A Historical and Thematic Review on the Feminist Studies of Religion

This paper aims to examine the history and the main Issues of feminist studies of religion. First generation feminists, mostly American Christian women leaders fighting for the sake of women's rights, revealed the androcentrism rooted strongly in Bible and church. Second generation feminists set "women's experiences" as an cornerstone of religious studies. This notion, "women's experience," emphasizing the gender differences between man and woman, played the important role of revealing and criticizing the psuedo-universality of androcentrism. Third generation feminists, under the influences of post-structuralism and post-colonialism, gave a focus on the differences of class, race, culture, and religion, among women. They, therefore, explored the racial, cultural, religious bias, concealed in second generation feminists, mostly, the white middle-class women. The main issues in the feminist studies of religion have been myth, scripture, religious symbol, and "herstory." Before critically reviewing these issues, I revealed the androcentrism and ethnocentrism hidden in the basic concepts in the study of religion, such as "homo religiosus" and "sacred." Feminist historian of religions tend to criticize the practice of "the deductive method" as well as the premise of "the universality of myth" prevalent in the study of myth. Feminists also make efforts to overcome androcentric reading and interpretation of scriptures and religious symbols. Finally, feminists historians of religions attempt to reconstruct women's lost and distorted history, by choosing the notion of "herstory.