Asma Barlas suggests (in implicit contrast with Christianity) that Islam is not a theological patriarchy, because the Qur’an rejects designations of God as a father.[i] She defines patriarchy as “father-rule and/or a politics of male privilege based in theories of sexual differentiation.”[ii] How then do those of us in the Judeo-Christian tradition understand the use of ‘Father’ in relation to God in the Bible? Does it really reflect an understanding of God that is based on and supports a politics of male privilege?[iii] English grammar patterns can underline the temptation to read it this way. The Father and Jesus are of course referenced by male pronouns, and in English the Spirit als
I'm so single, I literally still sleep in a single bed, and to make matters worse it is a princess trundle bed for all the sleepovers that I have (amount: zero). At the age of twenty three, I have not lived at home for five years and I refuse to "upgrade" to an "adult" sized bed. I like my bed okay? It is small and fits me. I don't roll over into a cold abyss, and I have loads of room for other things in my room, like clothes and activities. My sleeping arrangement has been the topic of more than a few jokes amongst my friends but as soon as I get into that compact and cozy linen-utopia I don't really care. In all seriousness though what is a blog post (or life for that matter) without a lit
I felt like I had walked onto the set of a documentary. Over the years we had watched many, many documentaries on Siberian people groups. So many, that they all seemed to blur together. Someone from an urban western culture sets out to discover the people who live in the coldest inhabited place on earth, or another of the extreme definitions that this land encompasses. He goes first to the city and is severely warned and given heavy winter clothing. Then someone takes him on a harrowing journey inland till they meet up with a nomadic reindeer herding tribe. Around them are tents, and herds of animals, some restrained and some wandering around free. And this was where I was now standing. You
The rape of Tamar by her half-brother Amnon in 2 Samuel 13 is horrific, and it is made even more so by the multiple points in the story where the disaster could have been averted. Far from being one act by one guy, the story is filled with other characters, all of whom support or provide the conditions for the rape. Anna Carter Florence’s work on the verbs in 2 Samuel 13 brings this out, and I draw heavily on that in this article. [link] The story comes comes right on the back of the story of David’s rape of Bathsheba and its consequences (1 Sam 11-12). David’s children from other wives have been watching, and they’ve seen him want a woman, take her, and seemingly get away with it. That’s a
A friend of mine said to me the other day that she feels sad for Bathsheba, that her name is forever associated with adultery, while that’s not the first association that people make with David. He is king, hero and poet. It just didn’t seem fair to her. Of course the double standard is galling. For adultery to sully the reputation of one but be ignored in the other is outrageous. But it is doubly foul in the case of Bathsheba, because hers is not a story of adultery but of rape. At no point in the narrative are we given any indication that Bathsheba was a willing partner in her sexual encounter with David. Neither does the biblical text ever treat anyone other than David as responsible. The
What's your favourite bible passage & why? Probably John 4, the Woman at the Well. I love how Jesus speaks to her with unexpected kindness yet piercing truth. And her responses resonate with me too, a little sassy but not so much as to avoid a deeper level conversation. She is courageous and embraces the opportunity at a new reality. The dialogue is so layered and the story, even the reaction of the disciples when they return, is so engaging and relatable. How do you keep your eyes fixed on Jesus? I’m not the disciplined type, not in the classic sense. I used to beat myself up over than and try to be a better Christian by establishing better habits. But this didn’t help me to see myself as
This month in a maiden speech to Parliament, Katter Party Senator Fraser Anning rallied his white kin to rise up and defeat all enemies of white civilisation or risk its ruin. Anning called for a plebiscite to secure support to return to the White Australia Policy—the restriction of non-European migrants practiced from Federation in 1901 until the 1970s. Anning also called for a total ban on Muslim immigration. He labelled this fight against these supposed enemies of Australia’s white identity, “the final solution to the immigration problem,” a naming which evoked the “Final Solution to the Jewish Question,” a Nazi plan that culminated in the systematic extermination of two-thirds of Europe’
I grew up in Brisbane, part of the Churches of Christ of Queensland (and a member of my local Girls’ Brigade). My favourite bible passage is Psalm 46 because even in the midst of nations in uproar and mountains falling into the sea (life feels a bit like that these days!) it reminds me to be still and know that He is God. I especially love the part that says “There is a river whose streams will make glad the city of our most high God. God is within her, she will not fail, he helps her at break of the day.” It reminds me of God’s faithfulness to the people of God over the centuries and to me, in my ordinary life today. One of the best ways that helps me keep my eyes on Jesus is through keepin
