The purpose of this paper is to investigate and compare how the relationship between woman and man is expressed in Genesis, First Corinthians and Second Clement based on a feminist and ideological theory. This paper argues that the relationship between woman and man in all three texts (Gen, 1 Cor and 2 Clem) is equal. It is described that both Eve/woman and Adam/man are created by God, they must unite and become one, and they are in a mutual dependence on each other and God. Through a feminist and ideological theory, the creation story can contribute to understanding 1 Cor in a way where the woman is equal to the man. When the three texts are presented next to each other (heading 2.1.8), their similarities emerge clearly, and both 1 Cor and 2 Clem have eschatological undertones and explain above all that the female and the male belong together. My interpretation is that both 1 Cor and 2 Clem wants to correct incorrect hierarchies that arose in their contemporaries based on using the non-hierarchical order of the creation story to highlight how the relationship between women and men is actually intended. Interpreting the creation of Eve based on Adam's need for her means that Eve and thus the woman is Adam's equal helper. There is nothing in the text to suggest that women should be seen as subordinate to men. The point of the whole pericope is that Eve (created from Adam's bones and flesh) and Adam through marriage and sexual union will become one. What Paul expresses in 1 Cor 11:11-12 appears to be an explanation for the theological meaning of the verses of the creation story. "For just as the woman is from the man, so also the man through the woman and all are from God." Although Eve was created from man, Adam was the one who benefited from Eve's creation. He needed her both as a partner and companion and also as an enabler for humans to reproduce. Exactly how the verses in 2 Clem should be interpreted is unclear among the scholars presented in this paper. But on the other hand, the text expresses that the relationship between woman and man is, and should be, completely equal. The pericope explains how the Lord's kingdom will come when humans actively act according to the message of the text. There is no sign whatsoever of any kind of hierarchy between women and men.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UPSALLA1/oai:DiVA.org:uu-521126 |
| Date | January 2024 |
| Creators | Rudolfsson, Camilla |
| Publisher | Uppsala universitet, Teologiska institutionen |
| Source Sets | DiVA Archive at Upsalla University |
| Language | Swedish |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Student thesis, info:eu-repo/semantics/bachelorThesis, text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
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