Nature of God

Onto-theology = study of the nature of God.

Male - Father, Son, He make God an all-powerful creator while also personal and protective father. "so God created makind in his own image" (Gen 1) "as a father has compassion on his children" (Ps 103) 

Female - "as a mother comforts her child" (Isa 66) "as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings" (Mt 23) 

However, God is non-bodily so defies the human constraints of gender. Jesus shares this character so even though he was incarnated as a man he isn't really restricted by gender either. 

Holy Spirit - descriptions vary. Hebrew 'ruach' is feminine but Latin 'spiritus' is male and Greek 'pneuma' is neutral.

4 views: gendered descriptions are only metaphors, some language is gender neutral, we should use female language, Trinity is abuot roles not gender. 

Eco-feminist theologoian who thinks language about God is metaphorical but 'metaphors become idols' as people take them literally but they are outdated and inadequate so cause abuse of women and the planet. Male ideas of God are monarchical and encourage escapism and militarism.

Describing God as mother would highlight love and show the world as God's body, so women and the environment would be treated better. Rather than father, son and spirit it should be mother, lover, friend.

Criticisms - maternal imagery is socially constructed so in making God female you encourage feminine stereotypes, it is unbiblical and challenges all scripture and teachings, we can't change the creation story, wrong to vew Jesus as a lover rather than son, the environment isn't affected by theology, we don't have a right to change the metaphors.

Impassible = unable to suffer or feel pain.

Contradictory for God to be omnipotent and not be able to feel pain. However, it could be because He is immutable and emotions are too subject to change. Jesus was passible because he was incarnated into a human body and God always planned for him to suffer. 

Moltmann - thinks God is passible and suffers as He felt Jesus' pain when he was crucified. He therefore understands humans' physical and emotional suffering. This provides comfort for believers e.g. boy hung at Auschwitz was with God. This solves the problem of evil.

Examine different responses to the issue of male language about God.

Male - Father, Son, He make God an all-powerful creator while also personal and protective father. "so God created makind in his own image" (Gen 1) "as a father has compassion on his children" (Ps 103) 

Female - "as a mother comforts her child" (Isa 66) "as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings" (Mt 23) 

4 views: gendered descriptions are only metaphors, some language is gender neutral, we should use female language, Trinity is abuot roles not gender. 

 McFague says 'metaphors become idols' but they are outdated and inadequate so cause abuse of women and the planet. Male ideas of God are monarchical and encourage escapism and militarism. Describing God as mother would highlight love and show the world as God's body, so women and the environment would be treated better. Rather than father, son and spirit it should be mother, lover, friend.

Examine the modern view of a suffering God as understood by Moltmann.

Impassible = unable to suffer or feel pain.

Contradictory for God to be omnipotent and not be able to feel pain. However, it could be because He is immutable and emotions are too subject to change. Jesus was passible because he was incarnated into a human body and God always planned for him to suffer. 

Moltmann - thinks God is passible and suffers as He felt Jesus' pain when he was crucified. He therefore understands humans' physical and emotional suffering. This provides comfort for believers e.g. boy hung at Auschwitz was with God. This solves the problem of evil.

'God can be known as mother.' Evaluate this view.

Agree - biblical as female metaphors such as the hen are used, necessary to present God's nurturing character and avoid the miltaristic, abusive attitudes that are caused by male language and metaphors becoming idols.

Disagree - unbiblical as Jesus constantly referred to God as 'Abba' and Father such as in The Lord's Prayer, unnecessary as the male model is adequate to present God's creation, love and protection, McFague's view is too shaped by feminism, God is beyond gender so no gendered language can adequately describe Him, it is all metaphorical, difference between female and feminine that can enforce gender stereotypes, we cannot change biblical metaphors.

'God cannot suffer.' Evaluate this view.

Agree - He is above human suffering, is impassible and immutable and emotions like pain are too subject to change, his suffering commits the heresies of pantheism or modalism, God couldn't save us if He too is suffering, it undermines God's transcendence and classical attributes, changing the Trinity.

Disagree - it is essential for the Trinity that God understands Jesus' suffering on the cross, Multmann uses the example of a Jewish boy hung at a death camp to show that the crucifixion allows god to sympathise, it solves the problem of evil if gos feels our pain.

'If God has no gender, then God as a female is not problematic.' Evaluate this view.

Agree - there are female metaphors in the bible too, it makes up for the militaristic, dominant behaviour that the male view of god has caused, mothers also create and nurture their children, the male language was only used due to patriarchal context as it was written by men for men.

Disagree - the Father model is adequate in loving and disciplining his children, Jesus refers to God as Faher and 'Abba', God as a female doesn't have the same characteristics so is not as effective.