Category: Gender Issues

Over and over again in my conversations with women in the emerging church movement, I hear the story of women awakening to themselves.  They realize that as women they too are created in the image of God and so in theory can serve their creator faithfully in whatever way they are called.  Intellectually, they understand this.  They want to engage theology, attend conferences, interact online, and visit discussion groups.  They want to have a say in the direction of the emerging conversation and lend their particular understandings to shape the movement.  They see in this emerging moment in time an opportunity for them to be fully alive as women, to grow their faith in new ways, and to be truly respected in the church.  But at the same time they have difficulty actually doing those things.

The problem isn’t so much women being told that they can’t participate or lead, although there are churches in the emerging movement that still set limits on women, for the most part women are fully affirmed.  The men in the conversations wish there were more women contributing their voices and stepping up into leadership.  But while such stepping up might seem perfectly natural to these men, I’ve encountered numerous women who feel they just can’t do that.  Even if they believe they can be leaders, the message that the church and their culture has imparted to them over the years is that nice Christian women just don’t do things like that.  They don’t assert themselves.  They don’t impose themselves on others.  They don’t show up where they haven’t been invited.  They don’t make a scene.

So in the very open source emerging network this creates a problem.  Women are affirmed, but with no one to officially invite them into the conversation, many women just don’t join in.  This of course creates a cycle where, because women don’t see other women in the conversation, they assume that not only are they not invited they are not welcome in that world.  So some women reject the movement in anger and others resign themselves to remaining on the outside simply wishing things could be different.

As a woman engaged with the emerging conversation, it is my hope to hear more women’s voices represented there.  But I do understand the psychological constraints many women face.  I don’t believe that they simply need to get over who they are and step up anyway.  I think men and women need to work together, mutually making sacrifices, to ensure that the conversation is a welcoming place for all.  Men should take the time to extend invitations to women.  They shouldn’t just assume that if women aren’t showing up to the conversation that they don’t want to be there.  Taking the time to make room for women, going out of their way to extend invitations, and showing a willingness to learn from women are just the sorts of encouragements that many women need.  But women too need to stretch themselves – not to lose themselves, but to examine what baggage is weighing them down and holding them back.  Women can help each other leave behind such constraints and develop into the people we long to be.  We can encourage each other and affirm to those who need the reminder that Christian women can be strong, engaging, and dynamic while exploring theology and stepping into leadership.

As much as those of us in the emerging conversation value natural and organic development, I think we all need a reminder that some things, like having women’s voices heard, take deliberate planning.  We must be aware of the needs of women who are struggling to overcome years of messages that convinced them not to step up.  Including these women isn’t something that will just happen, it will take work.   Constant awareness, intentional invitations, repeated encouragement, and the courage to take risks.  But these women are worth it.  We will all benefit from adding their voice to the conversation.

I was out shopping recently and saw a baby boy onesie (it was blue, so in the strictly color coded baby clothes world, it was intended for boys and boys only…). On the front was the phrase “Second in Command After Daddy.” Now as a good feminist that pissed me off. Who in their right mind would stick that on their baby, even as a joke? Even tongue-in-cheek promotions of such family hierarchy encourage the myth that having a penis somehow makes you more important than women.

If you haven’t gathered it by now, I’m not a huge fan of hierarchical leadership (even when it’s not based on gender). I prefer flat networked structures that allow for input from all. And in truth, it’s less about equality or sameness and more about simply respecting people as people. Letting voices be heard and appreciating contributions for what they are.

So on one level, I appreciate that fact that Emergent Village is transitioning to a more decentralized structure. While some may be heralding Tony Jones stepping down as National Coordinator to symbolize the dismantling of Emergent, it was meant as an opportunity to allow a wider variety of people to step up into leadership positions (as the amusing series of I Am The Emergent National Coordinator videos demonstrates). And as Tony mentioned on his blog yesterday, “Any time you can dethrone an overeducated, loud, brash, white man,people just feel more openness for their own voice to be heard.” It’s all about reducing hierarchy and opening up the conversation.

But will it work? In brief discussions with other women leaders in the emerging movement, I’ve heard the question raised if the lack of a central leader will actually help women become more involved in the conversation. Many post-evangelical women still struggle to jump into the conversation, much less assert themselves as leaders. For good or bad, they still seek invitations to come alongside and be a part of the in-group. With no one to officially offer that invitation, the question remains if the women will step up or just remain on the sidelines peeking in. I honestly have no idea. It would be easy to say that women just need to get over it and assert themselves, but that would stray into dangerous psychological territory and miss the point. I don’t want to need a man’s permission to do anything, but an invitation (from someone) is still what many women are looking for.

So I’m curious to see how the decentralization of power affects the presence of women in Emergent. I’d of course like to see a vibrant representation of women in Emergent leadership. I’m encouraged to hear from some that at The Great Emergence event men at times seemed like the token voice. But to the best of my knowledge, I haven’t seen any women making national coordinator videos. That’s not a criticism, just an expression of curiosity of where this will lead. I hope the speculation of other emerging women will be wrong and we will see an increase of women’s voices in Emergent. But at the same time be proactively aware that the opposite could just as easily occur.