God in the gap: rethinking divine gender and moving toward reconciliation
In this paper, I explore how Christian theology, along with the two other monotheistic traditions, grapples with whether God possesses a gender or transcends it altogether—and how these perspectives influence both doctrine and worship. Many theologians insist on referring to God as exclusively mascu...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Interlibrary Loan: | Interlibrary Loan for the Fachinformationsdienste (Specialized Information Services in Germany) |
| Published: |
2025
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| In: |
International journal for philosophy of religion
Year: 2025, Volume: 98, Issue: 1/2, Pages: 1-19 |
| Further subjects: | B
Imago Dei
B Perfect being B Traditionalism B Gender B Egalitarianism B Divine Attributes |
| Online Access: |
Presumably Free Access Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Summary: | In this paper, I explore how Christian theology, along with the two other monotheistic traditions, grapples with whether God possesses a gender or transcends it altogether—and how these perspectives influence both doctrine and worship. Many theologians insist on referring to God as exclusively masculine, while feminist and egalitarian voices challenge this practice, claiming that an exclusively gendered God can conflict with the ideals of equality and with the imago Dei. After examining the socio-linguistic and historical factors behind the predominance of masculine divine imagery, I move on to discuss Michael Rea’s (2016) argument that attributing an unequal gender to God is metaphysically problematic. Rea argues that framing God in a strictly masculine way conflicts with the view that men and women are equal image-bearers of God, risking perfect being theology. I then present an objection to Rea’s view, based on the idea that not every divine attribute has to be mirrored in humanity. By distinguishing between attributes that are "image-relevant" and those that are not, I argue how one might conceive of a gendered God without undermining egalitarianism and perfect being theology. I furthermore argue that why gender cannot be an image-relevant attribute of God, opening a conceptual room for the reconciliation of traditionalism, egalitarianism, and the doctrine of imago Dei. Finally, I highlight the importance of considering socio-linguistic realities, feminist insights, and pastoral ramifications in deciding how best to speak of God in ways that respect both traditional theology and modern egalitarian commitments. |
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| ISSN: | 1572-8684 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: International journal for philosophy of religion
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1007/s11153-025-09949-1 |
