Feminist theology, which is a branch of Christian theology that took form in reaction to the discriminatory measures adopted by traditional Christian theology against women, has undergone fundamental changes. Using a descriptive-analytical method, the present paper gives an account of the history, causes of formation and characteristics of feminist theology, and elaborates on the main teachings of Christianity in the view of this theological school. The findings indicate that, due to the influence of feminist movement and requirements of modern age, feminist theology altered course in such a way that its pioneers had never imagined and they might not be pleased with it.

The two main factors which affected the creation and development of Feminist theology are the approach of the Holy Book and the function of the Church. Feminist theology is a powerful and a full-motivated movement which aims to revise all kinds of "Holy texts" and started this duty based on the sources of the Holy Book; in other words the Holy book, which is the theoretical backup of the present condition of women, is hermeneutically interpreted. The first steps to the Biblical studies for this purpose was taken by the publication of Women's Bible. The feminist interpretation of the Bible is cautiously based on the oppression women experienced and moves toward different readings and responses to interpret the Holy bible once again. In this research, using a descriptive-analytic method, we have investigated and criticized the changes of Biblical studies, and the effective factors in the formation of feminist theology, and will notice some parts of the Holy text which may be hermeneutically interpreted for the feminist theology.

Feminism as a social movement and a epistemological system has challenged the religion as legitimating element of patriarchal structure. The feminist theologists present a new category in religious studies by serious critics toward religions and emphasize on issues of gender of God. They presented a new approach in religious studies as feminist theology and the idea of feminization of religion. The data shows that the feminist critical approach in Christianity, the increase of women consciousness and their participation in society, especially the design of feminization of religion, the emphasis on the pluralism of religions, and personal religions with feminine approach, the conflict to fundamentalism, the presentation of female alternatives for the God and structural elements of feminist theology that in which emphasis on this world and human life in it substitute to the religious approaches, are all the effects of the feminist theology on the secularization in the western world.

Feminist theology is a critical theology that seeks to create a feminist awareness of the masculinity of theology and uses gender analysis tools to examine and understand texts, traditions, rituals, and basically, the religious context to achieve proposals to explain the full contribution women in theology are useful. Feminist theologians’ approach to the question of whether existing Christianity can provide for women's concerns and emancipate them or not, has three spectrums: revolutionary, reformative, and reconstructionist. The types of feminist theology can also be described in four categories: feminist theology as a philosophy of religion; as a post-traditional theology; as hermeneutics of the Bible; and as the theology of religions. In this variety of perspectives, a three-stage development can be seen, which includes the presupposition of humanity for women, the critical positioning of women in the existing theology, and the reform of society. The focal points of Christian feminist theology are: the theology of life and fervency, the Father as a divine matter related to life, emphasis on the metaphorical and mythological construction of religious teachings, acceptance of pluralism as a source of knowledge expansion, rereading the moral norm; identity policy design, development of critical awareness, the necessity of individual exercise and social action. It seems that these matters are also meaningful in accordance with Islamic theology, and research in the tradition and dialogue with thinkers and experts in this field can highlight the scholarly and brilliant dimensions of Islamic theology.

Theology as sociology can be applied in two senses. The first meaning considers the parallelism of theology and sociology in the semantic core of liberation. This means that feminist theology as the theology of liberation from oppression, class, patriarchy and discrimination is considered a type of critical sociology with a liberating mission, which seeks the liberation of society as well as its rejected part, i.e. women, through the lens of theology.The second meaning refers to the critical approach of feminist theology regarding classical theology by criticizing its mechanism and emergence. Feminist theology in this critique points to the contextuality of classical theology and investigates the effect of the epistemological context and historical structure in the formation of singular issue. It indicates that how by distancing from contexts and backgrounds, the historical issue is forgotten, but the abstract issue still remains. Feminist theology seeks to prove that this process has occurred for many religious beliefs and teachings therefore it applies this outlook for the field of gender. Understanding a theology and criticizing it based on its context is regarded as a kind of turning point from theology to sociologyReuther introduces her theology as a kind of sociology applying the second meaning. She aims to obtain the mechanisms of exclusion of women in theology by analyzing and extracting the mechanism of power construction in society. Unlike Mary Daly, a radical post-Christian theologian, Reuther considers the text and narrated Christian history to be authentic but subject to history and context. Pointing to the historical and social context in the emergence of Christian tradition and explaining their role in the formation of understanding and belief, Reuther states that although these foresaid issues have been effective in the construction of classical theology, they are not original and can be modified and reconstructed. Hence, to accomplish the reconstruction, she points to evidences of intact Christianity and tries to purify the divine will and the prophetic spirit of Christ from these deviations with emphasizing the distinction between “early Christianity" and "Christianity of the followers of Jesus"..

Just as the woman at home is in the manner of the heart in a body, she is actually as important in the society. If the heart of a community becomes hard, dark and faulty without the remembrance of God, the human environment will also decline. But, it this heart palpates with clear transparent blood, it will circulate to reflect the light of God. This nucleus of the society, the woman, can change the dark night of depression and repression to a day full of activity and liveliness to challenge the evils and misfortunes.Undoubtedly, the attitude of the people in the society towards the woman has greatly changed since a long time ago. That’s why many thinkers have gone forward to evaluate again this precious pearl of God’s creation and write about the woman’s position and status. There are some new doctrines now that have sought to revive and promote the woman’s dignity as much as possible.The present article has chosen two views out of many common viewpoints prevalent in western theologies and in Islam and it has comparatively studied them. The feminist divinities in the west and the doctrine of Mahdism in Islam are two perspectives from which I have tried to analyze the ideas.I have first dealt with the reasons why the feminist theologies started and what thoughts were effective in them. Then I have shown some strategies towards knowing better the position of women in the society; and at last, I have drawn the reader’s attention to feminist views and the woman’s dignity in the doctrine of Mahdism. However, the writing style is always comparative and it is the reader who should decide and pick out the better view out of the two thoughts for today’s woman.

Riff’at Hassan is one of the most important Muslim thinkers in the US and is the leader of Muslim feminists. Influenced by Feminist theology in Christianity, she proposes “feminist theology in the Qur’ān”. From the viewpoint of Riff’at Hassan, three theological factors in the world of Islam and the Qur’ān have led to the appearance and expansion of the belief in the supremacy of the man over the woman: the subordination of the woman to man in creation, Eve’s deception of Adam which led to their fall from the Eden paradise, and the creation of the woman for the cause of man. Suchlike factors and attitudes are basically proposed in the Sunnī interpretations and traditions, and the themes of traditions she has used are rejected in Shī‘a narrations. Nonetheless, even if we accept the claims of Riff’at Hassan, her arguments lead to the proposition that the man and the woman are not different in creation, both have been deceived by Satan, and both have been expelled and fallen from Paradise, and there is no difference between them in these regards. However, the key point here is that this theory does not prove the legal-jurisprudential equality between men and women, and the Qur’ān gives in different orders in this regard, especially with regard to inheritance and retaliation.

In order to present a reading of theology that focuses on the female experience, theologians' attention was drawn to three areas. In the first area, the history of Western Philosophy has always regarded female corporality as corresponding to nature and, by portraying rationality as the exclusive right of men, forbade women from studying theology. Feminist theologians seek to open the way to the realm of rationality while recognizing feminine corporality. Moreover, it is in this area that feminist theologians observe the female body as a source for the reflection of feminist theology, extending the experiences they gain through their bodies to various theological realms, and even reinterpreting the feminine aspect of God. In this regard, they also introduce new religious rituals with the aim of creating an atmosphere focused on corporality experiences in order to give a religious aspect to events specific to the female body. In the second area, poststructuralist feminist theologians pay attention to cultural pluralism and consider the impact of different cultures on female experiences of religion. Here, an attempt is made to provide a multicultural interpretation that covers a wider range of women, given the characters in the sacred texts that reflect female experiences of non-Western cultures. In the third area, on one hand, the language of sacred texts is gendered and creates a masculine image of God in the minds of believers, and on the other hand, the writing of these texts by men has largely neglected feminine experiences. The present study, as fundamental and applied research, intends to examine using of female experiences in feminist theology as a practical theology in terms of the three realms proposed.

How is the origin of existence depicted in feminist theology, and how this depiction can be criticized in the light of Sadra’I Wisdom? Along with their theoretical endeavor for improving the position of women, feminists have also dealt with the reformation of the theological beliefs regarding the origin of existence. By criticizing the idea of gender-oriented God in the common Christian thoughts, they have tried to represent an image that justifies feminist’s efforts in the course of the revival of women’s rights. Employing a descriptive- analytical method as well as probing into feminist's works, this study claims that some feminists in the "Theology of Transcendence" raised the status of the origin of existence higher than the Christian God; whereas some other feminists demoted it by focusing on the “Theology of Degradation". By depicting a hallucinated, variable, feminine, materialistic and non-transcendental God, the Theology of Degradation seeks to upgrade women’s status in order to compensate for their lost rights. Transcendence of women at the expense of God’s degradation is not plausible in Sadra’i Transcendental Wisdom. Indeed, woman’s transcendence according to Sadra’i Transcendental Wisdom is correlated with God’s transcendence. Hence, Sadra’i Wisdom challenges feminist Degradation Theology by representing a theorematic argument on two essential foundations of " the existence of the origin" and" absolute perfection of the origin". In addition, this system of wisdom not only depicts a plausible representation of the status of men and women, but also avoids the degradation of God’s status in order to provide the basis for achieving their lost rights.

One of the main issues in feminism is feminist theology. Feminist theology poses questions with regard to women rights in religion and church. The Bible as the Jewish-Christian script has been the target of attention of feminist theologians. They attempt to confront the Scripture with serious questions about women rights. Presupposing that the Scripture has been written within a masculine culture, some feminist theologians have attempted for re-reading and reinterpreting the text. Their approach is critical and skeptical, rather than trustful. The present study attempts to re-read the sixteenth chapter of the Scripture which narrates the story of marriage of the Prophet Abraham and his second wife Hagar. Feminist theologians have attempted to interpret this section anew by adopting a critical approach. They confront the Scripture with gender-related queries. However, they have disregarded the social role of the Prophet Abraham as a messenger and society leader, and have failed to consider the complementary role of Sarah and Hagar in assisting him. Sarah and Hagar, like other faithful women in the history, played a vital role in the Prophet Abraham's divine mission.