Happy Thursday! Continuing the Need to Know season of The Right Side Up podcast, today we get into our first conversation with two contributors to the book. My dear friend Bob Ekblad is joined by Janet Munn, an author, speaker and leader in the Salvation Army. In this conversation, we explore the intersection of gender, power, and faith within the church. We reflect on need for a reimagined understanding of God that transcends traditional male-centric views. What is the church’s history of female leadership? What power dynamics distort equality today? How do allies get involved? Find answers to all those questions and more.

Show Notes

Link to order the book: Need to Know: Empowering Female Leadership and Why It’s Essential for the Future of the Church

Keywords

God, gender, power, church, leadership, women, equality, community, advocacy, nonviolence

Takeaways

* God is described as both male and female in scripture.

* The distortion of power dynamics harms both men and women.

* Women must be empowered to lead and serve in the church.

* The church needs to reimagine its structures to be more inclusive.

* Active nonviolence is essential in addressing social injustices.

* Voices of women are crucial for the health of the church.

* Encouragement to persist in advocacy for gender equality.

* The original biblical narrative supports mutuality between genders.

* Jesus' choice of women as the first witnesses to the resurrection is significant.

* Allies are needed to help amplify women's voices in the church.

Sound Bites

* "God is not male."

* "We need allies who will help us."

* "Distortion of power causes great damage."

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to the Need to Know season and the book

01:55 Reimagining God's Gender

09:39 The Gap Between Theory and Practice

24:08 Rethinking Power and Spiritual Authority

34:16 Practical Steps for Gender Equity

42:04 Holding Leaders Accountable and Leaving Spaces that Do Not Value Women

46:24 Reimagining Church Structures and Systems

Friends! Welcome to the Need to Know season of The Right Side Up. This season is all about supporting the forthcoming compilation book, Need to Know: Empowering Female Leadership and Why It’s Essential for the Future of the Church. In this introductory episode I share why empowering women is so important for the future of the church. You’ll hear me emphasize the importance of collaboration between men and women, the need for systemic change, and the role of theology in promoting gender equity. I reflect on the historical context of female leadership, the challenges of addressing abuse within church systems, and the necessity of honest hope and lament in the journey towards transformation.

Order the book

keywords

female leadership, church, empowerment, theology, equity, abuse, collaboration, hope, transformation, systemic change

takeaways

Empowering female leadership is essential for the future of the church.

Cultural awareness is crucial for understanding gender dynamics.

The cost of allyship can be surprising for men.

Theology plays a significant role in gender equity discussions.

Church systems often perpetuate abuse and harm.

Historical examples, like the Salvation Army, show the impact of female leadership.

Collaboration between genders is vital for church growth.

Honest hope requires acknowledging and lamenting past injustices.

Transformation involves a deep personal and collective metanoia.

Listening and learning are the first steps towards living differently.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction: The Need to Know

02:27 The Cost and Challenges of Empowering Female Leadership

06:09 The Interconnectedness of Power, Empire, and Leadership

08:01 The Importance of Doing Exegetical Work on Women

11:20 The Historical Role of Women in the Church

18:48 A Call to Repentance, Learning, and Living Differently

Bob is someone I have long admired for his witness of the ways of Jesus. He talks with us about his own story, the need to break allegiances with our dominant cultural idols (even national ones), and the ongoing journey of being faithful to Jesus in an age of rising nationalism disguised as Christianity. This is so eye opening and beautiful.

tierra-nueva.org

peoplesseminary.org

Wow. What is the perfect body anyway?! So many good questions and an invitation to explore disability from a Kingdom perspective. Fascinating, challenging, and always a little fun!

wellspringtoronto.ca

Aaron White: The Pedagogy of Education... Learning a curiously different way and the deep and wide academy.

How we think about thinking? Yep, kind of. Challenging assumptions of learning and the inflexible way we've made knowledge about sitting still and why there are better ways... a great discussion!

deepwideacademy.com

Julie Faith Parker: Eve Isn't Evil - a feminist Old Testament Scholar helps us see the scriptures afresh! WOW. This is an eye opening conversation about how we've often viewed women (especially in the Old Testament) in ways that are not faithful to the text and have limited the Sacred story because of our own assumptions and prejudice. Get ready to be amazed and to get introduced to Eve Isn't Evil a new book that helps us explore the full range of women in the Bible! juliefaithparker.com

Micah is a gifted creative who hails from Long Beach, California. He is an incredible spoken word poet, a musician, and a speaker. I've shared the stage with Micah at many events around the world and have always been impacted by his faithful witness. Micah shares his journey, creative insights, and a lot on love. Don't miss this one! micahbournes.com

https://www.youtube.com/@micahbournes

The delightful and complicated journey out of patriarchy and how God sees women. Terran is South African. He is a gifted leader, church planter, bridge builder, and theologian. We catch up with his own story of awakening to the liberating good news from the scriptures and how that has lead him to help others and empower everyone! Incredibly insightful and exciting interview.

terranwilliams.com