John Piper recently made a number of statements about the nature of Christianity and its necessary masculinity. A summary of what he said can be found here. There have been many responses to Piper’s provocative claims. See Jesus Creed, Christian Piatt on redletterchristians.org and Rachel Held Evans (a collection of responses) .
Read More
by Scot McKnightZondervan, 2018 Scot McKnight's wife Kris refers to his latest book, The Blue Parakeet, as “one of his readable ones.†The book is, in fact, one of his most readable, which is most fortunate given the importance of the subject matter. Although Scot McKnight is something of an avid birder, the book's title is really only a metaphor, not a literal description of the subject at hand. For that, the books subtitle, “Rethinking How You Read the Bible†sums it...
Continue Reading
Half the Sky: Turning Oppression Into Opportunity for Women Worldwide by Nicholas D Kristof & Sheryl WuDunnKnopf (2009) By Irshad Manji (The New York Times), Sept. 17, 2009 An ancient Chinese proverb goes that women hold up half the sky. Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn want that to be appreciated — on the ground. In the opening pages of this gripping call to conscience, the husband-and-wife team come out swinging: “Gendercide,†the daily slaughter of girls in the developing world, steals more...
Continue Reading
"So God created human beings in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them"(Genesis 1:27, TNIV).A noted church historian once observed that the great error of history is presumption-presuming that one has grasped the necessary facts related to a person, a group or situation when in reality one is largely uninformed. Perhaps you can recall a time in your own life when presumption led you into deep waters. I certainly can.Some...
Continue Reading
By Gordon Fee & Mark Strauss The meanings of words change over time, and translations must be periodically updated to keep up with these changes. One of the most significant changes in English over the last quarter century has been related to gender language. While it was once commonplace to refer to people as “men†and all fellow Christians as “brothers,†such usage has declined significantly in recent years. More inclusive terms like “people†and “brothers and sisters†are used more...
Continue Reading
Discipleship and active/passive gender distinctions in the Gospels Are you a princess or a pirate? Earlier this year I was touring a children's play centre in Tasmania when one of my colleagues asked me this very penetrating question – well Megan, are you a princess or a pirate? What a choice! If I were a child having my birthday party at this church-run venue, would I choose the beautiful, pink and silver princess room, taking for myself as party girl the glamorous...
Continue Reading
I first became aware very early on in my Christian life that women's ministry in the presence of men was controversial. As a new Christian in a Brethren assembly I found myself in the midst of a debate as to whether women could pray aloud in the morning meeting (communion) in the presence of men. The elders resolved eventually that they could not because of the Bible was against it. In particular, 1 Timothy 2:8 shows – so the argument...
Continue Reading
"Women, Leadership & the Church" Jim Reiher (Acorn Press 2006) The Appellate Tribunal has removed the barriers to the ordination of women as diocesan bishops – but, if we are to believe Archbishop Peter Jensen, many evangelical Christians in Sydney are disappointed. Should they be? Are Australian Anglicans departing from Scripture's teaching on authority in the church? Well, Jim Reiher has done a great job and given us a concise (121 pages), easily readable exploration of the Scriptures and what they...
Continue Reading