Emerging Women

Stereotypes

Ranya, Priscilla and Suzanne — three women, three faiths, taking off the politically correct gloves and getting real — respectfully and in the context of friendship, yet holding no punches.

Ranya struggles with feeling left out and even banished (referencing the Judeo-Christian interpretation of the story of Abraham, Sarah, Hagar & Ishamel,as well as personal experience) from the monotheistic club/conversation, as well as the more conservative expressions of Islam. She pleas for a recognized Judeo-Christian-Muslim tradition, instead of just a Judeo-Christian tradition.

Priscilla struggles with intense identification and fear related to the Holocaust and doubts about the existence of God, as well as with how to stand up for Palestinian rights within Jewish community.

Suzanne struggles with how she is perceived as a member of the majority faith as well with her own (previously unconscious) stereotypes and sense of spiritual superiority.

Together, three women come to recognize how sacred scriptures of all faith traditions are used at times in ways that engender intimacy with God and mutual appreciation of neighbor, and at other times in ways the foster a sense of one “people” being superior, endowed with the right to even commit violence in the name of God, or a promise of God found in the scriptures or taught by religious leaders. Priscilla finds God, Ranya finds validation and Suzanne embraces more ambiguity, along with a new sense of sisterhood with Ranya and Priscilla.

After Suzanne admits that she was uncomfortable being mistaken for a Jew, a lively, honest discussion of stereotypes ensues (chapter 5) and Priscilla pushes Suzanne to explore her stereotypes of Jewish people.

Suzanne: “Alright, I sighed. “I guess it’s someone who is pushy. And, well, someone who cares very much about money. And then there’s the Woody Allen neuroticism.”

Priscilla: “Suzanne, two out of those three things justified the Holocaust…You know whenever there’s a scandal on Wall Street, we Jews say, please God, don’t let it be a Jew! We’re paranoid about the stereotype of Jews obsessed with accumulating money.”

Suzanne: “Do you think that stereotype is a vestige of the Jewish struggle against persecution?” I wondered. “Wealth and Education are two ways to ensure survival when you’re being persecuted.”

Priscilla: “Could be,” Priscilla said wit ha shrug.

1) Imagine a stereotype you have of a group of people who live in your community. Lift it up to God and open yourself to new understandings. If continue to feel there is a grain of truth in a generalization (positive or negative) about a group of people, what factors, such as pain, fear or persecution might have given rise to certain patterns as a survival mechanism?

Ranya states, “I think Muslims and Arabs are now the only groups in our society about whom other people think they can make racial slurs and jokes without being labeled racists.”

2) How does America’s fear of the militant forms of Islam impact our ability to treat Muslim people with honor and care?

3) What might Jewish and Muslim people look to in Christian scriptures, and in the words of Christian leaders that might make them afraid that Christianity is a violent religion?

4) How do you feel (viscerally/emotionally/physically/mentally) when in the presence of a Jewish or Muslim person? How do you feel about your own feelings?

5. Ranya describes some of the positive contributions of the Muslim people to western culture: Preserving the classics, discovering/creating algebra, inventing the maps used by Christopher Columbus to find America. Are these facts new to you?

Priscilla describes her impression of Christians: “I think of Christians as good people, but we don’t need the propaganda.”

6)What does she mean? Have you ever found yourself engaging in “Christian propaganda”?

7)Is Christian Propaganda different from evangelism or sharing the Good News?

I know it’s four months early (or at least two) to be thinking about Christmas, but those of you who are involved in service planning know how this goes…

At the beginning of December, our church’s young adult/college ministry is planning on doing another night of Sacred Space. (for more information on what that is, please read this post) Our theme is Advent: Rediscovering the Wonder of Christ’s Coming – and I’m looking for creative ideas for worship stations that will help us to engage in worship using all of our senses, and point our minds and hearts toward the wonder of Christmas. Do any of you have any ideas you’d be willing to share, or resources you can direct me to? Thanks!

Happy

by Ranya Idliby, Suzanne Oliver, and Priscilla Warner.

Each Tuesday this September we’ll be discussing themes from The Faith Club, an interfaith journey between three women friends — a Muslim, a Jew and a Christian. It’s an easy, engaging and rich read — if you’re busy, keep it in the car and read at stop lights, or a sneak in a few minutes before bed. If you haven’t started yet, come join the conversation and share your reflections and experiences.

The beginning of the learning year is a good time to look out into the world, as well as into our own hearts to discover what it means to understand, appreciate and grow in relation to people, faiths and experiences very different from our comfort zone.

This week I invite you to share your experiences with people from different faiths, both positive, negative and whatever ambiguous feelings lie in the spaces between these poles.

1. When was the first time (if ever) you had a close friendship with someone of a different religious background?

2. On page 28, someone is quoted saying, “‘I never liked that word “tolerance.” It’s too passive. Think about it. To tolerate someone? That doesn’t sound very positive. It’s not a call to engage and understand someone else. I like the phrase “‘mutual appreciation.’”

What do you think of the word “tolerance?” Do you have any alternatives that you find have more to offer?

3. Why is interfaith friendship and conversation important?

Julie encouraged me to write a bit about my journey and book that was just released through Abingdon Press called The Wide Open Spaces of God. My publishing journey began three years ago when my husband and I left the staff of a mega church over some very painful experiences. Underneath the conglomerate of issues was the issue of women in ministry. (Imagine that!)In the end, my husband (one of 13 pastors) left with me out of a conviction that he believed too much in my calling to watch me stiffled. (Yeh–he pretty much rocks!)

Because we didn’t see this coming, we were devastated. For a few months we moped around in a fog. Then through a friend, I had the opportunity to submit some things I had written to a publisher. Along with them, I pitched the idea for this book. That got the ball rolling and, though I didn’t publish with the original contact, I received an offer from Abingdon. It took a year to get an offer and a year-and-a-half to finally publish. I’ve been pleased with the experience.

I would love for any of you emerging women to pick up a copy and let me know how it reads for you. Here is a little bit about my book and a short excerpt.

It describes a framework that will help you make some sense of your own journey, especially some of the more surprising and disruptive intervals. I use the metaphor of 8 different landscapes as the framework, each of them rooted in a biblical story or character, and each describing a time when our life feels as though we are navigating a particular terrain. Sometimes we feel like we are in a desert, or a valley of darkness. Other times, we are on a quest–climbing a mountain. Still other times we’ve found our way home, like we’re in the Promised Land or a green pasture. We learn that each landscape can be transforming if we consent to be shaped by God through it.

Here is an excerpt from the introduction:
“The Wide Open Spaces of God is an invitation to open up our lives to a bigger God and a bigger life. It is a summons toward a more expansive life, one that is characterized by a keen awareness and responsiveness to God’s presence and grace embedded in the terrain of our personal journey. Through the varied terrain of life-its peaks and valleys, twists and turns-we have the opportunity to encounter God and discover who he created us to be. We learn that all of life is the context through which God shows up and reveals himself and transforms us through the very nature of life’s contours.”

Thanks for reading! Please visit my web site http://www.wideopenspacesofgod.org/ or blog http://peregrinejourney.blogspot.com/
Warmly, Beth Booram