Jesus : Miriam's child, Sophia's prophet : critical issues in feminist Christology / Elisabeth Schüssler Fiorenza.

Includes bibliographical references (p. 241-262).

Fiorenza charts the rise and fall into "historical amnesia" of the liberating movement gathered around Jesus as the prophet and messenger of Divine Sophia, or Woman Wisdom, the all-powerful female figure in early Jewish Scriptures and theology. While teachings about Women Wisdom permeate the texture of the Christian ("New") Testament, they were quickly clothed in what the author calls kyriocentric (ruling-male) language. Not simply a work of historical reconstruction, this is a work of constructive feminist theology, showing how the historically unrealized possibilities of Woman Wisdom can offer the vision of a different world and a different church. By assessing various Jesus traditions and interpretations as to whether they can engender liberating visions for today, the book seeks to challenge and transform masculine Christian identity formations and exclusivist theological frameworks toward the basileia vision of justice and well-being for all.--From publisher description.