Labels: Gender Issues
This blog is a space for women involved in the emerging church conversation to use their voice. This is a space to voice your thoughts, express your opinions, and practice your theology. This is a safe community where we can complain, deconstruct, brainstorm, network, dream, and encourage. Let your voice be heard.
Previous Posts
- How Are Your Essays Coming Along?
- Faith Like a Child
- Burdens vs. Loads
- installations and drum circles
- Defining the Culture Shift to Postmodern
- Oops! So sue me . . . not!
- Even More Helpful Details: "A Seat At The Table"
- Helpful Details: "A Seat At The Table"
- "A Seat At The Table"
- Greeting from the Atl
Get a "Friend of Emerging Women" button.
|
|
Wednesday, July 05, 2006
What Are the ISSUES exactly?
Why aren't our voices heard?? I've read a few posts from our site ... from the Emergent site ... from other blogs ... many having a common complaint; "Even with all things being equal, our (female) voices are not being heard. " (Being playful with words... if Jesus set free (healed) the woman who had the issue of blood, I'm confident that He has some healing/liberating balm for this issue!) I'll begin the conversation by submitting some observations from the context of the seminary classroom, an environment where there should be level ground, but this issue definitely is apparent here too. Let me suggest a few ISSUES that can be healed through our collective emerging voices: ISSUES of intimidation ... a fear of being 'wrong.' The emergent conversation is offering freedom to explore issues without a need to be expounding the 'right/wrong' answers. This is good!! Let us take advantage of this emergent value and emerge without fear. ISSUES of insecurity ... The emergent conversation proposses an acceptance of all people no matter where they are on their spiritual journey because we're all in process. This mirrors the security that we all have in Christ because compared to the Living Word, we're ALL in process, even the most prominant voices in the room (let us not forget!) This too is good! Let us take advantage of this emergent value and emerge with confidence. ISSUES regarding our contributions not being 'supported.' Here we have a responsibility! Even if we aren't exactly on the same page, we must be learning how to affirm our sisters in Christ by offering a voice of support for their willingness to risk entering into arena of rhetorical discourse, even if we might not agree with the opinion offered. We must not use one other for gaining a one-upmanship in the patriarchal courts of dialogue. Until the playing fields are more 'equal', we must support one another by at least offering words of affirmation to those who take the risk and offer fresh views from a feminine perspective . This too is good. Our collective, emerging voices are of value and of inestimable worth! Jesus ... yearning to set us all free from ISSUES!
I've been chewing on this post for the past day or so, Sherri, and so far my contribution comes in the form of a question:
Practically speaking, what does supporting someone with whom we disagree look like?
I don't have an answer yet, but I thought it might spark conversation.