On a topic of your choosing

Chapter Tw o

The Emergence o f Feminist Theological Consciousness

H er personal encounter with God is denounced as heretical or hysterical: if the first, she is figuratively burnt at the stake; if the second, people hasten to find her a husband.

Marianne Katoppo (Indonesia)

In 1979 Marianne Katoppo, an award-winning novelist and theolo- gian from Indonesia, published the first book o f Asian feminist theology in English. Entitled Compassionate and Free, the volume criticized patri- archal religion and society and called for a life-giving theology that affirms women’s dignity (Katoppo 1979). In 1991 the global Christian Church was stunned w hen a young feminist theologian from Korea gave a moving and powerful keynote address at the seventh assembly of the World Council of Churches. After invoking the spirits o f the people who had died in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, in the gas chambers o f the Holocaust, in Kwang-ju, Tiananmen Square, and Lithuania, Chung Hyun Kyung began her address with a shamanistic ritual that involved burning a scroll (Chung 1991; 37-47).

Chung’s presentation demonstrated the need for a paradigmatic shift in doing theology, as she analyzed the multiple oppression o f women living under sexism, classism and neocolonialism from an Asian perspec- tive. She freely employed both indigenous rituals and Asian philosophi- cal themes and cultural motifs to articulate the hope and aspirations o f Asian people. Her daring and breath-taking voice challenged many of the established norms o f doing theology and gave an unequivocal signal that a new women’s theology was emerging in Asia.

T h e B irth o f a N e w T h e o lo g ic a l C o n sc io u sn e ss

Chung’s provocative presentation must be understood in the wider con- text o f the development o f feminist theological consciousness in Asia.

INTRODUCING ASIAN FEMINIST THEOLOGY26

Although in early periods Asian Christian women had reflected on their faith, a collective, conscious attempt to do Asian feminist liberation the- ology did not begin until the late 1970s. Since then, Asian women have formed theological networks and organized their own theological con- sultations to share resource materials, to stimulate creative theological thinking and to publish their own theological writings.

For some o f the Asian women theologians, the emergence o f a femi- nist awareness is closely related to their personal history and the suffering in their own lives. Bom into a wealthy family, Chung Flyun Kyung was ostracized by her affluent classmates in high school when her father sud- denly went bankrupt and lost all the family’s possessions. Chung’s femi- nist consciousness was heightened when she finally met with her birth mother, who had been hidden from her for more than 30 years (Chung 1990: 1-5). For Marianne Katoppo, her experience o f being the O ther as a Christian woman in a predominantly Muslim society prompted her to write Compassionate and Free, where she describes her experience as follows:

I found that to be the O ther was an alienating experience: the Christian among the Muslims, the westernized Minahassan who was out o f place in a Javanese society, the girl who was taught to look upon boys as equals, not as superiors (1979: 5).

As the O ther in their own society, these Asian women became more conscious o f the suffering o f those who are marginalized when they engaged in the struggle for liberation o f their people. Chung Hyun Kyung learned the nature o f neocolonialism and the systemic exploita- tion o f the poor when she participated in the student movement against the dictatorial government during her college years. Mary John Manan- zan, a Benedictine sister from the Philippines, was drawn away from her comfortable position as a teacher o f contemporary philosophy in a Jesuit university to join the first workers’ strike in 1975, after the declaration o f martial law. Together with workers and slum dwellers, she had her first encounter with military brutality and she experienced helplessness before the reality o f sheer force and institutionalized violence (Manan- zan 1989: 102).

As these women began to analyze their social and political situations, they became aware that women in impoverished countries are the poor among the poor, the voiceless among the voiceless. Mananzan was con- cerned with prostitution in the Philippines for some time when she co- founded in 1978 the Filipina, the first feminist organization in the Philip-

2. fem inist T heological Consciousness {· 27

pines, and established the Center for W omen Resources. Subsequently she became the chairperson o f GABRIELA and continued to be deeply involved in feminist theology in Asia and in the Third World. Aruna Gnanadason, the former executive secretary o f the All India Council o f Christian Women, now works for the World Council o f Churches. Because o f her earlier Marxist orientation, she has put the liberation of the working class as a priority. She was critical o f the feminists for divid- ing the working class. But when she was criticized by the women for failing to take into consideration the suffering o f the second sex, she found her voice as a woman for the first time. She recalled many years later: ‘It was a real transformation I went through... I discovered this system o f patriarchy and my whole analysis changed. I realized how inadequate my Marxist analysis had been’ (Fabella 1993: 82).

O ther women experienced similar transformations when they discov- ered sexism in the movements for democracy. Sun Ai Lee Park, a min- ister and theologian from Korea, observed: ‘There were these Korean men working for democracy and human rights in Korea. They said they want democracy in the country, but when it came to women, it was something else! I started wondering what kind o f democracy they were looking for’ (Fabella 1993: 88). In the early 1970s, I began my involve- ment in the student movement in Hong Kong, fighting for Chinese as an official language, in addition to English. During that period, I became aware o f different social theories and began to do comparative analysis of women’s status in socialist China and capitalist Hong Kong. Gradually a growing number of Asian Christian women in different countries real- ized that women’s liberation could not be subordinated to the overall liberation o f the people, as Mananzan emphatically stated:

There is no total human liberation without the liberation o f women in society. And this is not an automatic consequence o f either economic development or political revolution. In other words, the w om en’s movement is an essential aspect o f the very process o f societal liberation (Mananzan 1989: 105).

This critical awareness caused them to raise fundamental questions concerning the kind o f theological education they had received and the adequacy o f any theological system that does not take wom en’s issues seriously. Trained in linguistic philosophy in R om e and in Münster, Mananzan later recalled that her theological training had been very Ger- manic, failing to touch on women’s problems. Her experience was echoed by Chung, who says:

INTRODUCING ASIAN FEMINIST THEOLOGY28

Throughout my eleven years o f theological training, I have written countless term papers and theological essays for highly educated people who were my teachers... I no longer want to write so-called ‘compre- hensive’ theology seeking to answer questions o f privileged Europeans. I want to do theology in solidarity with and in love for my mother so as to resurrect crucified persons—like her—by giving voice to their hurts and pains (Chung 1990: 5).

W ith the creation o f theological networks, the individual quest of Asian women for an Asian feminist liberation theology became a shared vision and a collective endeavor. The Conference o f Theologically Trained Women of Asia was organized in January 1981 by the Christian Conference o f Asia. The W om en’s Desk was formed with Elizabeth Tapia, a Methodist minister from the Philippines, as the first staff person. The W om en’s Commission o f the Ecumenical Association o f Third World Theologians (EATWOT) was formed in 1983, and Asian female members had a forum to discuss their issues and to dialogue with women from other Third World countries. Sun Ai Lee Park had the vision to launch the Asian women’s theological journal In God’s Image in 1982 and was instrumental in the formation o f Asian W om en’s Resource Centre for Culture and Theology in 1988. During 1980s associations o f theologically trained Women were established in various countries o f Asia, such as Korea, Taiwan, Indonesia and India. Since then Asian women theologians have met regionally and nationally to analyze patriarchy in the church and in society, to discuss strategies for women’s struggle, and to discover resources for doing theology. In 1985 Asian women gathered in Manila to discuss the theme ‘Total Liberation from the Perspective o f Asian W om en’. Two years later, a conference on ‘Doing Theology as Asian W om en’ was held in Singapore. In the summer o f 1990 in Seoul and around Christmas in 1991 in Madras, members o f EATW OT met to search for Asian feminist hermeneutical principles in interpreting the Bible.

Asian women theologians have been aware o f the need to learn from other Asian religious traditions. In 1988, the rich tradition of feminine images o f the divine in Asia was discussed in a small meeting in Hong Kong. In 1989, the first Asian W om en’s Consultation on Interfaith Dia- logue took place in Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia, a city well known for its multicultural and multireligious setting. The Consultation succeeded in bringing together Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu and Christian women in Asia to reflect on how Asian religions have shaped the cultures o f Asian countries. The Christian women present were especially interested to

292. FEMINIST THEOLOGICAL CONSCIOUSNESS

learn about gender construction in other religions and the liberative ele- ments for women (Abraham et al. 1989b: 3). The Consultation was meant to be the beginning o f an ongoing process o f study. A second consultation took place in Sri Lanka in 1991. Through these interreli- gious dialogues, Asian women theologians gained insights into how to articulate feminist theology from a multireligious context.

The EAT W O T network enables Asian feminist theologians to meet with and learn from other feminist theologians o f the Third World. Virginia Fabella, a Maryknoll sister from the Philippines, has been with EA TW O T since the beginning and has documented the struggle o f women within the organization (Fabella 1993). The first intercontinen- tal women’s conference took place in Oaxtepec, Mexico, in 1986, and the papers were gathered as a best-selling collection, With Passion and Compassion (Fabella and Oduyoye 1988). A dialogue with First World women has been discussed in ecumenical circles for many years and the conference finally convened in Costa Rica in 1994 with the theme ‘Spirituality for Life: W omen Struggling against Violence’ (Mananzan et al. 1996). Some Asian feminist theologians have also been active in ecu- menical movements in Asia, with the World Council o f Churches and denominational networks.

C la im in g th e A u th o r ity to D o T h e o lo g y

Many churches in Asia were established as a result o f missionary activi- ties originating in Europe and North America during the nineteenth century. Although Asian countries have become independent, there is still the colonial legacy o f looking toward the West for guidance and tutoring. This is especially evident in the liturgy, organization and life of Christian churches in Asia. For a long time, theologians read Barth, Brunner and Tillich, trying to solve theological puzzles for other con- texts, with little or no relevance for Asia. This theological dependency has had devastating effects on the witness and mission of the Asian chur- ches. After centuries o f missionary effort, less than 3 per cent o f the pop- ulation in Asia claim to be Christian, while the majority still see Chris- tianity as a foreign religion, even if not condemning it as the religion of the oppressors.

Political independence has ushered in a new awareness o f Asian cul- ture and history, and various attempts of indigenization of theology into Asian soil have taken place since the 1960s. Asian theologians including

INTRODUCING ASIAN FEMINIST THEOLOGY30

M.M. Thomas o f India, Kosuke Koyama of Japan and D.T. Niles o f Sri Lanka have urged their colleagues to construct Waterbuffalo Theology, and to do theology in the midst o f the Asian revolutions. Laudable for their nationalism and cultural pride, these attempts, nevertheless, have reinforced a rather homogeneous and patriarchal understanding o f Asia’s past. Challenging the colonial legacy, these theologians sometimes were too eager to embrace the cultural traditions of Asia, without taking suf- ficient notice o f their elitist and sexist components. In the preoccupation with lifting up their own theological voices, they have failed to be con- cerned with the liberation o f women, which would have required them to face their own sexist values.

Because o f the hierarchical and patriarchal church structure, many denominations in Asia still do not ordain women. The number o f female theological students, though on the rise, remains small, and few Asian women receive advanced degrees in theology. W hen the feminist con- sciousness o f Asian Christian women was heightened, they began to look for new models for doing theology, since they were no longer able to accept the one-sided views o f their male professors and colleagues. Some o f them had been exposed to the feminist theologies developed by Europeans and European Americans beginning in the 1970s. But they quickly discovered that white, middle-class feminist theologies were not relevant for Asian women without first being radically challenged. First, the Western feminist theologies speak from within a cultural con- text in which Christianity is the dominant tradition, whereas every- where in Asia, except in the Philippines and South Korea, Christians are but a tiny minority. Second, earlier feminist theologies had a tendency to universalize the Western wom en’s experiences as if they represented the lives o f all women. The failure to respect difference and the constant incorporation o f the Other into one’s own perspective are rooted in the social and cultural matrix o f colonialism. Third, the feminist analyses as proposed by white, middle-class women are not radical enough. Nar- rowly defining patriarchy as the domination o f men over women, these analyses fail to provide tools to examine colonialism, cultural imperial- ism, religious pluralism and the horizontal violence o f women against women. Fourth, some o f these feminist theologians display racist and ethnocentric orientations, even while calling for a global sisterhood. For example, in her global study o f sado-rituals done against women, Mary Daly can only imagine Indian women as burned-alive, immolated objects, Chinese women as eroticized foot-bound objects, and African

312. Fe m i n i s t T h e o l o g i c a l C o n s c i o u s n e s s

women as genitally mutilated objects. She argues: ‘Those who claim to see racism and/or imperialism in my indictment o f those atrocities can do so only by blinding themselves to the fact that the oppression o f women knows no ethnic, national, or religious bounds’ (Daly 1978: 111). While these atrocities did and continue to exist in some places, her study nowhere presents Third World women as agents to change their plight, and to work for a better future.

Christian feminists in Asia realize that they cannot be the gentle, pas- sive and exotic females as portrayed in the global mass media; and neither can they be targets o f Christian mission, nor eroticized objects in other people’s theological imagination. They must claim back the authority to be theological subjects, reflecting on God’s liberating activities in Asia and articulating their own theology. Instead o f passively consuming a male- oriented and Eurocentric theological tradition, they must challenge the past as they envision a new future. In the words o f one group o f Asian feminist theologians:

we recognized that the classical, Western, colonial, feudalistic, elite, and patriarchal theologies passed on to us have themselves inflicted much vio- lence on women’s life. These theologies have misogynistic texts o f terror and tradition at the core. Furthermore, they have separated theology from spirituality, piety from social action for justice, and intellectual reflection from its symbolic expression in ritual and art (EATWOT 1994: 21).

These same women have criticized the patriarchal church for failing to live up to its prophetic witness, while at the same time reproaching male Asian theologians for refusing to deal with wom en’s issues honestly. Clearly any theology from Asia that leaves out half the population is lim- ited in scope; and its potential for radical change compromised. Unless the multiply oppressed Asian women are free, all are not free. Any lib- eration theology that claims to liberate the poor and the non-person is itself in need o f liberation, if it fails to address the plight o f prostitutes, battered women, female political prisoners and women who are forced to have abortions. In the introduction to an anthology o f Asian women’s theological writings, Virginia Fabella and Sun Ai Lee Park make the point clearly:

Unless our thoughts as women are known and our voices heard, the work towards rearticulating Christian theology in Asia will remain trun- cated. God’s face will only be half seen and God’s voice only half heard. If the emerging Asian theology is to be significant to men and women alike, our contribution as Asian women cannot be isolated or simply

INTRODUCING ASIAN FEMINIST THEOLOGY32

attached as a token appendage, but must form an integral part o f the whole (Fabella and Park 1989: ix-x).

For many Asian feminist theologians, theology is not simply an intel- lectual discipline or a rational reflection o f Christian faith. Theologians cannot afford to engage in the academic exercise o f mental gymnastics, when so many people are daily dehumanized or die o f malnutrition and unsafe drinking water. Theology must be embodied; and reflection and action must be integrally linked together.

Furthermore, in Asia theology is not done within the confines o f the Christian community. Its audience is not limited to members o f the Church. Such a theological focus is too narrow and unwarranted on a continent where the percentage o f Christians is so small. Asian feminist theologians work closely with other secular feminists and civic and rev- olutionary leaders, who constantly call them to account for their faith.

Theology emerging from the womb o f Asia must simultaneously address people’s suffering and articulate their hope and aspirations. As I have written in an earlier essay:

feminist theology in Asia will be a cry, a plea and invocation. It emerges from the wounds that hurt, the scars that hardly disappear, the stories that have no ending. Feminist theology in Asia is not written with a pen, it is inscribed on the hearts o f many that feel the pain, and yet dare to hope (Kwok 1984: 228).

Listening to the cries o f women, Asian feminist theologians take into serious consideration their individual perspectives on reality. They have learned to look at history from the underside. For this reason, they have found that neither Aristotelian logic, Aquinas’s dialectics, nor Tillich’s method o f correlation are adequate to help them to articulate the the- ological aspirations o f Asian women. In order to artfully present their rich, multilayered and polyphonic theological voices, they have to en- gage in new myth-making, symbol-creating and story-telling. Yet such an imaginative usage of the cultural resources o f Asian people has been labeled ‘syncretistic’, especially since Chung Hyun Kyung’s controversial presentation in Canberra. Critics have completely forgotten that a long time ago R udolf Bultmann called Christianity syncretistic, without any negative connotations (Bultmann 1956: 177-79). In fact, it was the adap- tation o f Christianity to its Hellenistic setting and its ability to assimilate new elements that made it a viable tradition. In the history o f Chris- tianity, numerous ‘pagan’ practices were adopted, including Santa Claus, the Easter rabbit and the Christmas tree. Most Christians do not

332. FEMINIST THEOLOGICAL CONSCIOUSNESS

condemn these practices as syncretistic, or raise concerns that Aquinas employed Aristotelian philosophy and Schleiermacher used Romantic thought. But when daring feminist theologians from Asia use new styles in their expression o f faith, they are silenced and labeled syncretistic, or even heretical!

But for Chung, Mananzan, Gnanadason, and others like them, whose faith has been repeatedly tested in the baptism o f fire, such name-calling and censorship will not deter them from challenging the status quo, and proclaiming a spirituality for life. Like the Hebrew prophets and the psalmists, they know that neither the challenge they face nor its diffi- culty are new. Indeed, no fewer than three psalms begin by urging Ό sing to the Lord a new song’ (Pss. 96, 98, 149); likewise, Isaiah admon- ishes: ‘Sing to the Lord a new song, his praise from the end o f the earth’ (Isa. 42.10) (Bell 1992: 145-46).

T h e R e la tio n o f G o sp el and C ulture

Among the theological issues that have emerged from discussions among Asian feminist theologians in recent years, the most critical is the relationship between the gospel and culture. The Jesus movement first emerged as a reform movement within Judaism. As Christianity spread throughout the Mediterranean world in the first century, it encountered the fascinating, multicultural and multireligious Hellenistic world. Early Christian writers used Greek philosophical concepts and Gnostic cate- go ties to express their new faith. The Christian community did not hesi- täte to retain both Jewish and other Near Eastern religious symbols, rituals and practices. In its two thousand years o f history, Christianity continued to learn from and appropriate cultural forms from different parts o f the world.

But the encounter o f Christianity with women’s culture has always been deemed suspect by the patriarchal church hierarchy. W om en’s voices were effectively left out when the male writers turned oral traditions into written biblical narratives. Scanty records o f women in the early church were preserved, and most o f them were women martyrs. It was as if women could only be allowed to ‘speak’ if they died. Later in Christendom, radical and unruly women were burned as witches, and the religious visions and writings of women mystics were considered to be less important than the theological treatises o f men. W om en’s reli- gious communities were treated as secondary and subordinate, and female founders of religious movements, such as Mary Eddy Baker, did

INTRODUCING ASIAN FEMINIST THEOLOGY34

not receive their due respect. Given this past, it should not surprise any- one that the contemporary male church hierarchy finds it alarming that feminist theologians from the Third World are talking about God, and using idioms and symbols from cultures historically not shaped by the Christian tradition to do so.

Asian feminist theologians are emboldened by the fact that many Christian women in different historical epochs have resisted the mono- lithic understanding of God as defined by malestream culture, reflecting the experiences o f men only. Claiming the power to do theology, they have questioned earlier models o f indigenization or contextualization that sought to bridge gospel and culture in the Asian context. First, these earlier attempts usually assumed that there was a privileged origin, a pure essence, or a body o f normative texts that could be lifted out o f its original context and transplanted into Asia. Second, the Asian soil that was to receive such an uncorrupted or pure Christianity was either a cultural context defined by male and elitist Asian traditions or a socio- political context defined by male nationalistic liberation movements.

To conceptualize the multiplicity and fluidity o f the relationship between gospel and culture, I would like to use the concepts o f cultural translation, cultural hybridization and cultural resistance, as developed in postcolonial theory. Translation here means rearticulation, transcoding or transculturation. It does not imply one original text o f which the ‘trans- lation’ is but a mere copy. As Stuart Hall has said, translation is a ‘con- tinuous process o f re-articulation and re-contextualization, without any notion o f a primary origin’ (Hall 1996b: 393). The Gospel writers, Paul, the Johannine circles and the Qumran community were involved in this cultural translation process, as the Christian theologians have been throughout the centuries. In his study o f African Christianity, Lamin Sanneh has shown that the translation o f the Bible and the Christian message into the vernacular during the missionary movement has further promoted plurality and cultural particularity (Sanneh 1989: 233-34). Unlike Islam, which maintains that Arabic is the sacred language, Chris- tianity assumes that the Christian faith can be expressed in all the lan- guages and cultures of humankind.

The claim to possess, to represent, to speak for, or to be closer than others to the ‘primary origin’ is imbued with the desire for power. Du- ring the colonial period, cultural practices o f the ‘Mother Churches’ in the West were duplicated and re-enacted all over the world. Even today, some o f the Anglican churches in Africa still use the Common

352. FEMINIST THEOLOGICAL CONSCIOUSNESS

Prayer Book of 1662. Before Vatican II, the catholicity of the Roman Catholic Church was guaranteed by the Latin Rite, as well as the uni- formity o f church structure. The Bible, regarded largely by Christians as the primary text, is still taken to be the norm or criterion to judge all other cultures and civilizations. The voices o f women and their aspira- tions for ordination were silenced because the original 12 apostles were all male, and the patrilineal line o f authority was secured by apostolic succession.

This concept of cultural translation allows Asian women to relativize the truth claims of ethnocentric missionaries, male theologians o f all races, cultures, hues, and stripes, and white, middle-class feminists. No theological system can claim to be universally valid because it is closer to the ‘origin’. From the outset theology has been a human construction conditioned by cultural specificity, linguistic option, historical circum- stances and theological imagination. Western models of theology are but expressions of this transcultural and transcoding process, and should not be the nonn for everybody. Furthermore, Edward Said has convincingly argued that the justification o f empire-building undergirded Western cultural imagination in the nineteenth and early twentieth century, influ- encing the high cultures o f scholarship, novels and the arts. The con- struction o f Western theology during this critical period o f colonial expansion must be questioned in so far as it, too, was shaped by the ethos o f empire-building. Colonization is a double inscription process, affecting the colonizers as much as the colonized.

Second, the notion o f cultural hybridization allows us to talk about the imaginative weaving and blending o f cultural fragments, religious motifs and people’s memories in the conceptualization o f self, the world and God. The colonial experience has left a long-lasting imprint on for- mer colonies, and the ‘post-colonial’ world has always been ‘diasporic’ in relation to what might be its cultures o f origin (Hall 1996a: 250). In addition, Asians have lived for millennia in a multicultural context, and mixing and borrowing among different cultural and religious traditions has been the rule. Christianity assumed a new form and spoke a new language when brought into dialogue with Confucian classics, the Vedas and the Dao de jing in past attempts o f indigenization by male theolo- gians. Today, Asian feminist theologians lift up the multivocal nature of Asian traditions and begin new lines o f theological inquiry by rearticu- lating theology through the liberating language o f myths, stories and the rituals o f women. As Chung Hyun Kyung has said:

INTRODUCING ASIAN FEMINIST THEOLOGY36

Male leaders o f the institutional church always seem preoccupied with the doctrinal purity o f their religions. What matters to Asian women is survival and the liberation o f themselves and their communities... Asian women selectively have chosen life-giving elements o f their culture and religions and have woven new patterns o f religious meaning (Chung 1990: 113).

Finally, cultural hybridization suggests that cultures are not isolated, self-contained entities, distinctly separated from each other. Cultural identity is formed in a complex process of claiming one’s position within a network o f relationships and telling the narrative that gives one mean- ing, while listening to many other narratives. This means that Asian feminist theologians cannot afford to do theology from within their spe- cific contexts alone, without dialogues with traditional male theology, feminist theology from different parts of the world and Asian male theology. Yet, Asian feminist theology should not be a copy or a weak mimicry o f other people’s theology. Just as translation involves expres- sing meaning in one’s own categories and thought forms, Asian feminist theologians must claim the power to speak their own theological dialects in order to be theological subjects. Since there are literally thousands of dialects in Asia, there is no single way o f doing feminist theology. Femi- nist theology in the Asian context will be multilingual, pluralistic and radically open to new challenges and possibilities.

The notion o f cultural resistance is critical in our contemporary world, where new information technology, consumerism, multinational corpo- rations, the international division o f labor and the weakening o f national boundaries seek to create a transnational capitalist culture, defined by the interests o f global capital. Furthermore, fundamentalist groups and American tele-evangelists have used the latest technology to get their messages across the world. Asian feminist theologians, together with other marginalized groups, must continue to strive for social and cultural space to articulate their own theology. They must be vigilant as this new global capitalist culture is shaped not only by European and N orth American elites, but also by the Asian bourgeoisie who are trying to get their market share. The glorification of national culture (as in the case o f Confucian elites in East Asia) can be used to sustain capitalist develop- ment. While insisting on cultural and historical specificity, Asian femi- nist theologians cannot indulge in narrow nationalism, identity politics and ethnic separatism, all o f which pit one group against the other, creating a climate of competition in which each group claims to be the most victimized. Instead, they must constantly seek ways to form coali-

2. Feminist T heological Consciousness I

37

tions among women and to strengthen solidarity across national, cul- tural, economic, and religious boundaries. Speaking on women in soli- darity with women, Elizabeth Tapia explains the need for solidarity as follows:

We need to be in solidarity with one another to counteract feelings, and forces o f separation, competition, and powerlessness... W e need to be in solidarity with each other because of the heavy dose of patriarchy, which includes sexism, racism, and classism. W e need to be in solidarity to enjoy friendships and affirm differences as well as God-given gifts. W e need to be in solidarity with the victims of domestic and sexual violence. W e need to be in solidarity with the poor, who are victims o f economic injustice (Tapia 1992: 27).

Chapter 3

Sources and Resources o f Asian Feminist Theology

Asian women theologians should realize that we are the text, and the Bible and tradition o f the Christian church are the context o f our theology.

Chung Hyun Kyung (Korea)

To articulate feminist theology from a cultural matrix that is so ancient, multistranded and deeply spiritual is an awesome task. Trying to find a new language for theology, Asian feminist theologians know that they have to reconnect with their Asian roots and spirituality. As one Asian poem indicates:

Asia... We pause in silence Before the awesome reality o f Asia. Her vastness, variety and complexity, Her peoples, languages, cultures, The richness o f her history And the present poverty of her peoples. We take Asia to our hearts, See her and feel her within us, Embrace her In her wholeness and brokenness, While her rivers and tears flow through us, Her winds, her sighs, her spirits, Her moans, her howls blow within us (Fabella, Lee and Suh 1992: 148).

To embark on this journey, Asian feminist theologians look for new sources, symbols, images and stories that help them to articulate their experiences o f God. They re-examine the colonial and patriarchal inter- pretations o f the Bible and search for liberating elements for their pre- sent struggles. As Christians, they live in an enchanting world of gods and goddesses with colorful religious rituals and many alternative forms

393. So u r c e s a n d r e s o u r c e s

o f spirituality. In this chapter, I shall analyze critical issues that have emerged in Asian women’s discussion about the sources and resources of their theology: the use o f women’s experience in theology, the libera- tion o f the Bible from colonial bondage, and the critical appropriation o f Asian religious traditions.

A sia n W o m e n ’s E x p e rien ce : C o m m o n a lity and D iv e r sity

Asian feminist theologians argue that they have to do their own the- ology because their experiences have been left out of theological reflec- tion. But women’s experience is a contested source o f feminist theology. Feminist theologians in the past two decades have debated on what constitutes women’s experience and how experience, given its diverse and changing nature, can be normative in theology. Theologian Rebecca Chopp distinguishes two alternative epistemological approaches based on women’s experiences: standpoint theory and social constructionism (Chopp 1996: 116-23). Those who choose to follow standpoint theory argue that women’s knowing is ontologically different from men’s, and some even advocate that women know more about love, relationships and God. People who have suffered under colonialism will see inime- diately the fallacy o f this romantic view o f women’s nature because their colonizers have been both male and female. Female colonizers, either through their overt support o f the colonial regime or through their silent complicity, have not demonstrated themselves to know more about loving and God.

The social constructionist approach, according to Chopp, posits that ‘knowledge is itself always historical, always related to power and inter- ests, and is open to change and transformation’ (Chopp 1996: 120). Feminist theologians w ho support this position refuse to universalize women’s experience and stress instead the diversity of these experiences. Since women’s experience is always shaped by a complex interaction of factors, such as class, race, colonialism and sexual orientation, a woman’s viewpoint will always reflect her situation and perspective. The empha- sis on the historical character of knowledge and human experience offers more room for feminist theologians to dialogue across differences and for multiply oppressed women to articulate diverse theological voices.

W hen we talk about ‘wom en’s experiences’ in China or Pakistan, let alone ‘women’s experiences’ in Asia generally, we are always talking about a social construct. To understand how women construct and

INTRODUCING ASIAN FEMINIST THEOLOGY40

express their experiences in different parts o f Asia, feminist theologians rely on story-telling and social analysis, as well as the poetry, art, symbols and rituals created by women. Story-telling has been the chief means of passing wisdom from one generation o f women to another, as most Asian women have been illiterate until recent times. The story o f the ‘comfort w om en’, for example, has served as a ‘root story’ for many Korean feminist theologians to elucidate the intersection o f colonialism, militarism and sexism. Critical social analysis is necessary to examine the systemic oppression that exists in political, economic, social and cultural realms. It is especially significant today when the interlocking mecha- nism o f globalization oppresses millions of people, without people even being aware o f it. Asian w om en’s religious lives are richly expressed through the symbolism o f color, sound and image (Rebera 1990). When Asian women theologians meet, they have always celebrated their lives and G od’s gifts through rituals. Many o f these innovative and moving rituals can be found on the pages o f the journal In God’s Image.

When Asian feminist theology first emerged in the late 1970s, the- ologians tended to stress the commonalities o f Asian women’s experi- ence. Except for women in Japan and in Thailand, the majority o f women in Asia have the shared experience o f emerging from a long history o f colonialism. After World War II, Asian countries were poor and in the early stages of economic development. Except for the Philip- pines, most Asian Christian communities are tiny minorities, having to compete for existence with the numerous other religious traditions in Asia. The male-dominated church structures are often reinforced by the patriarchal elements of indigenous culture. Furthermore, when the the- ological current was so fresh and new, these women theologians saw the need to come together and express solidarity with one another. Many had just learned to embrace their Asian identity with joy and pride, and they wanted to differentiate their feminist theology from that being developed by Western women at the same time. Some o f the feminist theologians were able to meet other Asian women for the first time, and they wanted to identify common issues so they could work together.

While it may have been strategically important to stress commonali- ties in the earlier period, in the 1990s Asian feminist theologians have called for more attention to the diversity o f women’s experiences. Kang Nam-Soon o f Korea has cautioned against the strong tendencies o f uni- versalization and oversimplification in constructing and presenting Asian women’s theology. She writes:

413. So u r c e s a n d R e s o u r c e s

Asian feminist theologians, despite certain common cultural bases, have extremely diverse histories, religions, cultures and traditions. Sharing a common goal to end primarily patriarchal domination does not prevent feminist theologians from having radically divergent perspectives on how that goal might be reached (Kang 1995: 22).

Just as white, middle-class feminists should not generalize their experi- ences, Asian feminist theologians should guard against presenting a

monolithic, simplified notion o f what it means to be ‘Asian’. Angela Wong Wai Ching o f Hong Kong has observed that Asian women have been portrayed stereotypically as either victims or heroic women who take part in national struggles and other forms o f liberation. Such polar constructs oversimplify Asian women’s experience and blur their differ- ent localities such as ethnic groups, class, history and culture. Many women will not fit in a stereotypical, generalized, and ahistorical image o f the ‘Asian woman’ (Ching 1999).

To accentuate their diversity, Asian feminist theologians must pay acute attention to the issue o f economic disparity among women, both regionally and nationally. The widening gap between the richer and poorer countries in Asia affects women’s standard of living and levels of economic independence. In addition to Japanese conglomerates, Korean and Taiwanese companies are setting up multinational corporations in many parts o f the world. Feminists in East Asia can no longer claim to be economically oppressed, without recognizing that they have the potential to benefit from a global system that oppresses many others. They have to theologize from the perspective o f both the oppressed and the oppressor at the same time. Moreover, the accumulation o f capital within a small sector o f society and the increased demand for highly skilled workers result in the acutely uneven distribution o f wealth with- in a country. A professional woman in Seoul earns several times more than an unskilled female worker. A woman who owns a small business in the Special Economic Zone in China enjoys a much more comfort- able life than a rural woman in the hinterland.

Feminist theology in Asia has largely been a middle-class movement, just as it has been in many other parts o f the world. It has been devel- oped by educated, middle-class ministers, church workers, academics, religious women and community organizers. As a movement, it faces challenges from many sides. First, feminist theology has not sufficiently impacted the theological discourse and the structures o f patriarchal churches. Second, many women sitting in the pews have not heard

INTRODUCING ASIAN FEMINIST THEOLOGY42

about feminist theology, and many would consider feminism to be too radical and aggressive. Third, as middle-class women, many Asian femi- nist theologians have yet to find ways to join with the efforts o f un- educated and lower-class w om en in order to bring about societal transformation. They have to be very conscious that their theological imagination is limited by their horizons, and they should not claim to represent or speak for all Asian women.

Besides economic disparity, Asian women’s diverse experiences are also shaped by such factors as ethnicity, caste, sexual orientation and migration. The better-known feminist theologians from Asia all come from the dominant ethnic groups in their countries. But women belong- ing to minorities and indigenous groups exist in many parts o f Asia, being marginalized in more than one way. For example, there are tribal indigenous women in Taiwan, minority Korean women in Japan, and minority Tamil women in Sri Lanka. In India, women face discrimina- tion, not only because o f gender, but also because o f clan and caste. The voices o f dalit women have just recently been heard in ecumenical circles. Dalits are the untouchables who belong to the lowest caste. In Hong Kong, India, and in other parts o f Asia, lesbians have begun to organize themselves, but female homosexuality is still a taboo subject in public discourse. The number o f migrant female workers continues to increase, and they are now working not only in other Asian countries, but also in the Middle East. The theological aspirations derived from their experiences of diaspora have scarcely been told.

In order to become a mature theological movement, Asian feminist theology needs to diversify, and to continue to bring in new voices. There should be different theoretical frameworks and models for doing theology. Mutual criticism and constructive dialogues among women of different social locations should be fostered. Creative ways o f network- ing, innovative communicative styles, and genuine community-building that facilitates the participation o f grassroots women should be explored in the future.

T h e B ib le: B read O r Ston e?

In the past several decades, feminist theologians and biblical scholars have made significant contributions to recovering the Bible as bread rather than stone for women. Using the critical lens o f a hermeneutics o f suspicion, feminist scholarship has critiqued many traditional claims

433. So u r c e s a n d R e s o u r c e s

regarding the Bible. Feminist theologians have challenged the authority of the Bible, the boundary o f the canon and the androcentric bias of both the text and the history of interpretation. Seeking to construct feminist models o f interpretation, they have scrutinized the master’s tools, created feminist frames o f meaning, and developed different norms o f interpretation. Reconstructing women’s early Christian history, they examined the everyday lives o f women, women’s religious leadership in church and synagogue and the marginalization o f women in the patriar- chalization o f the church. They proposed new liturgical usage o f the Bible, alternative methods o f feminist Bible study, and liberating para- digms for teaching biblical studies. (For a helpful guide to the breadth of feminist scholarship on the Bible, see Schiissler Fiorenza 1993).

These issues are significant for women in diverse contexts. Through- out the past decade, feminist scholars from the Third World and from minority communities in the United States have increasingly contributed to the emerging feminist biblical scholarship. In the case o f the Asian situation, we need to discuss a few issues before the Bible can be used as a resource for Asian feminist theology: the use o f the Bible in colonial discourse, the influence o f colonialism in the academic study o f the Bible and the possibilities o f developing feminist postcolonial readings of the Bible.

The Bible is an integral part o f the colonial discourse. The introduc- tion o f the Bible and Christian faith to foreign lands was used to justify the political and military aggression o f the West. For example, Hong Kong was ceded to the British in 1842 in the same unequal treaty that granted missionaries permission to preach in the seaports o f China. To teach the Bible and to spread the Gospel were seen as the ‘civilizing mission’ o f the West, or as the ‘white man’s burden’. For example one missionary in China declared that: ‘The great civilizing agent o f the world is the Holy Scripture’ (Porter 1890: 294). Selected passages from the Bible were emphasized to justify this cause. For example, the Great Commission of Jesus to go and make disciples o f all nations (Mt. 28.19) was given unprecedented attention during the colonization o f India by missionaries (Sugirtharajah 1998b: 95).

Revered as the revealed Word of God, the Bible was seen as the prize possession o f the West. The Bible thus served as a ‘signifier’ that func- tioned to support Western beliefs in the inferiority and deficiency of ‘heathen’ cultures. Furthermore, revelation through the Bible was re- garded as special revelation. Insights and wisdom offered by other reli-

Introducing Asian Feminist Theology44

gions and traditions could at best be classified as general revelation. This biased view reinforced the superiority of Christianity in the evolutionary scheme o f religion, developed in the nineteenth century to justify colonialism.

The introduction of the Bible to other cultures was a mixed blessing for women. In order to teach women to read the Bible, Christian mis- sions established girls’ schools, catechism classes and women’s Bible study classes. While the provision o f female education helped to promote lit- eracy, the curriculum of these mission girls’ schools was meant to instill the cult o f true womanhood and to reinforce domesticity o f women (see Kwok 1992: 104-106). The requirement of knowledge o f the Bible for baptism required the training o f Bible women and female evangelists to teach the illiterate women to read. These female church workers often functioned as teacher, social worker and counselor in their local com- munities. The segregation o f the sexes called for the sending o f female missionaries, who often displayed ethnocentrism toward their ‘heathen’ sisters, but also provided role models for women.

While the enthnocentrism o f missionaries working ‘in the frontiers’ has been criticized, the academics studying the Bible in the metropolitan centers o f Europe were seen as immune from cultural imperialism. Little reflection has been done on the relationship between the emergence o f the historical critical method and the ascendency o f European power. There are two reasons for this oversight: First, in the West the historical critical method has been seen as a progressive tool to challenge church dogma and the authority o f the church. Second, the method was consid- ered by its practitioners as scientific, objective and value-neutral. Focus- ing on the bygone era o f the Greco-Roman world, historical critical research was not supposed to be clouded by the political interests o f the time.

However, if we examine historical criticism from an international point o f view, a different picture begins to emerge. We can cite as an example the first quest for the historical Jesus, a paramount concern of historical criticism (for details see Kwok 1998: 69-85). Some of the key spokespersons o f the first quest were not disinterested scholars, but defenders o f national power and the supremacy o f European culture. D.F. Strauss (1808-1874), a supporter of a strong and united Germany under the hegemony o f Prussia, defended Germany’s position in the Prusso-Austrian war. Ernest Renan (1823-92), who was passionate about French high culture, went to Phoenicia and Syria under the auspices of

453. So u r c e s a n d r e s o u r c e s

Napoleon III. An interpreter o f Bach’s organ music, Albert Schweitzer (1875—1965) left us not only a summa o f the first quest but also an auto- biography detailing his life as a ‘jungle doctor’. Labeling African people as ‘primitive creatures’ without much progress, his autobiography dis- played deep-seated feelings o f cultural superiority.

The incursions o f Europeans into other parts o f the world affected these scholars’ conceptualization o f both Western civilization and Chris- tianity. The ninteenth-century comparative study of myths and religions proposed an interpretation o f ‘primitive’ peoples as mythical, supersti- tious and idolatrous. To prove that Christianity was infinitely superior to other religions, all the nonsense of virgin birth, miracles and super- natural happenings surrounding Jesus had to be discarded. This could only be done by a ‘critical’ or ‘scientific’ study of the Bible, which would uncover an historical Jesus free o f any mythological trappings. The quest for the historical Jesus was far from being value-neutral. The political interests of Europe determined the questions to be asked, the gathering o f data, the framework o f interpretation and the final out- come.

The historical critical method must be situated within the cultural space and political configurations of its time. We must begin to question its assumptions about historical consciousness, historicity and historiog- raphy from a postcolonial perspective. The historical questions raised by this method may be too limiting for people in other contexts. In fact, other cultures have other assumptions about history and their own historical method. For example, the Chinese have always studied history not so much for ‘objective’ data as for insights to illuminate the present. The Indians value the myths and stories that have shaped their under- standing o f their ancient past. A Western historical criticism should not be taken as universally valid because Western notions of historical process are not universally held. W e have to learn from the insights o f other cultures to broaden our historical imagination.

The discussion o f the postcolonial interpretation o f the Bible has gained momentum among Third World scholars and intellectuals within the indigenous and diasporic communities. R.S. Sugirtharajah has said that the postcolonial perspective will have to go beyond a mimicry of Western critical method and an Orientalist valorization of ancient pre- colonial cultures (Sugirtharajah 1998a). It has to negotiate a different past, one that has not been reified, glorified and seen as unitary. Em- ploying tools from critical theory and cultural studies, postcolonial

INTRODUCING ASIAN FEMINIST THEOLOGY46

criticism exposes the relationship between power and knowledge, xbal- lenges both imperialist and nationalist claims, and maintains the posture of a ‘fighting literature’.

There are several characteristics o f postcolonial criticism: (1) it chal- lenges the universalizing forms o f Western interpretation, exposing its co-optation by imperial interests and destabilizing its frames of meaning; (2) it is a counterhegemonic discourse, paying special attention to the hidden and neglected voices in the Bible; (3) it places the Bible within the multifaith context of many Third World situations; (4) it encourages and welcomes contributions from marginalized groups that have not been fully heard: the dalits, indigenous peoples, migrants, people in dias- pora and in borderlands, especially the women in these communities; (5) it learns from and debates with other hermeneutical frameworks, such as postmodernism.

Insights from postcolonial discourse have recently been introduced to Asian feminist biblical criticism. In the past, Asian feminist theologians who were theologically trained often relied on biblical scholarship from North America (e.g. Gnanadason 1988: 44-51; Park 1987: 66-75). The works o f Elisabeth Schüssler Fiorenza, Rosemary Radford Ruether and Phyllis Trible were introduced or translated into the Asian languages. It was assumed that these scholars would tell us what the Bible meant and that their findings could be correlated with Asian women’s experiences. But Asian feminist theologians had become more aware that all feminist interpretations are context-bound. There is no ‘value-neutral’ feminist interpretation that is applicable to all contexts, and Asian feminists have to find their own principles o f interpretation.

Postcolonial feminist criticism from Asia should examine the Bible from the vantage point of women multiply oppressed because o f race, class, militarism and colonialism. It investigates how marginalized worn- en in the Bible are rendered invisible, consigned to signify the O ther and denied a voice o f their own. At the same time, it reconstructs the lives of these women and plots a subversive feminist discourse based on fragments and traces that are still left in the biblical tradition. Instead of focusing on the activities o f female leaders in the church as other femi- nist scholars have done, it seeks to illuminate the everyday lives o f ordi- nary women. The lives and struggles o f Jewish women under the for- eign rules o f Babylon, Persia, the Greeks and the Romans should be of great interest to contemporary postcolonial critics. And rather than con- stantly looking to the West for insights, Asian feminist biblical scholars

473. SOURCES AND RESOURCES

can learn much from feminist scholarship from the Third World and from minorities in N orth America. In the next chapter I shall discuss in more detail feminist interpretations o f the Bible from Asia in recent years.

A sian R e lig io u s T rad ition s: B le ssin g and C urse

Western feminist theologians have criticized the androcentric symbolism and teachings of Christianity as reinforcing male domination in society. Mary Daly has claimed that ‘if God is male, then the male is God’ (Daly 1973: 19). Likewise in Asia it is the Asian religious traditions that have been blamed for undergirding the millennia-old sexual discrimination against women. The first Asian W om en’s Consultation on Interfaith Dialogue brought together 35 women and men from 17 countries in the Asia-Pacific region. The report o f the conference states that the original teachings o f many o f the world’s religions were both inclusive and liberative o f the human person. But the distortions o f these teach- ings have led to discriminatory laws and religious practices against women, the limitation o f women’s leadership and ritualistic roles, and the denigration o f w om en’s bodies as unclean and polluting. It con- eludes that:

As a result o f this religious discrimination, women o f all religions con- tinue to be marginalized and discriminated against at the societal level. Traditional practices, which have religious overtones include the purdah system, female genital mutilation, polygamy, silencing of women. The demand for virginity and chastity only from women has led to miserable womanhood and widowhood.1

Although many Asian feminist theologians are critical of the discrimi- natory practices of Asian religions, they also look for liberating aspects in which women may have played more significant roles. For example, Korean feminists have emphasized the influences o f shamanism on w om en’s spirituality, and the important role o f the female shaman in local communities. Filipino feminists point to a more egalitarian social structure and the higher status o f women within their indigenous tradi- tions during precolonial times as compared to Filipino women’s experi- ences under Roman Catholicism. Others have pointed to the rich

1. ‘Summary Report o f the First Asian W om en’s Consultation on Inter-faith Dialogue, November 1-8, 1989, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia’, In God’s Image (Decern- ber 1989), p. 5.

INTRODUCING ASIAN FEMINIST THEOLOGY48

traditions o f feminine symbolism in Hinduism, the establishment o f nunneries as an alternative to patriarchal family in Buddhism and the Islamic belief in human equality as liberative elements.

Asian feminist theologians have moved away from the simple carica- ture that Asian religious traditions are either blessing or curse for women. But much more critical scrutiny and scholarly work on these traditions are needed in the future so that they can offer insights and resources for feminist theological thinking. First, feminist study o f Asian religious traditions has to go beyond cataloguing blatantly discriminatory texts to an investigation of how such texts function in their respective historical contexts. For example, Asian feminists can easily find the Confucian injunction o f the three obediences required o f women: to obey her father before marriage, her husband after marriage, and her son when widowed, or the teachings that women should be subordinate in the Upanishads and Vedas (EATWOT 1994: 93-98, 99-105). But attention should be paid to the circumstances within which these teachings emerged and to what extent they were practiced. Feminist scholars o f the Bible have long pointed out that biblical texts reflect the male author’s point o f view and may not reflect the reality o f women’s lives. Further, Asian texts may have performed particular rhetorical functions to persuade people and served special ideological purposes at their time. Given the fact that most Asian religions have long, complex, pluralistic and multilayered histories, a careful study of women’s situations in vari- ous historical epochs is necessary. Buddhist, Confucian, Islamic and Hindu views o f women certainly have changed over time, and women’s relationship with these traditions has never been monolithic, but rather dependent on women’s educational attainment, social status, and some- times geographical locale.

The study o f the influences o f Asian religions on women should also be cross-cultural. For example, classical Confucian teaching, orginating with Confucius (551—479 BCE), may not have included extremely re- strictive and derogatory views o f women. But Neo-Confucianism, which emerged between the tenth and the twelfth centuries, promul- gated a stricter code of sexual conduct for women. Chastity became an utmost virtue for women, and widows were discouraged from remar- riage. It was Neo-Confucianism that was introduced to Korea during the Yi Dynasty (1392-1910), and which soon became political ideology to control Korean people and to subdue women. Ever since China en- countered the military and technological strength o f the West, begin-

49

ning in the mid-nineteenth century, there have been serious critiques of Confucianism, especially during the Cultural Revolution (1966—76). Since the 1920s radical intellectuals, insisting that China should be thor- oughly Westernized, have condemned Confucianism as feudalistic, back- ward-looking and even patriarchal. But the Confucian ideology in Korea has not gone through such in-depth and wholesale criticism and its grip on the Korean people is still strong. Today, Korean women may feel the impact o f Confucianism more than women in socialist China, Western- ized Hong Kong and a politically transformed Taiwan. A cross-cultural comparison of how Confucianism has influenced gender construction in different societies and during varied historical periods will help Asian feminists to understand in a nuanced way the religious and cultural legit- imation o f patriarchy. Similar cross-cultural study can also be done for Asian religious traditions, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Daoism and Shinto. At the second Interfaith Conference from Asian W om en’s Per- spectives held in 1991, some comparative work was done on Confu- cianism in Taiwan and Korea. At the same time, scholars from Japan, Thailand and Sri Lanka presented papers on Buddhism and women in their own cultural contexts.

Asian feminist theologians must also promote a tradition o f feminist scholarship on Asian religious traditions. Currently most o f the scholar- ship on Asian religions is done by Asian men, who do not pay much attention to wom en’s issues. A lot o f feminist scholarship on Asian religions derives from Western female scholars in the academy o f North America, some o f whom are converts to these religions (see Gross 1996). O n the one hand, some o f them display ethnocentric attitudes toward Asian traditions, regarding Asian women as victims of strange and bizarre religious beliefs and social practices. Some years ago there was quite a debate among feminists in N orth America regarding how to interpret sati in India, the custom o f widows burning alive on their husbands’ funeral pyres. O n the other hand, some new converts tend to have romantic feelings about their new religion and focus on more positive or transformative aspects o f the tradition. For example the existence o f a plurality o f goddesses in Buddhism and Hinduism has been taken out of context in Western wom en’s search for the feminine dimension o f the divine. It is unfortunate that few Asian women are trained in the field of religious studies, or specialize in the study o f their own religious tradi- tions. Very often we have Christian Asian women commenting on or critiquing Buddhism, Confucianism or Hinduism. Such imbalance in

3. SOURCES AND RESOURCES

INTRODUCING ASIAN FEMINIST THEOLOGY50

scholarship may produce skewed or biased pictures o f women’s lives within the complex and pluralistic religious worlds o f Asia.

Finally, we need to address the question o f whether there are limits, or parameters, for Asian feminist theologians to appropriate religious resources from their cultures. Some Asian feminist theologians have found that the model of interreligious dialogue in the ecumenical move- ment is not adequate in some situations. Within this model, believers of different religions enter into critical conversations with one another, and each is transformed in the dialogical process. But in Asia, the boundaries o f religions are not clear cut: one can be a Shinto and a Buddhist in Japan, or a Christian who consults shamans during a crisis in Korea or a Confucian-Buddhist in Malaysia. Religious identity is not constructed in a uniform way and the term religion has its origin in the West. Chung Hyun Kyung has called this multifaith dialogue within oneself intra- religious dialogue. In fact, Christianity has always been a cultural hybrid since it was ‘translated’ in Asia. The Chinese Bible, for example, was translated by the missionaries into the Chinese language, using many terminologies from Buddhism. Indigenous images, symbols and religious practices have been adopted to help evangelize the Gospel.

On the other hand, Asian feminist theologians should guard against indiscriminate appropriation and mindless borrowing. There is a fine line between discerning theological significance in indigenous religious resources and simply baptizing other traditions or integrating them within the Christian narrative. The latter can result in a diluted form of Christian imperialism, lacking respect for the integrity o f the tradition concerned. Asian feminist theologians can learn from the long history o f mixing and blending different religious traditions in their context to generate principles and guidelines for critical appropriation o f indige- nous resources. Since the Asian feminist theological movement is so new, there is much room for experimentation and risk-taking. Mutual criticism and openness to the critique o f women o f other faith traditions is essential. Such critical engagement with one another is necessary if women o f all faith traditions are to work together for the liberation and well-being o f all women.

C h a p te r Seven

W om en and the Church

In the broader ecumenical view, new ways of being church extends to and embraces all o f creation and humanity in the whole inhabited world. The church as a faith and human community is located in the midst of the current global realities... W omen become the prophetic voice as they pose challenges to other women and men to repent and live the new order o f life.

Yong Tin Jin (Malaysia)

Although in many Asian churches women are the majority, they are marginalized in the power structure o f the church and the life o f the congregation. Colonial and patriarchal denominational polity reinforced by indigenous biases and taboos against women has consigned them to second-class membership in the faith community. Asian women’s power and authority are neither recognized nor respected by the male hier- archy of the church, or by those women who are steeped in the church’s androcentric teachings. Many churches have failed to live out the prom- ise that women and men are full partners in the life and ministry of the body o f Christ.

At the same time, the increased participation o f Asian women in the economic and public sectors and the success of women’s movements in various countries have heightened the awareness o f Christian women in the local churches. They have grown increasingly vocal in rejecting the misogynist teachings o f the churches and patriarchal models of leader- ship. Advocating an equal partnership in God’s ministry, women have organized around numerous issues: the ordination o f women, prophetic roles for religious women, fuller participation o f the laity in decision- making processes and greater representation o f women in church synods, conventions and ecumenical gatherings. They argue that the church must liberate itself from the bondage o f sexism if it is to become a

i 7. W O M EN AND THE CH U R C H 99

prophetic voice in society and serve as a beacon o f hope. For example, a group o f women who participated in the Ecclesiology Consultation of the Christian Conference o f Asia affirmed wom en’s contribution to church life: ‘The ideal Church enjoys koinonia (fellowship) in the true sense o f the word. This ideal Church fellowship has women and men with equal partnership, it stands out as prophetic community committed for justice, peace and service with love’.1

C h a lle n g e s to th e Patriarchal C hurch

Many Asian feminist theologians lament the fact that churches in Asia are the products o f their time, reflecting the patriarchal structures o f society. Church women are often asked to fulfill stereotypical roles, such as keeping the altar clean, teaching religious education to children, helping in the kitchen or other secretarial and menial jobs. Religious women in some contexts are frequently asked to make the altar linens and vestments, care for the church buildings, provide for orphans and the homeless, teach catechism to children and play a subsidiary role to priests and bishops. In R om an Catholic circles, women are rarely asked to serve on consultative bodies for the bishops’ conferences, participate in the decision-making process about vital issues o f the church, help to lead the church in visible ways, and share in ministry and liturgy as equal partners (Lascano 1985—86: 12). The division o f labor along gender lines in the churches regrettably reflects patriarchal realities found in many Asian societies.

The subordination o f women in the church is due not only to misogyny within the Christian tradition but also to understandings o f purity and taboo in respect to women in Asian religious traditions. For instance, Aiko Carter, a lay leader in the Japanese church, has observed that in Shinto religion, which emphasizes ceremonial purity, wom en’s menstruation is seen as unclean and sexuality as negative. A similar neg- ative attitude toward women is found in Buddhism, which requests menstruating women not to approach the altar. Further, women are often seen as hindering m en’s salvation, and thus impure and sinful. In some Buddhist traditions, women have to go through a rigorous spiri- tual discipline to become men in the next rebirth in order to be saved (Carter 1985—86: 34-35). Although in popular Buddhism and Daoism,

1. CCA Ecclesiology Consultation Women Participants, ‘Realities o f the Asian Women in Society and Church’, In God’s Image (December 1986), pp. 5-7 (7).

INTRODUCING ASIAN FEMINIST THEOLOGY100

women exercise certain leadership roles, including teaching the scrip- tures and founding new congregations, men feature more prominently in the religious hierarchy and liturgical functions.

Instead o f challenging these unjust social customs, congregations of many Asian churches tend to perpetuate and reinforce male domination through their teachings and practices. In the Roman Catholic Church, the fact that Jesus was a male and that women do not resemble Jesus physically are cited as reasons for barring women from ordination to the priesthood. In many churches, Paul’s injunctions that women should not speak in church (1 Cor. 14.34-35) nor exercise authority over men (1 Tim. 2.11-15) are used repeatedly to reinforce women’s inferiority and to deny them their rightful participation. Citing the Genesis story in which Eve was created second but sinned first, some male pastors reiterate their belief that women are sinful and dangerous and should be under male supervision and control. The misogynist teachings in both the Christian and indigenous traditions deny women equal opportunities to serve and to lead.

The ordination o f women to the priesthood is a protracted and lengthy struggle in the Asian context. In some countries, various denom- inations are slowly opening to the possibility of ordaining women, but some denominations still adamantly refuse to do so, even when women have the training and the credentials. Women who serve as deacons or evangelists do not receive the same recognition and benefits as ordained ministers. Even when they are ordained, women generally receive less pay than their male counterparts. Less likely to be called to large and established congregations, they often have to start their own churches. Female pastors employed as associates are assigned stereotypical jobs, such as teaching the young, home-visitation, tending to the sick, and responsibility for wom en’s fellowships and outreach to women in general. Married female evangelists and priests have the added difficulty o f having to negotiate between demands at home and in the workplace, while single women working in churches are often viewed with suspi- cion, or even pity (see two surveys done in Korea and Hong Kong: Kim 1992: 10-18; W ong 1997: 13-16). Many female parishioners feel more comfortable with men as their pastors and some are against women’s ordination, because they have internalized the churches’ teachings of male superiority.

Even in progressive Christian movements in Asia, men still dominate the leadership and liturgical roles. For example, Lydia Lascano observes

1017. W O M EN AND THE CH U RCH

that in basic Christian or ecclesial communities in the Philippines that are deeply involved in social justice movements, the majority o f core leaders are men; when women leaders emerge, they are given tasks that are extensions o f their usual functions o f child-rearing and housekeeping (Lascano 1985—86: 12). In the Korean situation, progressive theologians organize minjung churches to serve those marginalized in society. Even though women are the minjung among the minjung, they often play a subordinate role in shaping the development o f the minjung congrega- tions.

Although there is an increasing number o f women entering semi- naries, the majority o f faculty in theological schools in Asia are men. The theological curriculum in many schools follows that o f seminaries in the West, with some adaptations to the local context. The kind o f theology taught often reflects the mentality o f middle-class, Western churches, instead o f actively responding to urgent issues o f the day or the pastoral needs o f Asian people. Academic excellence is still defined largely by the ability to master the works o f Western theological giants, such as Tillich, Barth, R ahner or Schillebeeckx. In such a theological climate, feminist theology is dismissed as not a serious theological dis- course, or simply as a passing fashion of Western women and, therefore, irrelevant to Asian Christians. Few seminaries give priority to hiring more women and offering courses on feminist interpretation o f the Bible, feminist theology and pastoral care that honors the dignity o f women. Even when these courses are offered, they are likely to be elec- tives and students are not required to take them to benefit from feminist theological insights.

If the churches are to carry out Jesus’ mission in the world, many Asian feminist theologians contend, the current practices o f sexual discrimination in church structure and theological education must be changed. Lily Kuo Wang, a Presbyterian minister in Taiwan, emphasizes the tradition of the church as the body o f Christ, in which all members are mutually dependent, woven together through the power o f love. Different parts o f the body have different gifts and talents, and each should be encouraged to use its gifts to benefit the whole. In the R e- formed tradition, Kuo believes in the priesthood o f all believers and an inclusive ministry open to all. She insists that the church should be a liv- ing temple through which the love o f God and the power o f the spirit can be channeled. W omen should become leaders and ministers o f the church so that they can serve God fully and equally (Kuo 1989: 24-32).

INTRODUCING ASIAN FEMINIST THEOLOGY102

Kuo’s vision for an inclusive and mutually dependent church mem- bership is shared by other Christian women leaders in Asia. For exam- pie, Esther Inayat o f Pakistan challenges the church to provide more adequate theological training for women because such opportunities have been minimal in her country. Women are offered neither support nor encouragement when they decide to be involved in ministries of the church (Inayat 1989: 262-63). N yunt Nyunt Thein writes that theo- logically trained women in Burma urge Christians to recognize that the structure o f the church bars women from full ministries and to experi- ment with alternative models. At the same time, she points to the con- tinued need to promote women’s awareness and to develop feminist theological reflection. Critical dialogue and cooperation with women of other faiths, who are involved in promoting women’s consciousness and status, should also be encouraged (Thein 1989: 271). Tan Yak Hwee of Singapore also implores the churches to give space for women to exer- cise their spiritual gifts and opportunities for equal participation in min- istry. She believes the church should be liberated first before it can be an instrument o f salvation for others:

The Church must look upon itself as a community o f people who have been liberated from sin, a redeemed people. It is Christ who gave them freedom for the purpose o f serving others. W ith that understanding, the Church cannot but share this freedom among its members. A partnership o f trust and commitment between men and women should be forged for the advancement of the gospel (Tan 1989: 276).

D is c ip le sh ip o f W o m e n

In an effort to counteract the patriarchal biases o f the churches, Asian feminist theologians search for examples o f women’s discipleship during the time o f Jesus and in the early church. Virginia Fabella notes that women were among the followers who listened to Jesus’ teaching and helped in his ministry, even though the 12 disciples were all male. For example, Luke 8 mentions that Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Susanna and others provided for Jesus and ‘the twelve’ out of their resources, as Jesus traveled through cities and villages with his followers. Touched and healed by Jesus women, such as Simon’s mother-in-law, the hemor- rhaging woman and the bent-over woman, witnessed to his healing power. Even Gentile women, such as the Samaritan woman in John 4, had the opportunity to listen to Jesus’ teaching and spread his words in their communities. Most importantly, women were involved in the

7. W O M EN AND THE CH U RCH j

103

central mysteries of Jesus’ life: in the Annunciation, the first miracle at Cana, the disclosure o f Jesus as the Messiah, the death on the cross, and the Resurrection (Fabella et al. 1983: 12).

Focusing on women disciples o f Jesus in the Gospel o f Mark, Hisako Kinukawa elucidates the ways women follow Jesus’ teaching o f disciple- ship: ‘If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me’ (Mk 8.34) (Kinukawa 1994: 90- 106). Kinukawa argues that in Jesus’ time the cross was a symbol of shame and to take up one’s cross meant to stand on the side o f the oppressed in society. True discipleship, then, requires one to model one- self on Jesus’ life-giving ministries in solidarity with the outcast o f soci- ety. Such a ministry may result in resistance and rejection, even suf- fering, execution and death. Another aspect o f Jesus’ teaching on dis- cipleship involves serving: ‘Whoever wants to be the first must be last of all and servant of all’ (Mk 9.35). Kinukawa maintains that Jesus’ teaching on service contradicts a power structure that seeks power at the expense o f the destitute. By standing with the subjugated, Jesus set an example for discipleship, culminating in suffering and death.

Kinukawa then compares the male and female disciples in Mark’s gos- pel. The male disciples argue who is the greatest and joggle for recogni- tion and power. They flee when Jesus is persecuted, because they sense political danger and do not want to be identified with an accused crim- inal. In sharp contrast, Mark depicts the women disciples as following Jesus to the very end. Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother o f James and Joses, and Salome follow Jesus to the cross, see where he is buried, and bring spices to anoint his body. At the beginning of the gospel, Mark describes Simon’s mother-in-law serving Jesus after she is healed, and he concludes with the story o f the women attending Jesus after his death. For Kinukawa, these women are true disciples:

Thus, the women disciples keep challenging those who avoid joining the struggles o f the oppressed. The women disciples continue to disturb churches that seek patriarchal honor and hierarchical authority. So it should be implied that the discipleship o f ‘following and serving’ has the power to regenerate a true community o f faith (1994: 106).

In addition to the exemplifying roles o f the women disciples o f Jesus, Asian feminist theologians point to the important ministries o f women in the early church to argue for the fuller inclusion o f women. Esther Inayat writes that women were baptized into full church membership. They participated in prayer groups and opened their houses for prayer

INTRODUCING ASIAN FEMINIST THEOLOGY104

meetings and worship services. W om en were also founders and sup- porters of the early churches. They were prophets, evangelists and dea- conesses working side by side with Paul and other male apostles (1989: 262). Tan Yak Hwee cites several women mentioned by name in the New Testament as role models for contemporary women. They include Dorcas, who did good works o f charity at Joppa, especially for widows in the church (Acts 9.36-42). In Ephesus, the couple Priscilla and Aquila helped Paul spread the Gospel and in other missionary work. The fact that Priscilla’s name was mentioned before Aquila’s signifies the respect and importance o f Priscilla’s contribution to the early church (Acts 18.18, 26; Rom. 16.3). In the last chapter of the Epistle to the Romans, Paul further expresses his appreciation for his fellow workers, including Phoebe the deaconess, Mary, Tryphaena, Tryphosa and Persis. Tan con- eludes that these women played vital roles in the life o f the early church and their activities were not restricted to evangelizing other women. The ministry o f the church was not limited to men because both women and men were called to follow Jesus, who came not to be served but to serve (Tan 1989: 274).

Given the androcentric bias o f the N ew Testament authors, Virginia Fabella contends that the information given in the gospels and epistles about women’s ministry depicts only a fraction o f reality. Citing the work of Elisabeth Schiissler Fiorenza, Fabella argues that women partici- pated in a discipleship o f equals that existed for a period in early Chris- tianity. She calls for a non-androcentric reconstruction o f early church history, which will reveal that ‘women were full-fledged disciples, and equally missionaries, prophets, church leaden, and apostles in the broad sense of the term’ (Fabella 1985—86: 5). Such re-examination will under- line the egalitarian model of ecclesia, based on the equality o f all Chris- tians, male and female.

W ith other Asian feminist theologians, Fabella reclaims Mary, the mother o f Jesus, as a model of true discipleship. In the popular devotion to Mary, she has been depicted as the new Eve, the perpetual virgin, mother o f God, mediatrix of grace, but seldom as ‘disciple’. But in the new perspective, Mary is seen as a woman with a profound historical consciousness, sharing in her people’s expectation o f the coming king- dom of God. She is no longer an icon, far removed from reality, put on a pedestal to be worshiped. Mary courageously accepts the challenge o f God to be co-creator o f a new humanity at the Annunciation, breaking the sexual taboo placed on women at her time. The Magnificat pro­

1057. W O M EN AND THE CHURCH

claims a profound message o f liberation to people suffering under eco- nomic and political oppression. Mary participates in Jesus’ ministry, fol- lows him to the cross, and offers us a model o f true servanthood. She identifies with mothers today whose children are persecuted and taken as political prisoners for their actions against injustice. The torture and death o f Jesus do not frighten her, for she continues his ministry, meet- ing and praying with the disciples at Pentecost and helping to form the first church (Zambrano 1989: 222-27; Han 1989: 234-40). Fabella notes that Mary’s special claim is not that she has given birth to Jesus, but she qualifies as a disciple and forms Jesus’ family o f disciples through her obedient response to God: ‘Mary then remains a model for all Chris- tians, not so much of motherhood, but of faith and discipleship’ (Fabella 1985-86: 5).

For Asian feminist theologians, both women and men are called to follow Jesus and to participate in the ministry that brings about the kingdom o f God. Like the women in the early church, contemporary Christian women seek to build an inclusive and egalitarian faith com- munity. Like Mary, the mother o f Jesus, they wish to respond to the challenge o f God and participate in the co-creation of new humanity. True discipleship is not seeking power for one-self, but following Jesus and serving others for the sake of the kingdom. Asian women theolo- gians have noticed that both the Christian church and the Asian tradi- tions have exhorted women to serve in subservient roles. They insist that the true meaning o f service is not perpetual denial o f self, but radical commitment to bring about justice and the welfare of the church and society. Therefore, true discipleship o f women does not perpetuate the male domination o f church but liberates the hierarchical church and transforms it into a discipleship of equals.

P artn ersh ip o f E qu als

In the struggle for the equal partnership o f women and men in the church, an analysis of power and authority and how they are exercised is necessary. Ranjini Rebera, a consultant in communications and a femi- nist theologian originally from Sri Lanka, has written on the nature of power and its impact on Asian women (Rebera 1997: 44-49). Author- ity, she says, is different from power. Authority is usually based on cer- tain external circumstances, such as skill, knowledge, position or rela- tionship. Power is much more complex and dynamic, having personal,

INTRODUCING ASIAN FEMINIST THEOLOGY106

social, institutional and religious dimensions. Rebera believes that power itself is neutral: it can be used for good or for evil, depending on how it is applied and for what purpose it is exercised.

Following feminist theologians, such as R ita Nakashima Brock, Rebera distinguishes two major models of power: power-over-others and power-with-others. Power-over is the power o f domination and control. Within this model, an individual or a group o f persons assumes control and dominance because o f ethnic identity, class privilege, edu- cation, status or gender. In the Christian context, this hierarchical pyra- mid is supported by the belief that God is at the top, followed by the male, then the female, and then other categories o f creation. The exer- cise o f power is non-reciprocal, which often leads to an imbalance or even the abuse o f dominant power. Whereas many men can exercise this power o f domination because o f their status and position, Rebera argues that some women also claim their right to control, based on their race or their husband’s position o f authority in the church or society, or based on their own position o f authority within the wom en’s move- ment. Insightfully she points out how women in subordinate positions also try to influence and control those in authority by indirect means and by creating dependent circles within the family, the church and community.

The other form o f power is power-with-others, based on the inter- connection that exists between all who share in a community. She says power-with-others can lead us on the journey to create ‘a partnership o f equals within the Community o f Faith’. She elucidates several charac- teristics o f power-with-others. First, it is rooted, not in a hierarchical model where authority is exercised from the top down, but in an egalitarian one where authority is communal and shared. Second, this model respects the difference and diversity of each member, giving voice and support to each one who is ‘the other’, who feels left out, silenced and abused. It allows openness and freedom for all to claim their cultural and religious identity. Third, power-with seeks justice for all who belong to the community. This implies the accountability o f those who use power to control. It challenges authoritarian modes of leadership and unjust structures that create a power imbalance. It works to create community in which freedom, justice, peace and inclusivity prevail, instead o f fear, separation, anxiety and alienation. Fourth, it offers an opportunity to transform our image o f God from one who is omnipotent and dominating to one who is the source o f life-giving

7. W O M EN AND THE CH U RCH j

107

power. Such a God creates each o f us different but equal, and works in mutuality with human beings and creation.

Unfortunately, many churches in Asia operate according to a power- over model, with a top-down hierarchical structure. There is still a long way to go before the churches learn to exercise power-with so that all members can participate fully in the life o f the church. A church that respects the discipleship o f women and the partnership o f equals has to rethink its patterns o f leadership, the meaning o f ministry, the mobiliza- tion o f the laity and the relationship of the church and the community. The exercise o f power must be dynamic, fluid, open and transparent. Mechanisms o f accountability must be created and sustained so that power will neither be misused nor abused. Authority must not be based on position, credentials and status alone, but on charisma, the ability to build community and genuine qualities o f leadership.

The clerical model o f leadership that places power disproportionally on the clergy does not equip the laity to share ministry as full partners. In the Asian context where the culture honors the elderly, the teacher and the father o f the household, the male clergy tend to act as patriarchs o f an extended family, exercising power without appropriate mecha- nisms o f checks and balances. The clergy is supposed to decide what is right and wrong, to represent the authority o f God’s W ord and to dispense or withhold G od’s grace and absolution. The laity (especially the women among them) are to be obedient followers, consumers of religious goods and services, passive or even docile onlookers, restricted to the sidelines in God’s messianic mission. In contrast, the model o f a partnership o f equals recognizes that all have a role to play in carrying out G od’s mission in the world. The clergy does not possess a more sacred status, but is called and set apart for particular functions. The laity must be equipped and encouraged to use their God-given talents to strengthen the church and to work for peace and justice in the com- munity.

Asian feminist theologians who support wom en’s ordination do not advocate a clerical-hierarchical model o f the church. They do not support women’s ordination so that women may have a fair share in the power o f domination in the church hierarchy. They advocate women’s ordination so that women who are called by God may have the freedom and opportunity to exercise power-with-others to equip the whole congregation. For them, the purpose o f wom en’s ordination is not to

INTRODUCING ASIAN FEMINIST THEOLOGY108

allow women admission into ‘the male club’ and the opportunity to perform ‘men’s roles’. They believe that women should not be con- tented with admission to the lowest rungs of church hierarchy, as dea- conesses, evangelists, pastoral workers or priest associates. Instead, they envisage women seeking ordination to enlarge the church’s vision o f ministry, to experiment with new models of leadership and to subvert the patriarchal church.

Agatha W ong Mei-yuk o f Hong Kong has noted that opponents to women’s ordination often cite the following reasons for their opposi- tion: (1) in the creation order, women are created after men and should play a subordinate role; (2) the husband is the head o f the wife, and it is not appropriate for the wife to lead (Paul’s injunction that women should not speak in church is often cited as support); (3) women by nature are not fit or suitable for the ministry; and (4) the tradition of the church does not provide for the ordination o f women. Wong reminds us that there are in fact two creation stories in Genesis and in the first of these, the woman and the man were created simultaneously. The idea that women are subordinate in the natural order is a fiction maintained by a male system o f control. Wong further points out that Paul’s teach- ings are inconsistent. In Galatians he says that the redemption through Christ has abolished any distinction between races (Jew or Greek), classes (slave or free) and sexes (male or female). Meanwhile in the Epistle to the Corinthians, Paul exacts strict rules for women because of a controversy polarizing the troubled church. Paul’s instructions must be understood in historical perspective because the human society has changed a great deal since Paul’s time. Finally, W ong argues that the tradition o f the church varies and changes over time. Jesus himself broke regulations o f his time for the sake o f justice and liberation (Wong 1989: 278-83).

Although Asian feminist theologians have tried to reinterpret biblical injunctions and church teachings against women, it will be a long time before the church can embrace the partnership o f women and men as equals on personal, interpersonal, institutional and societal levels. For example, Gao Ying, a female pastor in Beijing, has noted that even though the socialist revolution has brought tremendous changes to China, ancient patriarchal attitudes toward women still exist. The church in China today is ruled primarily by the older generation o f male lead- ership with the result that female pastors and church leaders are not treated as equals. From her own experience o f working with those

7. W O M EN AND THE CH U RCH I

109

women in her congregation who are searching for a positive identity and self-esteem, Gao writes:

W om en’s emancipation is an ongoing process and we certainly have a long way to go both to achieve greater leadership participation and part- nership equality. The liberation of the church women in post liberation China remains a ‘Continuous Struggle’ (Gao 1994: 59).

Continuous struggle lies ahead not only for women in the most populous country in the world but also for women elsewhere in Asia. In the past several years, the Ecumenical Decade o f the Churches in Soli- darity with Women has stimulated some churches to discuss the mean- ing o f partnership, the admission o f women to full ministry and the use of inclusive language. Aruna Gnanadason, the director o f the Sub-unit on Women of the World Council of Churches, has been engaged in numerous activities related to the Ecumenical Decade. She recalls that at one Easter ecumenical gathering to launch the Decade in Madras, India, the women asked the same question that the women disciples asked as they approached the sealed tomb on that first Easter morning, ‘Who will roll the stone away?’ The participants then responded, ‘We will roll the stone away’ (Gnanadason 1992: 4). Assessing the achievements o f the Ecumenical Decade, it seems that many stones blocking Asian women from full partnership in the church—and their hope for resurrection— still need to be rolled away.

H o p e fo r th e Future C h u rch

Although Asian Christian women face many obstacles in their struggle for full participation in the ministry of the church, Asian feminist the- ologians express hope for the transfonnation o f the church into a com- munity o f hope and justice. Some Asian Christian women, experiencing ecumenical networks and local collaborative efforts, have had a foretaste o f what an inclusive faith community could be and have articulated their visions of new ways o f being a church in various contexts.

Yong Ting Jin o f Malaysia points out two important metaphors for the church found in the N ew Testament: the people o f God and the body o f Christ. The term ‘the people o f G od’ has a long historical Jewish background referring to the chosen people and a community called to proclaim God’s salvation for all humanity. The ‘body o f Christ’ refers to the church as a corporate life, in which members with a plurality o f gifts respect the contributions and dignity o f one another.

INTRODUCING ASIAN FEMINIST THEOLOGY110

The nature and character o f the church can find its root model in the ‘Jesus community’ formed in the socio-cultural and political setting of Jesus’ time. The ‘Jesus community’ was formed when Jesus announced the good news o f God’s kingdom as the new creation. The ‘Jesus com- munity’ was a visible and dynamic sign of the kingdom oriented toward a radical transformation of the political and religious establishment o f the time.

Translating the kingdom o f God into social realities is the funda- mental mission and challenge o f the church in Yong’s view. New ways o f being church and women’s participation are viewed from the per- spective o f G od’s kingdom and the new creation. Having served for several years as the Asian-Pacific secretary o f the World Student Chris- tian Federation, Yong has a broad ecumenical vision o f the church as a dynamic movement, rather than a religious establishment coopted by the interests o f the status quo. The church exists for the whole inhabited world, and women struggle together in solidarity as full members of the ‘people o f God, the body o f Christ, new citizens o f the kingdom, new creation made in God’s image toward the vision o f the New Heaven and New Earth where God’s spirit, justice, peace, and love will reign and prevail in the order of life’ (Y ong 1989: 51).

In order for the church to serve as an agent ushering in the kingdom, Yong calls for the repentance o f the church and a new life style in the religious community. Citing Brazilian theologian Leonardo Boff s analy- sis, Yong argues that the church has often abused or manipulated power, especially sacred power. Thus, a new way o f exercising power and a new pattern o f relationship between women and men on the personal and societal levels are necessary. Yong finds Jesus’ exercise o f power and authority out o f deepest humility motivated by love and for service of others to be compelling example for the church to emulate:

As a leader, Jesus washed the feet o f his friends. This power is the blessing for one to live in love, in peace with justice, in community. This power is never violent or destructive, ego-centered or domineering. This power is understood, motivated, and exercised by one’s set o f values as patterned after the vision o f God’s new creation. It serves to foster, enhance, and nurture all o f life. This power is dynamic and constructive because it has to do with caring, inclusiveness, peace with justice as against racism, sex- ism, classism, and militarism (Yong 1989: 49).

Yong’s vision that the church exists not for itself, but for the wider human community is shared by Pauline Hensman o f Sri Lanka (Hens- man 1984: 19-23). Living in a country beset by poverty and ethnic strife

7. W O M EN AND THE CH U RCH i

111

between the Singhalese and the Tamils, Hensman believes that the arena in which the Holy Spirit operates is the whole world, and not just within the middle-class churches. She challenges the church to leave behind its colonial structure and its inherited privileges, which often create barriers between people instead o f bringing them together. She anticipates an active laity not dependent on priests for leadership and for interpreting the Bible. Advocating for a decentralized church structure, she suggests that the minister should be socially involved outside the church and that the Holy Communion be celebrated in homes where committed Christians meet.

Hensman believes that the true ministry o f the church is a kind of missionary ministry, not in the sense of converting ‘heathens’ to Christ, but o f bringing the good news to the urban poor, the impoverished villagers and the over-worked laborers. She envisages the missionary- minister as working outside the parish churches, laboring side-by-side with workers and farmers on plantations and in factories and with pris- oners and refugees. In this way, the missionary-minister can earn the trust o f others and promote their awareness for the necessary action to bring about a new social order. The church will need many o f these dedicated missionary-ministers with different gifts and insights to work among different people. It is in the context o f a renewed ministry that Hensman hopes to see many women called to the ordained ministry. For her, women ‘need to use fully the gifts and insights which God has given us women for leadership; to resist and triumph over male domina- tion and sexism; for tact, sympathy, dedication and selflessness in God’s service’ (Hensman 1984: 23).

In another cultural context, Korean Christian women have gathered together and concretized their vision o f an alternative model o f the church by establishing in 1989 the Women Church in Seoul. The idea o f W om en Church was popularized through the works o f Rosemary Radford Ruether and Elisabeth Schiissler Fiorenza, among others. The Greek word ecclesia is a political term, meaning the assembly o f free citizens gathering to decide their spiritual and political affairs. An ecclesia o f women, according to Schiissler Fiorenza, is ‘the gathering o f women as a free and decision-making assembly o f G od’s people’ (Schiissler- Fiorenza 1984: 349). The Women Church movement consists o f grass- roots and ecumenical events and activities in North America and in other parts o f the world. The Women Church in Seoul was established to share Christian concerns especially with the suffering women in

INTRODUCING ASIAN FEMINIST THEOLOGY112

Korea and to work for the liberation o f women from domestic and social oppression and for the healing o f their han (Kwak 1992: 8-9).

The pastors o f the Women Church in Korea have been ordained Korean women. Members o f the Women Church creatively develop worship services and liturgies that are inclusive and adaptive to local customs. For example, instead o f bread and wine for the Eucharist, they experimented with Korean rice cakes and ginger tea to symbolize Jesus eating with the poor and the lowly in their own setting. An important activity o f the Women Church is feminist Bible study, because of the centrality o f the Bible in Korean churches and spirituality. Using a par- ticipatory and dialogical style, the Bible studies introduce women to feminist and critical interpretations o f the Bible. Monthly dramatizations o f biblical passages helps members to understand more deeply the mean- ing o f biblical stories. Other programs include counseling and healing sessions, collaborative work with local churches and other mission pro- jects.

Although the Women Church is a small, struggling faith community in the midst o f well-funded, patriarchal church establishment, it provides Korean Christian women with an alternative space and a forum where they can articulate their concerns and mobilize women for social trans- formation. A supporter of the W omen Church, theologian Sun Ai Lee Park has shared her vision o f the future church, modeled on the early Jesus community in which the human dignity o f women and all others despised in society was realized. The future church must be free of sex- ism. It must strive to become a true community o f women and men where the connection between wom en’s oppression and other forms of injustice is recognized. Furthermore, the future church cannot be en- grossed in middle-class concerns, but must become a grassroots move- ment. The forward-looking church should be a bearer o f justice, engag- ing in the prophetic ministry o f Jesus. Finally, the future church has to be a peace church, working for anti-militarization, anti-nuclear prolif- eration to usher in shalom on earth (Park 1989: 90-92). Today, women in the churches o f Asia and throughout the world are called to be mid- wives giving birth to this future church in which everyone can par- ticipate equally as disciples.