A minister friend of mine told me about his recent job interview. The discussion brought out an interesting combination of views: they believed in no difference at all between women and men in taking responsibilities in a church. At the same time, they understood gayness as wrong. My friend was rightly puzzled.
At the enGendered Conference at Peace Church two weeks ago, Rosaria Butterfield gave an insightful talk on “How we Got Here – Gender and Sexuality,” critiquing the attempt to build an identity on one’s sexual desires. In it, she referenced Michel Foucault’s influential 1976 work, The History of Sexuality, whence comes our popular phrase, “the will to power.” Most normal …
Words Matter. We need to understand what happens when we elect to refer to two men entering into an intimate legal union as “Same-sex Marriage.” Of course, people need to be able to understand each other. So common terminology is good, right? And doesn’t this seem like a value-neutral term? Like “heterosexual marriage?” You are not passing any judgements in …
(Excerpt from enGendered, and a story I tell a lot in speaking) If you have ever gone through a pastoral search in your church, you know it is a long, drawn out business. Protestant congregations looking for a leader form committees to examine pastor candidates for visible strengths and hidden weaknesses. They must pay close attention to make sure …
