WOMEN, THE SIN OF ABORTION AND ABSOLUTION

FEMINIST THEOLOGICAL QUESTIONS

Authors

  • Kochurani Abraham Indian Women Theologians’ Forum

Keywords:

Connectedness of Life, Patriarchy, Pro-choice, Pro-life, Rape, Sexual Violence, Sin of Abortion, Year of Mercy

Abstract

Catholics worldwide have begun the Year of Mercy with openness and freedom as mercy is a desirable human experience bestowing healing and wholeness. All the same, the letter of Pope Francis that authorizes priests around the world to forgive women of the “sin of abortion” during the year of mercy raises critical concerns from the standpoint of women’s experience. This short article looks into the complexities underlying women’s experience of abortion particularly in the sociocultural context of Asia that is inscribed by patriarchy. It problematizes the positioning of women in catholic theology as vulnerable recipients of mercy and interrogates critically the catholic pastoral praxis that is blind to the responsibility of the man/husband on questions relating to abortion and its consequences. Finally, using the key of feminist theological hermeneutics, it intends to take the discourse on the ‘sin of abortion,’ pro-life and pro-choice to a broader framework of life in its connectedness and relatedness.

Author Biography

Kochurani Abraham, Indian Women Theologians’ Forum

Kochurani Abraham is a feminist theologian and a researcher on issues related to gender. She has a Licentiate in Systematic Theology from the University of Comillas, Madrid, and a PhD in Christian Studies from the University of Madras, India, with a special focus on feminist theology. She teaches Feminism and Feminist Theology in various Institutes of formation and writes regularly on gender concerns. She is also involved with grassroots women’s movement and is committed to promoting ecological concerns, gender-justice and feminist spirituality by bridging theory and praxis. She has been the Coordinator of Ecclesia of Women in Asia (EWA) and of the Indian Women Theologians’ Forum, and is active in Indian Theological Association and the World Forum of Theology and Liberation. Email: kochuabraham@gmail.com

References

Bhuvan Bagga, “The Unforgiven” (indiatoday.intoday.in), December 28, 2012.

Denise and Elise Couture, “An Antiracist, Ecofeminist and Theological Perspective for a Sustainable Life and a Sustainable Choice,” in Gerald Boodoo, ed., Religion, Human Dignity and Liberation, Sao Leopaldo: Editora Oikos Ltd, 2016.

Francis, Laudato Sí, http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/encyclicals/documents/papa-francesco_20150524_enciclica-laudato-si.html.

https://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/letters/2015/documents/papa-francesco_20150901_letteraindulgenza-giubileo-misericordia.html.

Downloads

Published

2016-03-30

How to Cite

Abraham, K. (2016). WOMEN, THE SIN OF ABORTION AND ABSOLUTION: FEMINIST THEOLOGICAL QUESTIONS. Asian Horizons, 10(01), 171–177. Retrieved from https://dvkjournals.in/index.php/ah/article/view/2036