Goddesses and the Divine Feminine: A Western Religious HistoryUniversity of California Press, 20/11/2006 - 381 من الصفحات This landmark work presents the most illuminating portrait we have to date of goddesses and sacred female imagery in Western culture—from prehistory to contemporary goddess movements. Beautifully written, lucidly conceived, and far-ranging in its implications, this work will help readers gain a better appreciation of the complexity of the social forces— mostly androcentric—that have shaped the symbolism of the sacred feminine. At the same time, it charts a new direction for finding a truly egalitarian vision of God and human relations through a feminist-ecological spirituality. Rosemary Radford Ruether begins her exploration of the divine feminine with an analysis of prehistoric archaeology that challenges the popular idea that, until their overthrow by male-dominated monotheism, many ancient societies were matriarchal in structure, governed by a feminine divinity and existing in harmony with nature. For Ruether, the historical evidence suggests the reality about these societies is much more complex. She goes on to consider key myths and rituals from Sumerian, Babylonian, Egyptian, and Anatolian cultures; to examine the relationships among gender, deity, and nature in the Hebrew religion; and to discuss the development of Mariology and female mysticism in medieval Catholicism, and the continuation of Wisdom mysticism in Protestanism. She also gives a provocative analysis of the meeting of Aztec and Christian female symbols in Mexico and of today's neo-pagan movements in the United States. |
المحتوى
Introduction | 1 |
Gender and the Problem of Prehistory | 13 |
Goddesses and World Renewal in the Ancient Mediterranean | 41 |
The Hebrew God and Gender | 73 |
Savior Goddesses in the Mystery Religions and Gnosticism | 98 |
The Spiritual Feminine in New Testament and Patristic Christianity | 127 |
Feminine Symbols in Medieval Religious Literature | 159 |
TonantzinGuadalupe The Meeting of Aztec and Christian Female Symbols in Mexico | 190 |
Mary and Wisdom in Protestant Mystical Millennialism | 220 |
Contested Gender Status and Imagining Ancient Matriarchy | 249 |
The Return of the Goddess | 274 |
Conclusion | 299 |
Notes | 309 |
359 | |
طبعات أخرى - عرض جميع المقتطفات
عبارات ومصطلحات مألوفة
Adam Anat ancient Archaeology Asherah Aztec Baal Bachofen become birth body Boehme breasts bride Çatal Hüyük Catholic century Christ Christian church conception cosmic cosmos created creation cult culture death deities Demeter developed disciples divine domination Dumuzi early earth Enki eschatology father feminine feminist figure figurines gender Gimbutas Gimbutas's gnostic God's Goddess gods Gospel Greek Hadewijch heaven heavenly Hebrew Hildegard Hildegard of Bingen Holy Horus human Ibid Inanna interpretation Isis Israel Jesus Jewish king Lady Lord male and female Mariology marriage Mary Mary's medieval Mellaart metaphor Mexican Mexico mother mysticism myth Nahua Nahuatl nature Neolithic original Osiris pagan patriarchal priestess Quetzalcoatl reflected relation religion religious represented revealed rites role seeking sexual society Song of Songs Sophia soul spiritual Starhawk story symbols temple theology tradition trans transformed University Press Virgin of Guadalupe vision Wiccans Wisdom woman women worship Yahweh York