Issues that are related to gender, heritage, sexuality and religion have been some of the leading controversies of Catholicism for decades. Whether it is the sexualization of women, the overuse of power by men, or the stereotypical gender roles, the problems we see in the readings from the bible are problems that we often can relate to even in the 21st century. The three passages from the New Testament that I will examine in this paper all contain examples of how the bible has influenced and shaped our world and the Catholic Church today.
First, I will start with the reading Matthew 1-2, from the New Testament. Matthew was a tax collector and an organized man. Many thought this made him qualified to act as the “recorder” among the disciples
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In contrast, women are often portrayed as gentle and pure. In this story, Mary as the mother of Jesus, is almost idealized as the perfect image of a woman because she is both humble and a submissive virgin. Joseph was a carpenter and the provider for his family. These goes to show that traditional gender roles can indeed be dated back to the time of Jesus, and stories like this one are examples of how gender and religion have constructed our identities …show more content…
She was a possible co-profit and colleague of Jesus and she devoted her entire life to traveling to preach the word of God. As we saw in this reading from John 20, Mary remained faithful to Jesus even after his death. She was the first person to see the risen Christ and told to preach the Gospel. She is the reason why many question whether or not women should or should not be ordained, and many question if Mary should or should not be considered an apostle. According to FutureChurch.org, she is “the second most frequently named woman in the New Testament after Mary the mother of Jesus”. She was arguably one of the most important disciples in the Jesus movement and is one the most important leaders in the early Christian
Matthew is the first of four gospels in the New Testament. Matthew presents his story of Jesus, the demands of Christian discipline, and shares the news of the death and resurrection of Jesus. There are many questions in Matthew that can not be answered.The book of Matthew is a gospel that contains narrative history, genealogy, parables, sermons, and some prophetic oracles. The gospel of Matthew was originally written for a Jewish audience by a Jewish perspective. This is why Matthew is often referred to as "The Gospel for the Jews". Although Matthew was written for Jews, it does not include very much of the Jewish culture and tradition. Throughout the entire gospel of Matthew, it is very clear that the entire book is mainly incorporated with Jews. The book of Matthew ties in with the Old Testament several times, such as when they refer to Jesus as Messiah or King. The key word used in Matthew is "kingdom" and it is used 28 times. The reason Matthew was written was to reveal that Jesus was the messiah, the long of the Jews, and to conceive the Jews that Jesus Christ was indeed their long awaited messiah. The author of Matthew
The Women’s Bible commentary sheds some light on the interaction between Mary and Jesus. In fact, Mary is described as the catalyst for the Jesus’s miracle. When Mary informed
She is the one that followed Jesus from his birth, trusting him at times she never understood, naturally makes her the first disciple. God chose Mary to be the mother of Jesus because she was pure and free of sin. Mary never hesitated at God and her son, Jesus. She accepted all that was destined for her; when God asked her to give birth to Jesus, she was confused, yet she didn’t question what God had intended for her. This is what introduced Jesus, the Messiah into our world. If Mary had questioned God and didn’t believe in what God had purposed her for, Mary wouldn't be the mother of Jesus and that would’ve wrecked the faith women follow. All women in the Church admire Mary. She is the primary source of all women pride. Irene McCormack sets an example to how a disciple should appear. Irene McCormack proclaimed God through teaching youthful students and becoming a nun, which is to live life in God’s ways. She was faithful until the end even if it involved death. When the terrorists took her to die she believed in God and stayed faithful to him. She knew that she will eventually suffer in her journeys as she died an unwilling death. She is famous around the Catholic communities as her story explains how strong women can
Mary is another important and sometimes overlooked figure in Christianity. Mary was chosen by God to give birth to the Savior of the world. She did not complain about being chosen; she simply agreed to God’s plan. Mary is an excellent model of faith for all Christians. By being Jesus’s mother, Mary played a part in the salvation of all people. She made sure Jesus was taken cared for and raised right. Through Mary being the mediator between God and humans, Mary could be seen as bringing Jesus to the world. In John 19:25-27, Jesus was about to die, so he told a disciple to care for his mother, as she was his own. By looking at Mary’s life, it is important to create space in one’s life for God and sharing God’s love with the world.
Mary Magdalene and Mary the Mother of God are both biblical women who were faced with similar societal standards even thought these time periods are hundreds of years apart. Mary Magdalene was always seen as the “rebellious” women in the bible when it turns out she really wasn 't doing anything wrong. Similarly David Van Biema wrote about this topic in Time Magazine saying that Mary was first seen in the Gospel of Luke as
(Morrison 91). As defying as Hagar was, Magdalene was seen as a more fortifying name. Mary Magdalene was a biblical character found in the New Testament. She is referred to as one of the first female apostles. Her devotion to Jesus Christ was so strong that Mary was one the few apostles that were able to stay with him through the crucifixion.
Mary has appeared 9 major approved times by the Catholic Church. She appears in times of trouble to urge people to recommit themselves to the church and inspire the conversion of sinners to Christianity.
Religion is powerful in that it controls followers’ behaviours and beliefs throughout their entire lives; it is a form of social control. Catholicism is one of the most widely known religions influencing more than 2 billion people around the world (Ross). Within Catholicism not everyone are seen as equals; men have greater privilege than women. The bible and church are from a male’s point of view (Christ 86) and passages within the bible are used to enforce a sexual hierarchy. In fact, the oppression of women begins with the first story in Genesis about creation, which portrays females as being inferior to men and even of an evil nature. This one passage is the main source of justification of oppression of woman in the church (Daly 13).
In the Gospel of Mary, circa 120-180 AD, Mary Magdalene displays that women exercised agency by being a vessel of God and finding favor with the Lord. Beginning in the first paragraph of the work, it states, “Andrew and Peter question her veracity and ask why a woman should become a favorite disciple” (The Gospel of Mary 53). This demonstrates that men did not understand why a woman would be seen as a greater or more trustworthy being themselves as Christ’s inoculator. However, Mary remains humble, and she uses her agency to teach the men. Mary shows her willingness to enlighten the men when it is stated, “Mary answered, ‘What’s concealed from you I’ll tell; I saw him in a vision and I told him’” (The Gospel of Mary 57). This demonstrates Mary’s power over the males. In this situation, she holds knowledge that only she can give to them. This allows for her to become the individual in
People today view Mary as the most privileged woman who has ever lived, which can easily be the case, but not many people think about the price she had to pay for that title. Mary is one of the most important, and interesting people in the Bible. Mary is a central figure in the Gospel of Luke. Mary is also honored in the book of the Qur’an, as she is the only woman mentioned by name in that book. In Matthew, Mary played a very submissive role, she was never mentioned by her name, she was only mentioned by Joseph’s husband or even Jesus’ mother.
While many thought about, and ultimately considered it inappropriate to involve women in intellectual instruction, Jesus actually teaches women on a more personal level. He assumes that women are equally capable of learning and understanding the theological truths as his men disciples are, and believed that women were able to engage in various theological discussion. Jesus was willing to risk public scandal in order to instruct women and show that women are very important figures in the Gospel. John further affirms that women are in their intellectual capacity, as he tends to present them as valid witnesses of the truth about Jesus. It is further through the witness of the Samaritan woman that the people of Sychar are introduced to Jesus. Furthermore, it is Mary Magdalene who is then entrusted with the truth of Jesus’ resurrection and commanded by the risen Jesus to be a witness of that truth to the disciples.
The Gospel of Matthew was written around the year 90 AD by Saint Matthew. It is one of four gospels that has been accepted into the Christian Bible. This gospel is written from the Jesus’s sayings and teachings while showing the similarities between Jewish law and Jesus’s teachings. Jesus first preaches to his people that the poor, mourning, meek, hungry, merciful, pure, and peacemakers shall see god and inherit the kingdom of heaven. God came to not destroy but fulfil, whoever breaks the commandments will be called last to the kingdom of heaven, while the ones uphold the commandments and teaches them will be called into the kingdom of god. The Ten Commandments tell the followers of god you shall not worship other gods, you shall not make
The last bit of evidence that Schaberg points out is that the Gospels have purposely not told us about Mary Magdalene in a more in depth description. She had been travelling with Jesus and his disciples, yet the only mentions of her are at the tomb and at the resurrection of Jesus. I feel that Mary Magdalene was purposely left out because if they built her up to be a leader or a character with absolute importance, then the males would become humiliated; plus there was no sort of gender equality back then either, so a woman was either left out of the story or considered to be inferior to
(2) the teaching and Ministry of Jesus healing and deliverance in the areas served by the most organised. Because of this, then in the second century the Church was already applying the Gospel to foster new people repent.
Virgin Mary is a very influential woman in Christianity, particularly in the Roman Catholic sect. She is an example of what all women should strive to become. Historically, Mary has been viewed as a controversial figure in feminist culture. However, the Virgin Mary should truly be considered a feminist icon.