The Ethics of Ubuntu and Gender Justice Among African Women Theologians

African women theologians have over the years looked at the concepts of Ubuntu and gender justice, with some arguing that Ubuntu perpetuates gender injustice, while others argue that it upholds gender justice, and yet others acknowledging its ambivalent status. We argue that in traditional Africa gender was never viewed as antagonistic, but rather as complementary. These different views on Ubuntu are also evident in the works of African women theologians and can be understood from the contexts in which they have dialogued with the concept from historical African settings. Thus, given the nature of Ubuntu as understood in pre-colonial Africa. An emphasis will be put on Molly Manyonganise who argued that Ubuntu is patriarchal. However, the chapter will present a comprehensive review of how women’s presentations of Ubuntu philosophy and ethics with its tenets of communality, interrelatedness, interconnectedness, complementarity, and relationality, intersects harmoniously with gender justice.