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TT-SYS Library and Archives Bibliotheque Et Canada Archives Canada University de Sherbrooke Faculte de theologie et d'etudes religieuses THE METAPHORICAL THEOLOGY OF SALLIE McFAGUE: an exploratory study Q. Hugh J. Gwyn Memoire de maitrise Programme d'etudes du religieux contemporain ©Q.HughJ. Gwyn2011 TT-SYS Library and Archives Bibliotheque et Canada Archives Canada Published Heritage Direction du Branch Patrimoine de I'edition 395 Wellington Street 395, rue Wellington Ottawa ON K1A0N4 Ottawa ON K1A 0N4 Canada Canada Your file Votre reference ISBN: 978-0-494-88913-8 Our file Notre reference ISBN: 978-0-494-88913-8 NOTICE: AVIS: The author has granted a non­ L'auteur a accorde une licence non exclusive exclusive license allowing Library and permettant a la Bibliotheque et Archives Archives Canada to reproduce, Canada de reproduire, publier, archiver, publish, archive, preserve, conserve, sauvegarder, conserver, transmettre au public communicate to the public by par telecommunication ou par I'lnternet, preter, telecommunication or on the Internet, distribuer et vendre des theses partout dans le loan, distrbute and sell theses monde, a des fins commerciales ou autres, sur worldwide, for commercial or non­ support microforme, papier, electronique et/ou commercial purposes, in microform, autres formats. paper, electronic and/or any other formats. The author retains copyright L'auteur conserve la propriete du droit d'auteur ownership and moral rights in this et des droits moraux qui protege cette these. Ni thesis. Neither the thesis nor la these ni des extraits substantiels de celle-ci substantial extracts from it may be ne doivent etre imprimes ou autrement printed or otherwise reproduced reproduits sans son autorisation. without the author's permission. In compliance with the Canadian Conformement a la loi canadienne sur la Privacy Act some supporting forms protection de la vie privee, quelques may have been removed from this formulaires secondaires ont ete enleves de thesis. cette these. While these forms may be included Bien que ces formulaires aient inclus dans in the document page count, their la pagination, il n'y aura aucun contenu removal does not represent any loss manquant. of content from the thesis. Canada ABSTRACT Sallie McFague, an American theologian, has developed a metaphorical theology during the last 35 years. Her fundamental critique is that the language and dominant metaphors that are used in theology to talk of God in relation to the world are no longer meaningful or significant today. Her basic methodology is to use scripture, tradition, feminist insights, process thought and experience as the basis for advancing her theology. Her premises arose primarily from her perception of the oppression of women, men and the rest of living and non-living creation arising from dominant hierarchal dualisms. Creation has been commodified in the neo-classical economic model. She proposes the alternative metaphors of mother, lover and friend to describe our relation with God and a model of Creation as God's Body to underpin our understanding of our relationship to creation. This is essentially congruent with the present evolutionary cosmological model of the universe. It means that we are both utterly dependent on the world, living and inanimate, and that we can no longer look upon it as other; because as God's body, God is both transcendent and radically immanent in creation, our present home where we must be actors in it as well and not tourists - temporary residents. 2 SOMMAIRE Le but de ce memoire est d'explorer la theologie de Sallie McFague. Theologienne americaine de tendance episcopalienne, elle a travaille pendant 35 ans a Vanderbilt University au Tennessee. Elle est presentement Distinguished Visiting Professor of Theology a la University of British Columbia. Depuis les annees 60, elle etudie le probleme cree par les dualismes hierarchiques qui nous ont amenes, a travers notre mode de vie, de multiples oppressions : celle des humains, celle de la vie non humaine ainsi que celle de notre monde, c'est-a-dire la creation terrestre. Elle constate que notre mode de vie, dope par le modele neo-classique economique nous a conduit dans cette situation. Ce que nous faisons, repose sur ce que nous disons, fruit de ce que nous pensons, c'est-a-dire fruit de nos valeurs fonctionnelles. Notre langage, essentiellement metaphorique, ainsi que les dualismes implicites et explicites vecus mettent done dans une situation de crises et d'oppression la communaute humaine et la communaute naturelle. L'objectif principal de ce memoire est de presenter la theologie de McFague en en decrivant sa methodologie. Notre hypothese est que sa theologie est une theologie metaphorique qui a ete par la suite developpee davantage dans des contextes specifiques pour repondre a des urgences et des crises multiples de notre temps. En effet, le developpement de sa theologie metaphorique dans le contexte de son analyse de l'ecologie evolutionnaire est intimement lie a une dimension de la cosmologie evolutionnaire moderne. Ultimement, le discours ecologique de McFague devient une contextualisation essentielle a sa theologie metaphorique. Dans ses premiers livres, McFague insiste sur l'importance des metaphores dans nos vies et par extension sur le role des paraboles de Jesus pour annoncer le Royaume de Dieu. Ce dernier est fondamentalement un royaume de liberation dans tous les sens possibles : liberation de toutes creatures, de tous les humains, de tous vivants et de tout non vivants. Pour corriger les implications evidentes des metaphores dominantes de Dieu en relation avec le monde, elle en propose des nouvelles : Dieu mere, Dieu amoureux et Dieu ami. Dans son analyse, elle souligne comment ces metaphores nous approchent de Dieu, Dieu qui est autrement eloigne (transcendent), et peu 'accessible' (immanent). Elle fait un pas de plus en proposant que Dieu ne soit pas uniquement accessible a travers quelques sacrements mais constamment present puisque la creation est le corps de Dieu. Dieu n'est pas absent de sa creation. Dieu est dans la creation, la creation est un sacrement; elle propose une panentheisme. Une des consequences majeures de cette proposition est sa clarification apportee a la notion de peche. En effet nous pechons rarement contre Dieu, Dieu-meme. Nous avons plutot l'habitude de pecher presque uniquement contre la Creation de Dieu; contre nos voisins, contre les inconnus et davantage contre la terre. Nous pechons surtout par notre mode de vie qui est dirigee par notre egocentrisme (self-interest). 3 Pour contextualiser sa theologie, McFague analyse les consequences de notre mode de vie en fonction des menaces de l'holocauste nucleaire et de notre eloignement progressif de la nature ; nous sommes devenus des touristes, des voyeurs de la nature. La ou nous etions des acteurs dans la nature avant la modemite, nous avons reussi a l'instrumentaliser, aussi bien la nature que nos consoeurs, nos confreres, et nous memes. Ceci est au point ou, selon les pronostiques scientifiques, nous pourrions approcher d'un «tipping point», point ou notre climat global changerait de maniere irreversible. On fait habituellement quatre grandes critiques a la theologie de McFague. D'abord au plan litteraire, elle pretend qu'une parabole est une metaphore etendue, ce qu'elle n'a jamais demontre formellement. Ce concept de longue tradition apparait comme vrai. L'importance accordde a l'identite metaphore-parabole permet d'affirmer que l'une et l'autre ont les memes caracteristiques. La parabole ne pourrait jamais etre interpretee comme une allegorie; une parabole doit etre vu comme metaphore. Une des caracteristiques typiques est de dire d'une metaphore, par exemple Dieu pere, « It is and it isn't. » Une deuxieme critique s'arrete au fait qu'elle aurait developpe une theologie eco- feministe: les traditionalistes le deplorent et les feministes trouvent qu'elle ne va pas assez loin. On peut l'analyser en deux temps. McFague se declare feministe reformiste; elle utilise les resultats des critiques apportes par des feministes quant a la femme ainsi qu'a l'homme, la vie non humaine et la nature non vivante. Cependant, elle ne se limite pas a une methodologie feministe puisqu'elle utilise egalement les firuits du « process thought», les Ecritures, la tradition ainsi que l'experience des femmes et des hommes. Et la synthese de ceux-ci est employee comme norme devaluation, ce qui ne la qualifie pas comme theologienne feministe. Quant a sa preoccupation ecologique, elle se proposait une theologie de la nature ceci dans le but de placer sa theologie dans des contextes concrets (potentiel holocauste nucleaire et changements climatiques permanents). L'etat de notre monde sur tous les plans est une preoccupation mondiale. Sa theologie ne porte pas une formulation traditionnelle. Des le debut elle l'a appelee une theologie intermediate, entre un discours credible pour aujourd'hui et une theologie systematique. Mais cela ne signifie pas qu'il n'y ait aucune correlation a faire; ce n'est simplement pas encore realise. Les critiques severes, quant a 1'absence de liens avec la tradition dans sa theologie, soulignent tres bien que les modules dominants dits traditionnels, laissent beaucoup a desirer parce que bases sur des metaphores qu'on ne comprend plus et qui sont largement impertinents dans les contextes actuels. 4 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I begin by thanking Marc Dumas very warmly who introduced me to Sallie McFague. Having accumulated several of her books over the years, he found me a willing candidate to read further. His insight, gentle criticisms, and constant good humour have made this study both possible and a delight. I have benefited singularly from the openness of all my fellow students in different discussions and seminars during the last three years. We have all been able to take advantage of the unique environment to explore, in a respectful community, contemporary religion in various milieus. This was possible because of the philosophy and vision of the Faculte de theologie et etudes religieuses of the Universite de Sherbrooke.
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