Patriarchy as empire: A theological reflection

 

 

Mary-Anne Plaatjies Van Huffel

Department of Ecclesiology and Church Polity, University of Stellenbosch, Stellenbosch, South Africa

 

 

---

ABSTRACT

"Empire" manifests itself both as an empirical reality and in its ideological claims. The paper argues that sexism, patriarchy and hierarchical societal structures still prevail in postapartheid South Africa. The shift from the view that gendered objects were regarded as racial objects in apartheid South Africa to the view of gendered objects as equity objects in post-apartheid South Africa goes hand in hand with meaningful shifts in power. The paper further argues that the problem of the lack of engendering is inextricably linked to the intrinsically patriarchal character of South Africa. The presence of women in the ecclesial and societal structures is not an indicator of the transformation of the patriarchal anthropology in South Africa. The paper discusses the challenges with regard to gender mainstreaming in post-apartheid South Africa within the framework of post-structuralism.

---

 

 

“Full text available only in PDF format”

 

 

Works consulted

Ackerman, DM (ed.) 1989. Differing theories, some old praxis, some feminist thoughts on right wing religion. Journal of Theology for Southern Africa, 9(69).         [ Links ]

Ackerman, DM (ed.) 1992(a). Towards our liberation: a new vision of Church and ministry in Women hold up half the sky: women in the Church in Southern Africa. Pietermaritzburg: Cluster Publications.         [ Links ]

Ackerman, DM 1992(b). Defining our humanity: thoughts on feminist anthropology. Journal of Theology for Southern Africa, 9(79).         [ Links ]

Ackerman, DM 1993. Meaning and power: some key terms in feminist liberation theology. Scriptura, 44(2).         [ Links ]

Bakker, R 1973. Het anonieme denke: Michel Foucault en het strukturalisme. Baarn: Wereldvenster.         [ Links ]

Bakker, R 2000. Beijing platform report SA first progress report. http://www.info.gov.za/view/DownloadFileAction?id=70483. Accessed 10 February 2011.         [ Links ]

Berman A 1988. From the new criticism to deconstruction: the reception of structuralism and post-structuralism. Urbana: University of Illinois Press.         [ Links ]

Boesak, AA 2010. Dreaming of a different world together globalisation and justice for humanity and the earth: the challenge of the Accra Confession for the Churches. Stellenbosch: Sun Media.         [ Links ]

Buckley, M 1979. The rising of women is the rising of the race. CTSA, 34.         [ Links ]

Butler, J 1990. Gender Trouble. Feminism and the subversion of identity. Routledge, London.         [ Links ]

Butler, J 1988. Performative Acts and Gender Constitution: An Essay in Phenomenology and Feminist Theory Theatre Journal, Vol. 40, No. 4. (Dec., 1988).         [ Links ]

Canning, K 1994. Feminist history after the linguistic turn: historical discourse and experience. Signs, 19 (Winter).         [ Links ]

Constitution of the Republic of South Africa Act 108 of 1996.         [ Links ]

Fiorenza Schüssler, E 1993. Discipleship of equals: A critical feminist ekklesialogy of liberation. New York Crossroads        [ Links ]

Frader, LL 1994. Dissent over discourse: labor history, gender and the linguistic turn. History and Theory, 34(4).         [ Links ]

Gender Equality and Equity UNESCO 2000. http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0012/001211/121145e.pdf. Accessed: 10 February 2011.         [ Links ]

Gavey, N 1989. Feminist post-structuralism and discourse analysis. Psychology of Woman Quarterly, Volume 13 (December).         [ Links ]

Graff, A (ed.) 1995. In embrace of God: feminist approaches to theological anthropology. New York: Orbis Books.         [ Links ]

Hall, C 1991. Politics, post-structuralism and feminist history. Gender & History, 3.         [ Links ]

Hamilton, R 1987. The liberation of women. London: George Allen & Unwin.         [ Links ]

Milne, PJ 1989. The patriarchal stamp of Scripture. Journal of Feminist Studies in Religion, 5 (September).         [ Links ]

President Nelson Mandela, Inaugural Speech, May 1994. http://www.info.gov.za/speeches/1994/170595002.htm .Accessed 14 March 2011.         [ Links ]

Pitt, S 1998. Representing otherness: feminism, logicentrism and the discipline of History. Rethinking History, 2(3).         [ Links ]

Reuther, RR 1983. Sexism and God-talk: towards a feminist theology. London: SPCK.         [ Links ]

South Africa's Compliance with the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, March, 2010. http://www.pmg.org.za/files/docs/100721bpfa.pdf Accessed 10 February 2011.         [ Links ]

Theological consultation on affirming human dignity, rights of peoples and the integrity of creation. Kigali, Rwanda, 4-9 December 2004 World Council of Churches Commission on Faith and Order. http://www.oikoumene.org/fileadmin/files/wcc-main/documents/p2/kigali_en.doc. Accessed 10 February 2011        [ Links ]