Steven Ogden, Power: Michel Foucault, human identity and the church. In Phillip Wayne Tolliday, Heather Thomson (eds). Speaking Differently: Essays on Theological Anthropology, Canberra: Barton Books, 2013.
Extract from chapter
This chapter will use an aspect of the work of Michel Foucault (1926–1984) on power to explore this relationship and then, as a case study, it will examine the polemic surrounding homosexuality and the Anglican Church in Australia. This case study is topical as well as an important example of the significance of the ‘other’. In particular, there is a painful cultural legacy here that is part of our hardwiring, which construes homosexuals as different and homosexuality as objectionable. Historically, the trial of Oscar Wilde is emblematic of this legacy. Moreover, the incessant and derogatory use of terms such as ‘fag’ or ‘poofter’ show the legacy is still with us today. It seems reasonable to infer from this that it is hard to discuss homosexuality impartially or sympathetically, unless this legacy is named and tested.
The issue of difference is critical. Often referred to as the problem of the other, it is pursued in fields as diverse as education, philosophy, political science, sociology and theology, as well as cultural, disability, feminist and queer studies. It is also prevalent in the media, emerging continually in relation to gender, sexuality and race issues. Many of these fields use Foucault’s insights.
Foucault News 