Women in Christianity

By Hans Küng

For two years K ng guided a research project on Women and Christianity, funded by the Volkswagen Foundation. For most of the religions of the world, women are a problem. From time immemorial they have been subordinate to men, second class in the family, politics and business with limited rights and even limited participation in worship. It is not only in Christianity that equal rights for women has been a scandalously neglected issue.

By an examination of the history of women in Christianity, Kung points to the scandals of the past.
The prohibition of women servers at Mass and of the ordination of women to the diaconate and the priesthood are symptomatic of a male dominated Church, which takes a consistently 'negative' attitude towards contraception, abortion and divorce. Roman Catholic Canon Law is androcentric and male dominated.

From his position of intellectual freedom, as an independent Professor at the University of Tubingen, K ng is free to analyse the mistakes of the past and to sketch out a new theology of Women in the Church. This is not stridently feminist but sees the role of women as being vital for the development of the Church as an institution and for preaching the Christian Gospel.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0826476902
• ISBN13: 9780826476906
• Release Date: April 2005
• Publisher: Continuum
• Length: 140 Pages
• Weight: 0.38 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 5.0" x 7.7"

Customer Reviews

Key Work by Renowned Theologian

A very brief, clear and immensely powerful discussion of this explosive subject. One can spend a lifetime studying the role of women in Christian history and pondering Christ's relationship to the women in the gospels.--- Dairmaid MacCulloch has quite a lot to say about it in his enormous and brilliant work, The Reformation. And there are countless other scholarly works dealing with the subject --- But a concise treatment such as this by a great theologian has immense authority. Hans Kung leaves no doubt that the life of Christ, His teachings, and His saving grace belong in full measure not only to men, but to women. The book is fully documented, and highly accessible. [...]

On Target

Once again Fr.Kung has said it like it really is!!! With honesty and compassion. A must read for all women, especially catholic women.