Interpretation Of God Clifford Summary

One of the reasons leading to feminists rejecting the Bible is the interpretation of God as male. Not only does this undermine women and make them inferior to men, but it also does not allow them to connect with God. Contemporary images of God that can be liberating for women are explored by Anne M. Clifford to demonstrate that God is not the “other” for women and can be relatable, while not understating God’s position of creator and savior. In her discloser of a feminist depiction of God, Clifford employs both female imagery and the interpretation of the name YHWH as arguments. The female image that Clifford focuses on is Wisdom. This female Wisdom figure, “lady wisdom,” is said to have existed prior to the Genesis creation (Clifford, 107). Wisdom, Sophia in Greek, as the female personification of God is one of the many female images applied to God. Female personification is so important because it is a representation that female readers can relate to. Without this relating, it is difficult to create a relationship with God that is not permanently oppressing. In addition to female imagery, Clifford makes a note that gender neutral language used for God, the kind found in the NRSV Bible, is not sufficient enough. Gender-neutral language defaults to
That interpretation most likely came from masculine language such as God as father. Clifford showed me that YHWH as a name and not a title is not gendered. Titles such as “Lord obscure the fact that YHWH is a name for God and not a title, wrongly suggesting that YHWH has a male identification” (Clifford, 99). The difference between a title and a name is helpful in remaining ungendered. I find that I can take this information and apply it to the title of God as father. Father is the title, not unlike Lord, that is applied to God but does not allude to