So we all know sex sells, but so apparently does sexism. The following are a few ads from years gone by (for more see this blog post). I have to wonder at what point these were ever deemed even vaguely acceptable. But then I consider the gender stereotyping that is used to sell everything from detergent to hamburgers these days and realize not much has changed…
Peggy Brown has an interesting article in this month’s Next-Wave Ezine called “Where ARE the Women?” She writes -
The problem is not that the women aren’t out there using their gifts to build up the church. The reality is that they, in fact, are. The problem is one of perception. Perceptions about what women can do versus what they may do in ministry. And it is a problem that the sisters share with many other segments of society.
Head over there for the full article. There are a few comments there, but I’ve haven’t been able to post a comment there yet for some reason. I hope though her thoughts lead to some good conversation.
By Debra Falank
In her article, “Murder in the Theme Park: Evangelical Animals and the End of the World”1, Kristin Dombek lays out a critique of the intersection of apocalyptic thought and secular humanism as it gives birth to popular Christian entertainment like the Left Behind fiction series and the Holy Land Experience theme park. Great Read. A few selected excerpts …
In current mainstream Western culture, of course, the ritual sacrifice of animals is taboo (and, in an inversion of the sacrificial logic of “primitive” cultures, considered violent), while killing animals for eating is commonplace (and not considered violent); in performance, though, the two look uncomfortably similar.
…
The Left Behind series has only one scene depicting animal sacrifice, and the depiction is damning. The Antichrist’s performance of the abomination of desolation, staged in book nine of the series, Desecration (laHaye and Jenkins 2002), involves slaughtering a “gigantic” pig in a parody of Jesus’ triumphal entry … he attempts to butcher the pig, but fails. ”Pity!” he exclaims; “I wanted roast pork!” thus conflating the sacrifice with slaughter for the sake of eating (163). Like the sacrifice in general, the novel represents this conflation as an abomination.
…
In the end, it is our dependence on our difference from nonhuman animals that allows us to think apocalyptically without figuring our own extinction as a real possibility. But it is a difference we earn by identifying with some animals we love, as if the violence they survive is not our own.
…
And so it is that by reading closely these Christian texts and performances, we come full circle to the same enemy that conservative Christians have positioned themselves against during the 20th century and now the 21st: humanism. The impulse for such positioning came in part from a recognition of the bankruptcy of a vision that left humans alone in a world in which all else was simply not human, and therefore not meaningful. Rightly, fundamentalists wanted us to realize that we are no gods of this world. But the Left Behindseries – as the clear fulfillment of this tradition -posits the most deeply humanist vision of all: the utopic feast, after God reaches down and cleans up all that humans have done. This final image shows us just how secular conservative Christianity can be: for Christians to enjoy all the consumer pleasures that secular humanism has allowed citizens of capitalism, but escape responsibility for the violence upon which global capitalism depends, God must be demoted to garbage man.
I would add “butcher” to that. Part of her discussion is how, in the series, the kingdom is represented as a place where animals literally volunteer to be butchered. Talk about a guilty conscience. The authors of the Left Behind vision of the kingdom unveil the heart of the matter specifically by their fantasy portrayal of being able to kill without guilt. That’s what they think the kingdom is about? Being able to kill without guilt? Our biggest claim to fame is the fact that we have a conscience in the first place and yet the most popular bit of Christian fiction ever portrays the kingdom as the time when “we” will finally get to kill animals without being burdened by a guilty conscience – because animals will want us to kill them. Does that sound familiar? That’s the “she wanted it” defense played out in pop theology against the other creatures who share the breath of God.
… the utopian butchering depicted in the series’ final pages is easy, relatively clean, and divinely ordained. … In the millennial kingdom, then, no longer do humans have to hunt, for all animals are docile and turn themselves over for killing whenever humans need food. Now that the Beast is gone, humans will no longer need to be martyrs; the only skin to be cut, the only bodies slaughtered and on display, will be those of nonhuman animals.
The tone is unmistakeable … that which the authors of this book (this theology) want to “consume” will finally quit complaining, quit struggling, be docile and just give themselves over to the authors appetites. Do Christian women see this? Can we acknowledge all the victims of Stepford Theology (animals and certainly men too) or do we care only in so much as it suits a particular slice of feminist agenda?
1. originally published in TDR: The Drama Review 51:1 (T193) Spring 2007 © 2007.
Debra Falank calls herself “a woman in the world and a child of God; less sure of received traditions than of the unlikely faith in my heart. All the rest is a work in progress.” She blogs at The Soulful Eye.
By Kathy Escobar
there’s nothing like writing a wrap up of an event 3 months after it happened! that’s what sometimes happens in my crazy life, but i didn’t want to miss the opportunity to share a bit of what i gleaned from a great time together at convergence 2009 (http://womensconvergence.com/) , a gathering of women leaders in portland in february, so that women who weren’t able to be there could catch a bit of what was shared.
on saturday there was a panel discussion that included a variety of voices that the participants chose with questions that they had written down earlier in the day. i had the privilege of being part of the panel & some of the thoughts from that segment are the tangible ones that might encourage other women leaders on their journeys.
here are a few highlights of statements & thoughts shared by the panelists (sorry, i didn’t keep track of who said what) that i wrote down afterward & have been reflecting on in different ways for the the past few months:
• “know our limitations” – this a big one for so many of us. many of us struggle with wanting to be all
things for all people. and because so many are capable and have incredible gifts, it is quite possible to give more than we probably should. it is important to cultivate a clear sense of what we can and can’t do, recognizing that some that we serve & love will not understand. it’s not our job to make others see; it is our job to create balance in our lives as best we can; that will most certainly mean acknowledging & recognizing our limits.
• “cultivate friendships with other women leaders so we can learn from each other.” i always hesitate to use the word mentor here because i know many of us (especially in the evangelical tradition where there aren’t as many women pastors in general) have been in leadership a long time without any true “mentors” that have invested specific time and energy in cultivating our gifts and supporting us on the journey. of course, many women have had these kinds of relationships, and i am glad some have received that support. for me, i think the most encouraging part of the past few years has been intentionally cultivating relationships with other women pastors/leaders/writers/pot-stirrers and really sharing life & experiences together. it has made a world of difference. one thing many of us have shared in different ways is how frustrated we’ve been in the spirit of competitiveness that often exists among women. i am not sure what that’s all about (i am guessing insecurity?) but i think that we need to really notice what kind of vibe we are putting off and be more confident in our roles, who we are, and love each other more intentionally. we are all busy, but making time for these kinds of challenging & encouraging relationships is so important.
• “make room for other women & voices as much as we can.” we have a responsibility to each other. the only way to keep hearing from a variety of different voices, no matter what that looks like, is for people with power to give it away. whoever has the microphone, the floor, the leadership usually has some form of power. the more we pass that microphone we have to our other sisters, encourage them to step up & use their voices, the better. and because we know what it might feel to be marginalized, we can use our leadership to include as many other new voices as possible—across gender, race, socioeconomics, and all kinds of other lines.
• “be who we are; don’t try to be something we’re not.” each of us is unique and bring different gifts and combinations of personalities and strengths and weaknesses to the table. we are supposed to be “us”, not who we think other want us to be or what we think we are supposed to be because of what kind of authors, speakers, whoever we see. it’s true, many of us will not make a ton of money or get some crazy book deal or a whole lot of other things, but hopefully we will honor who God made us to be and live as integrated and whole and honest as possible.
• “learn to be friends with men.” the question came up about our sexuality & how it can be a limitation if we are not in touch with it. there’s no doubt that much healing and restoration must happen between genders to learn to live and work and be together as equals, taking sex & power out of the equation. we have a responsibility as leaders to work on this, to change unhealthy patterns, to become more free in our ability to engage with men as friends, co-laborers, equals.
• “take good care of ourselves.” ah, self care. the demands of ministry, family, kids, work, and all of the other pulls on us can really take its toll. we all want to last. we want to live out who God created us to be. we don’t want to burn out. we want to take good care of our families. we want to live a balanced life that includes a lot of other things other than just leading. in order to do this, we need to work on taking care of ourselves emotionally, physically, spiritually.
• “accept the reality of injustice but do everything we can to fight against it.” the reality is that injustice against women in the church in many denominations is present. it’s real, it’s not going away anytime soon. living with this injustice is sometimes so hard; it can make us want to give up and throw in the towel or stop fighting for change. part of our roles as women in leadership is to live in the tension of what is and what could be and be bridge builders, risk takers, path pavers toward healing of injustice on behalf of the women who will come behind us. our daughters need us. our sisters need us. we may not see all of the fruit of our labors, but the work we are doing now plant seeds has the potential to grow incredible fruit in the future. let’s keep our eyes on them & not give up.
there were many other things shared in our time together, but these are the ones who have lingered. no doubt, there was incredible wisdom in the room. these tiny highlights won’t give it justice, but hopefully a little of what happened there is spread across the miles to encourage others, too.
kathy escobar co-pastors the refuge (www.therefugeonline.org), an eclectic faith community in north denver dedicated to those on the margins. she also is the cultivator of voca femina (www.vocafemina.com), new site for women to use their voices through art, writing, photography, and other mediums.
Naomi Wolf recently had a fascinating piece in The Washington Post about “Who Won Feminism?” In essence it was a review of Jennifer Scanlon’s book Bad Girls Go Everywhere: The Life of Helen Gurley Brown (the longtime editor of Cosmopolitan). The article is itself a glimpse at the differences between second and third wave feminism. Or more accurately, the opposition between “intellectual, ideological, group-oriented feminism against Brown’s pull-yourself-up-by-your-bootstraps, girl-power style.” And it is this individualistic third wave feminism that the article proclaims as the winner. As the author writes, “The stereotype of feminists as asexual, hirsute Amazons in Birkenstocks that has reigned on campus for the past two decades has been replaced by a breezy vision of hip, smart young women.” But as Wolf points out, both waves have their issues. While second wave feminism was too serious, intellectual, white, and tended towards anti-male tendencies, the third wave feminism lacks substance. Merely proclaiming girl power and being self-fulfilled do little to change the world. Wolf writes – “feminists are in danger if we don’t know our history, and a saucy tattoo and a condom do not a revolution make.” She calls for a synthesis of the two waves – a third way between the personal and the political aspects of feminism.
Having become a feminist, ironically enough, through my faith, this article intrigued me. There are aspects of both second and third wave feminism that I name and claim (so to speak), but I am not at home in either world. And given that the intellectual arguments of second wave feminists are just now being heard within certain parts of the church, which then attacks them as the worst form of depraved third wave feminism, this whole discussion exists on a different level for those of us within the church. I mean there are still men in the church who argue that women aren’t made in the image of God or that we have no identity apart from the headship of a male. It’s hard to argue that empowering women in the church will make us too individualistic when we still have our identity denied in certain sectors.
But I wonder if that very alienation from the conversation that Christian feminists face places us in the perfect spot to forge this third way? Can we let our faith that cares for justice and ending oppression temper both the anger and apathy of second and third wave feminism? We can take the good from the second wave that brings freedom and hope to the oppressed while rejecting their denial of the body and the joys of family. We can as image bearers learn from the third wave to be comfortable in our skin while not using it to humiliate and harm others. We who are are accustomed to personal devotions and Kingdom work can step right into a life-affirming feminism that is both personal and political.
Perhaps if we stop being afraid of the word, Christian feminists can define the future of the movement – redeeming and restoring into a timely and powerful force for good.
By Angie Muresan
I have worked within the geriatric field for over fifteen years. My awakening moment came a few years ago as I watched a dear friend die after a long battle with cancer. I question the choices I make in my daily life, because I want to live with honor and integrity, both as a child of the living God, and as a woman. Following is the piece I had written on my blog last month, as once more, I agonized over a very ill friend.
When older people get together there is something unflappable about them; you can see they’ve tasted all the heavy, bitter, spicy food of life, extracted it’s poisons, and will now spend 10 or 15 years in a state of perfect equilibrium and enviable morality. Irene Nemirovsky, Fire in the Blood
I have a few friends who are well into their eighties; women who have lived their lives thoroughly and enjoyed the amassed daily moments to their fullest extent. I love these women for what they are. There is wisdom in their advice, a sense of humor in their actions. They’ve come to terms with the destruction life has in store. Physical health and beauty deteriorating, husbands and friends lost to death or alzheimers, children and dear ones far away, their bodies betraying them daily. But their kindness, their compassion, their love survived every treachery and evolved into a beauty transcending the physical.
I know they have fears. Whenever I see them upset at their lack of control over their bodies, they fear for their dignity. For their self-respect and the respect, or lack of, others have for them. I like to remind them that their self-esteem need not suffer because their bodies fail. They are more than that. More than fragile bones and decrepit muscles. They are the light in the eyes, the smile on the lips, the love they exude.
Some have come to terms with death encroaching, others have not. But, I don’t believe it is death they fear, or maybe not as much; what they fear is their disappearance; the disappearance of their voices, their laughter, their memory. The fear of becoming a dusty one-dimensional photo. The cessation of their story.
And then the fear of eternity. Who is immune to that? All around, so vast and unfathomable. Like grains of sand or stars in the night sky. And all that had been left undone and unsaid. All the mundane and not so mundane choices made daily that may or may not have purified the soul. Or whether their faith will pay off and they will be in the presence of God and their loved departed ones, or rotting away, first their flesh and then their bones.
And yes, for some the fear of death as well. Of what happens at that moment when this earthly life ends and the other begins. That transition from the mortal to the immortal. The termination of one and the beginning of another. How will it be? What will they feel? Where will their soul go and how will it get there?
Yet, despite all these thoughts in their minds and in mine, I marvel at their depth, at the lives they’ve created, at their multi-dimensional facets, the little glimpses into the girls they were and the women they’ve become. So graceful, caring, resilient. And I look forward to my old age, not in despair but in hope; the hope that I’ll become like one of them, enduring and persevering.
Angie Muresan was born and raised in Romania during the communism dictatorship of Nicolae Ceausescu, where even her thoughts had to be censored for fear of blurting the wrong thing out. Now, she lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband, her two children, a house full of books and no television.
By Liz Dyer
The following poem is in the style of “slam poetry” and is really meant to be spoken,
not just read, so here is a link where it can be heard.
It was almost enough to make me stop believing
Defacto segregations
Emotional manipulations
Personal salvations
ALL the proclamations
I had taken the bait
Walked through the narrow gate
Learned what to hate
Was certain of my eternal fate
I could spew the roman road, so proud so bold, part of the fold, believed what I was told
I’m in – you’re out – no doubt what I’m talking about
I know – I’m right – I’m the one walking in the light
You lose – I win – come on I’ll point out your sin
Prostituting every opportunity
Wanting to be the supermajority
Working to oppress homosexuality
Don’t forget about being offended by profanity
Let’s hang out in our Christian bubble
Let’s try to stay out of trouble
Don’t wander away from the holy huddle
Forget about conversation – debate for domination – practice your presentation – and talk about eternal damnation
Pick a verse to justify being chauvinistic
Deny it when they say you are legalistic
Preach a gospel that is individualistic
Forget that it seems a little imperialistic
Don’t question the authority, know what’s a priority, don’t worry about the minority, that’s our expository
The Christianization – the dehumanization
The demonstration – the incorporation
made ME start to question
What about the brotherly love – the justice that was spoken of
the one we were in awe of – the mercy they talked of
Didn’t they get the memoranda that we were supposed to love with no agenda
Didn’t they notice the lack of transformation – the absence of civil conversation
Weren’t we supposed to be known by our fruits instead of by our refutes
Weren’t we supposed to make the world a better place full of love and hope and grace
Where was the creativity – the spirit of generosity – the chance for serendipity -
Thank God I broke free
Cause it was almost enough to make me stop believing
My name is Liz and I am a follower of Jesus Christ who lives in Texas (Dallas/Fort Worth area). I am married and have two sons. I enjoy reading, blogging, listening to music, going to movies, the emergent conversation and hanging out with friends and family. I recently started a blog called Grace Rules. I named my blog Grace Rules because although I have a history of letting things like rules, regulations, law, convictions, and stuff like that rule my life, I am determined to become a woman who is ruled by grace and love.
