1. Abrahamic religions
     In the Hebrew and Christian Bible    Judaism    Christianity    Gender of the Holy Spirit    Islam  

2. Indian religions
     Hinduism    Sikhism  

3. Animist religions

4. Other

5. See also

6. Notes and references

7. Further reading

8. External links

The gender of God can be viewed as a literal or as an allegorical aspect of a deity. In polytheistic religions, gods are more likely to have literal sexes which would enable them to interact with each other, and even with humans, in a sexual way.

In most monotheistic religions, one cannot apply a gender to God in the usual sense, as God's attributes cannot be compared to those of any other being. Thus, the idea of a "divine gender" is ultimately considered an analogy, used by humans in order to better relate to the concept of God, with no sexual connotation.

God is an intangible spirit in most religions and is therefore thought to have no gender. The preponderance of references to God in both the Old and New Testaments are in the context of a masculine reference, often "Father". However, there are a significant number of feminine allegorical references to God, most often in some maternal role.

Abrahamic religions

In the Hebrew and Christian Bible

God is usually figuratively imagined in male terms in Biblical sources,^[1] with female analogy in {{bibleref2|Genesis|1:26-27|KJV}},^[1][2] {{bibleref2|Psalm|123:2-3|KJV}}, and {{bibleref2|Luke|15:8-10|KJV}}; a mother in {{bibleref2|Deuteronomy|32:18|KJV}}, {{bibleref2|Isaiah|66:13|KJV}}, {{bibleref2|Isaiah|49:15|KJV}}, {{bibleref2|Isaiah|42:14|KJV}}, {{bibleref2|Psalm|131:2|KJV}}; and a mother hen in {{bibleref2|Matthew|23:37|KJV}} and {{bibleref2|Luke|13:34|KJV}}.

Judaism

Although the gender of God in Judaism is referred to in the Tanakh with masculine imagery and grammatical forms, traditional Jewish philosophy does not attribute the concept of sex to God, but does attribute gender.^[4] At times, Jewish aggadic literature and Jewish mysticism do treat God as gendered. The ways in which God is gendered have also changed across time, with some modern Jewish thinkers viewing God as outside of the gender binary.

Christianity

Most Christian groups conceive of God as Triune, having the belief that God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit are distinct persons, but one being that is wholly God.^[5][6]

God the Son (Jesus Christ), having been incarnated as a human man, is clearly masculine. Classical western philosophy believes that God lacks a literal sex because it would be impossible for God to have a body (a prerequisite for sex).^[7][8] However, Classical western philosophy states that God should be referred to (in most contexts) as masculine by analogy. It justifies this by pointing to God's relationship with the world as begetter of the world and revelation (i.e. analogous to an active instead of receptive role in sexual intercourse).^[9] Others interpret God as neither male nor female.^[10][11]

The Catechism of the Catholic Church #239 specifically states that "God is neither man nor woman: he is God".^[12][13]

In contrast to most other Christian denominations, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) teaches that God the Father, God the Son, and the Holy Spirit are physically distinct while being one in purpose.^[14][15] The LDS Church also teaches that God the Father is married to a divine woman, referred to as "Heavenly Mother".^[16] Humans are considered to be spirit children of these heavenly parents.^[17]

Gender of the Holy Spirit

In Hebrew language, in rabbinic literature, the divine presence of God, the Holy Spirit, the Shekhinah is feminine.{{Citation needed|date=May 2014}}

The New Testament also refers to the Holy Spirit as masculine in a number of places, where the masculine Greek word "Paraclete" occurs, for "Comforter", most clearly in the Gospel of John, chapters 14 to 16.^[18] These texts were particularly significant when Christians were debating whether the New Testament teaches that the Holy Spirit is a fully divine person, or some kind of "force". All major English Bible translations have retained the masculine pronoun for the Spirit, as in John 16:13. Although it has been noted that in the original Greek, in some parts of John's Gospel, the neuter Greek word for "it" is also used for the Spirit.{{citation needed|date=May 2014}}

Islam

The oneness of God is of primary importance in the Quran and Islam. In Qur'an, Allah is most often referred to with the pronouns Hu or Huwa, and although these are commonly translated as him, they can also be translated gender-neutrally, as them. This is also true of the feminine equivalent, Hiya. Qur'an 112:3–4 states: "He begets not, nor is He begotten. And none is like Him [Them]."

Other references include the first person pronoun, and the relative pronoun ma (that which), as in the phrase "the heavens and that which created them" (Qur'an 91:5).

Indian religions

Hinduism

In Hinduism, there are diverse approaches to conceptualizing God and gender. Many Hindus focus upon impersonal Absolute (Brahman) which is genderless. Other Hindu traditions conceive God as androgynous (both female and male), alternatively as either male or female, while cherishing gender henotheism, that is without denying the existence of other Gods in either gender.^[19][20]

The Shakti tradition conceives of God as a female. Other Bhakti traditions of Hinduism have both male and female gods. In ancient and medieval Indian mythology, each masculine deva of the Hindu pantheon is partnered with a feminine who is often a devi.^[21]

The oldest of the Hindu scriptures is the Rigveda (2nd millennium BC). The first word of the Rigveda is the name Agni, the god of fire, to whom many of the vedic hymns are addressed, along with Indra the warrior. Agni and Indra are both male divinities.

The Rigveda refers to a creator (Hiranyagarbha or Prajapati), distinct from Agni and Indra. This creator is identified with Brahma (not to be confused with Brahman, the first cause), born of Vishnu's navel, in later scriptures. Hiranyagarbha and Prajapati are male divinities, as is Brahma (who has a female consort, Saraswati).

There are many other gods in the Rigveda.^[22]

They are "not simple forces of nature", and possess "complex character and their own mythology".^[22]

They include goddesses of water (Āpaḥ) and dawn (Uṣas), and the complementary pairing of Father Heaven and Mother Earth.^[22]

However, they are all "subservient to the abstract, but active positive 'force of truth'" (Rta),

"which pervades the universe and all actions of the gods and humans."^[22]

This force is sometimes mediated or represented by moral gods (Āditya such as Varuṇa) or even Indra.^[22]

The Āditya are male and Rta is personified as masculine in later scriptures (see also Dharma).

In some Hindu philosophical traditions, God is depersonalized as the quality-less Nirguna Brahman, the fundamental life force of the universe. However, theism itself is central to Hinduism.^[23]

While many Hindus focus upon God in the neutral form,{{Citation needed|date=August 2008}} Brahman being of neuter gender grammatically, there are prominent Hindu traditions that conceive God as female, even as the source of the male form of God, such as the Shakta denomination. Hinduism, especially of the Samkhya school, views the creation of the cosmos as the result of the play of two radically distinct principles: the feminine matter (Prakriti) and the masculine spirit (Purusha). Prakriti is the primordial matter which is present before the cosmos becomes manifest. Prakriti is seen as being "the power of nature, both animate and inanimate. As such, nature is seen as dynamic energy" (Rae, 1994). Prakriti is originally passive, immobile and pure potentiality by nature . Only through her contact with the kinetic Purusha she unfolds into the diverse forms before us. The idea of Prakriti/Purusha leads to the concept of the Divine Consort. Almost every deva of the Hindu pantheon has a feminine consort (devi).^[24]

Sikhism

The Guru Granth consistently refers to God as "He" and "Father". However, it also says that God is indescribable. Thus, God in Sikhism has no gender. The Akal Purakh ("Timeless Being") is referred to as one of the gender, simply because the Granth is written in north Indian Indo-Aryan languages (mixture of Punjabi and dialects of Hindi) which have no neutral gender.

It is described as energy that prevails throughout the universe.

Animist religions

Animist religions are common among oral societies, many of which still exist in the 21st century. Typically, natural forces and shaman spiritual guides feature in these religions, rather than fully fledged personal divinities with established personalities. It is in polytheism that such deities are found. Animist religions often, but not always, attribute gender to spirits considered to permeate the world and its events. Polytheistic religions, however, almost always attribute gender to their gods, though a few notable divinities are associated with various forms of epicene characteristics—gods that manifest alternatingly as male and female, gods with one male and one female "face", and gods whose most distinctive characteristic is their unknown gender.^[25]

Other

See also

• Ardhanarishvara
• Feminism
• Gender and religion
• Gender in Bible translation
• God (male deity)
• Goddess
• Goddess movement
• "God Is a Girl" (2002)
• "God Is a Woman" (2018)
• Radha Krishna
• Sky father
• The Hebrew Goddess
• Thealogy

Notes and references

Further reading

• Berke, Matthew. 'God and Gender in Judaism'. First Things 64 (1996): 33–38.
• Dorff, Elliot N. Male and Female God Created Them: Equality with Distinction. University Papers. Los Angeles: University of Judaism, 1984, pp. 13–23.
• Eller, Vernard. The Language of Canaan and the Grammar of Feminism. Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1982.
• Harlow, Jules. 'Feminist Linguistics and Jewish Liturgy'. Conservative Judaism 49 (1997): 3–25.
• Johnson, Elizabeth. 'The Incomprehensibility of God and the Image of God Male and Female'. Theological Studies 45 (1984): 441–465.
• Platinga, Alvin Carl. "God, Arguments for the Existence of". Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Routledge, 2000.
• Swinburne, Richard G. "God". In Ted Honderich (ed.). The Oxford Companion to Philosophy. Oxford University Press, 1995.

External links

• God as Mother (A Christian view)
• Feminine images for God
• The Spirit and the Bride
• God and Gender in Judaism
• Mouser, William E. "Is God Masculine?". International Council for Gender Studies, 2007.

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