Luke called me a “sinner in the city” when he told the story about Simon the Pharisee and me. So through the ages people have assumed I was a prostitute. Every woman in the gospels with even a bit of a past is now known as sinning sexually. But back in the day, it didn’t […]
Sinner, Yes, Prostitute, No: the Luke 7 Woman Speaks Read More »
On Twitter, men who have experienced sexual harassment, rape or sexual abuse as children have sometimes spoken out in the #MeToo movement. Unjustly, these men don’t get much air time. The same has been true of the Biblical man Lot, Abraham’s nephew. His #MeToo story is rarely spoken of, much less is he seen as
Lot’s #MeToo and Seeing His Daughters Anew Read More »
Women who have told their #MeToo stories in Christianity Today, The Washington Post and The Christian Century reveal the way church leadership can be a hiding place for abusers. The #ChurchToo hashtag on Twitter last month provided a place for women to speak out about abuse in the church. This month, a group of 150 prominent church leaders
#MeToo in the Bible: Sarah and Hagar’s Voices Read More »
When people tell you that there is no “Mother” title for God in the Bible, talk to them about El Shaddai. Through the ages, translators and scholars have only guessed at the meaning of El Shaddai, which is usually rendered as “God Almighty.” They believe the root shad must refer to the Hebrew word shadad meaning
El Shaddai, The Mother Name of God Read More »
Lord has always been one of my favorite names for God. But as a part of The Mother God Experiment, I have been reading translations that avoid the title, Lord. This has led me to think more objectively about it. Is Lord a helpful and truly Biblical way to speak of God in the 21st
We Love to Call Him Lord–But Why? Read More »
When is a human being most powerful? Does Wonder Woman show us what strength is, or does it give back to us what patriarchy and the white middle class have always said true strength is? I have to admit that I haven’t seen the movie. But I’ve seen clips and read reviews, especially this article in Sojourners,
Pondering Wonder Woman and Power Read More »
Whenever someone lets their mask slip and I catch a glimpse of the pain and hurt a bad father has caused my stomach lurches like I’m on a carnival ride. The pain of a father’s abuse lasts till the child grows old. It is a wound that only dies when the child passes on. But
Guest Post: “Father’s Day Boycott?” by Dr. Tim Bulkeley Read More »
Church isn’t easy. There’s a lot to disagree about within Christianity, and within American (or Canadian, or your own country’s) politics. But still, some of you will find that’s it’s worth it to take some risks to bring feminine language for God into church services. You are the ones who deeply believe that we need
Introducing Your Church to God as Mother Read More »
Do we have to make God the Mother a love muffin and God the Father the Big Boss? Does God the Father get to be Omni-Everything and God the Mother simply present? If we 1) become aware of our own unconscious, societally-based sexism; 2) correspondingly adjust our view of mothers; and 3) see how power
Is Mother God Just a Love Muffin? Read More »
The Old Testament writers use the mother bird metaphor for God. For me, it’s a new category of feminine imagery for God, as I don’t think of the winged creatures as female when I read the Old Testament. Virginia Ramey Mollenkott, in The Divine Feminine: Biblical Imagery of God as Female, says there are two
