Queer theology

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The queer theology ( English queer theology ) is a theological movement that theology from the realities of queer people ( LGBT will) operate.

Self-image

Queer theology sees itself predominantly as the theology of liberation from a heteronormative religiosity, which views non- heterosexual people as deviations from the creatural norm or as sinful .

Marcella Althaus-Reid interprets the emergence of classical liberation theology in Latin America as the penetration of a new, hitherto marginalized or excluded subject, namely the economically exploited and politically oppressed. By presented in theory and practice socially marginalized groups at the center, was the theology of liberation, according to Althaus-Reid "indecent" (Engl. Indecent ). However, classical liberation theology never questioned the heterosexual identity of its subject, and gender issues were also only insufficiently addressed. Queer theology, on the other hand, is the theologically reflective struggle for liberation of a new, "sexual" subject, which was excluded even in classical liberation theology : the queer people in the broadest sense. This is how Robert Goss , whose manifesto Jesus ACTED UP! from 1993 belongs to the early works of queer theology, this as a critical further development of the original liberation theology.

Queer theology consciously tries to reflect that the subject of its theological practice cannot be uniform. LGBT people have different, sometimes conflicting interests. Instead of opposing heteronormativity with a unified subject, queer theology tries to deconstruct heterosexual normality - which is tacitly assumed in classical theology - and thereby takes up the post-structuralist criticism of the concept of the subject .

Today, not all queer theologians see their work as a discussion of Latin American liberation theology. Althaus-Reid suggested replacing the concept of liberation with Georges Bataille's concept of transgression (“crossing boundaries that evokes an inner experience”), but without giving up the critical reference to the theology of liberation. In this respect, queer theology can still be understood today as a liberation theology due to the emancipatory claim it represents.

method

On the one hand, queer theology tries to discover traces of queer subjects in the history of theology and the church , who remain invisible within the framework of a heteronormative epistemology. At the same time, the question is whether religious traditions, as is often assumed, must be intrinsically homophobic . John Boswell's studies of the history of religion played a pioneering role. Queer theology is an application area of queer studies in this regard .

Biblical texts, which are often used to justify discrimination against homosexuals, are particularly controversial . Queer theological interpretations attempt to critically examine the history of the impact of such texts and to interpret the norms set up in the text in a context-appropriate manner in order to question their validity for queer people today. A queer theologian like Thomas Hanks comes to the conclusion that the biblically based homophobic violence - e.g. B. in the interpretation of the story of Sodom and Gomorrah - often a "violence against the Bible" precedes, in that a text is imposed a heteronormative interpretation disregarding its context or its message. Bob Goss, along with Mona West and others, publishes a Bible commentary on this, the Queer Bible Commentary .

Queer theology, on the other hand, seeks to "queer" biblical narratives. This means a rereading that interprets the texts of the Bible for LGBT contexts in a realistic way. This enables queer people to acquire religious traditions in a creative way, not only in their personal environment, but also in church and in public:

“It is a fight for representativity, for a person reading theology to be able to be interpellated by the text, that is, by saying 'it is me; I recognize myself in this situation. '”

- Marcella Althaus-Reid

The aim is to overcome “schizophrenic spiritualities” in a thoroughly combative manner, which allow queer sexualities and life plans to be lived out only to the exclusion of the public, and which do not allow them to express themselves in the Christian churches and generally in the religious sphere.

Organizational forms of queer theology

Queer theology sees itself predominantly as a theology operated from the grassroots. Various lay organizations and missionary organizations have emerged around the world that are specifically aimed at gay and lesbian people and represent an "inclusive Christianity" without sexual discrimination . The Metropolitan Community Church (MCC), founded in Los Angeles in 1968, has developed into a worldwide church that is represented in 23 countries (including Germany ). Originally developed from the Californian gay scene, the MCC was primarily aimed at gay and lesbian people, but is committed to a principle of comprehensive inclusivity, so that all people of Christian faith are welcome in the MCC. Some eminent queer theologians are pastors or lay members of the MCC.

Most queer theologians, however, belong to the traditional Christian denominations , within which they campaign for the acceptance of LGBT people. So there are z. B. in the United States the organization DignityUSA , which meanwhile also has a Canadian sister organization. Dignity has been campaigning for the acceptance of LGBT people, especially in the Roman Catholic Church , since 1969 (the year it was founded by Patrick Nidorf ) . IntegrityUSA , founded in 1974 by Louie Crew , has a similar mission within the Episcopal Church of the United States . In German-speaking countries, organizations such as Zwischenraum or the Ecumenical Working Group on Homosexuals and Churches work in the sense of queer theology. At the initiative of theologians and LGBT activists, three Protestant churches in Argentina ( United , Lutheran and Waldensian denominations) actively supported the introduction of same-sex marriage. Soulforce is an American civil rights organization that non-violently fights against religiously motivated transphobia and homophobia .

See also

literature

  • Marcella Althaus-Reid: Indecent Theology. Theological Perversions in Sex, Gender and Politics. Routledge, London / New York 2000.
  • John Boswell: Christianity, Social Tolerance, and Homosexuality. University of Chicago Press, Chicago 1980.
  • Robert Goss: Jesus ACTED UP! A Gay and Lesbian Manifesto. HarperCollins, 1993.
  • Roger Corless : Many Selves, Many Realities: The Implications of Heteronymy and the Plurality of Worlds Theory for Multiple Religious Belonging. October 6, 2002 ( [1] on pcts.org)

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A b Marcella Althaus-Reid: From Liberation Theology to Indecent Theology. The Trouble with Normality in Theology. In: Ivan Petrella (Ed.): Latin American Liberation Theology - The Next Generation. Orbis Books, New York 2005, pp. 21ff.
  2. a b Marcella Althaus-Reid: La teoría queer y la teología de la liberación. La irrupción del sujeto sexual en la teología. In: Concilium 1/2008, pp. 109-124.
  3. ^ Marcella Althaus-Reid: The Hermeneutics of Transgression. In: Georges de Schrijver (Ed.): Liberation Theologies on Shifting Grounds. A Clash of Socio-Economic and Cultural Paradigms. Leuven 1998, pp. 251-271.
  4. Wolfgang Schürger: "Neither Jew nor Greek, (...) not homo or hetero, but all one in Christ." Gay theology as liberation theology by and for same-sex loving people (PDF; 1.3 MB) , p. 13. Website of the alliance “No Room for Sexism, Homophobia and Religious Fundamentalism”. Retrieved May 31, 2010.
  5. Wolfgang Schürger: "Neither Jew nor Greek, (...) not homo or hetero, but all one in Christ." Gay theology as liberation theology by and for same-sex loving people (PDF; 1.3 MB) , p. 1f. Website of the alliance “No Room for Sexism, Homophobia and Religious Fundamentalism”. Retrieved May 31, 2010.
  6. Thomas Hanks: Violence to the Bible? Or Inspired by the Bible? ( Memento of the original from November 11, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.othersheep.org archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Other Sheep Ministries website . Retrieved May 31, 2010.
  7. ^ Marcella Althaus-Reid: Indecent Theology. Theological Perversions in Sex, Gender and Politics. Routledge, London / New York 2000, p. 89.
  8. Matrimonios del mismo sexo: Declaración de las Iglesias Evangélica del Río de la Plata y Evangélica Luterana Unida (“Declaration of the Evangelical Church on La Plata and the United Evangelical Lutheran Church on Same-Sex Marriage”). Website of the Evangelical Church on La Plata (Spanish)
  9. Asamblea Sinodal 2010 - Resoluciones  ( page no longer available , search in web archivesInfo: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . @1@ 2Template: Dead Link / www.valdensesdelsur.com  Website of the Valdenses del Sur (Spanish). Retrieved December 8, 2010.