and Mary. Clearly written, forceful without being overly dogmatic, this classic study remains what theologian Harvey Cox said of it upon its first “one of the most important theological books of this or any other season.” –Doug Thorpe