We can follow all kinds of people on Twitter, but at this point in my life, I am interested in following myself.
I came late to the controversy that hovered around Ashley Judd’s
puffy face in March. At the time I was embroiled in my own battle with
vindictive women who would rather break down another younger,
intelligent and vibrant woman than admit they were wrong.
Since leaving that position and place, I have rediscovered my voice,
strength and passion and am finally following myself. This is not an
easy or comfortable road to take. Our cultural norms direct women to
follow a man, fashion trends, gossip and just about anything or anyone
that will keep us thin and attractive.
In her article “Ashley Judd Slaps Media in the Face for Speculation Over Her ‘Puffy’ Appearance”
Ms. Judd boldly engages the media and everyone else who continues the
tradition of claiming ownership over the bodies, minds and existence of
women. Go Ashley! As a pastor, I was measured and assessed regularly.
There was no part of my body that was off limits. Every Sunday there was
at least one comment about what I was wearing, how my hair looked or if
I had gained or lost weight. Most people were concerned with whether or
not I was appropriately dressed for a religious leader, which basically
meant I needed to not look like a woman. No obvious
curves or signs of sexuality. It was only months after beginning at my
first congregation in Queens, NY that I gave up my red lipstick (which I
loved to wear – MAC Russian Red!). Judd bravely names patriarchy as
the source of such promulgated misogyny. She’s right. She also states
that patriarchy is not limited to men, but is kept alive by both
genders. Right again. Following myself instead of the direction and
intimidation of patriarchy in our society is hard to do. It is a big
risk to take. The bulls eye target becomes etched on our person just as
Hawthorne’s “A” was fixed on Hester in “The Scarlet Letter”. When we
dare to own ourselves, refuse the lower rank beneath men and do not
agree to compete with other women for men’s approval of our beauty, mind
or actions, we are a threat. Funny how the letter “A” was scarlet;
the very same color of my Russian Red that agitated so many good
Christian folks. We need to “Reclaim the Red” and all that it means
for the power of women!
Wednesday, August 8, 2012
Thursday, August 2, 2012
Dump It
My book, Religion Made Me Fat, narrates a good dump.
Like most good dumps, it can take some time and effort to complete the process, but when finished, we feel lighter, healthier and just better.
It all began in earnest on the day my dad brought a load of crap to my house. He was retired from being a pastor and bishop, and had time to clean out closets and garages and no longer thought he and my mom should have to keep my junk. So he came with a load from my past - high school, college, Peace Corps, graduate school. It was my turn to decide what to do with all the shit.
He left the boxes in my back yard with a question: What of it did I want to keep and what did I want to take to the dump?
Keep or dump, became a central question for my life and decision making: who was I going to choose to be, what would I choose to believe and how was I going to choose to interact and behave in this world.
As good as an individual dumping can be, we do not live in a vacuum. We are part of a larger community and society. Our culture has a collective story that shapes how we think of each other and which dictates laws and policies about how we can treat each other.
We need to take a societal dump.
Like most good dumps, it can take some time and effort to complete the process, but when finished, we feel lighter, healthier and just better.
It all began in earnest on the day my dad brought a load of crap to my house. He was retired from being a pastor and bishop, and had time to clean out closets and garages and no longer thought he and my mom should have to keep my junk. So he came with a load from my past - high school, college, Peace Corps, graduate school. It was my turn to decide what to do with all the shit.
He left the boxes in my back yard with a question: What of it did I want to keep and what did I want to take to the dump?
Keep or dump, became a central question for my life and decision making: who was I going to choose to be, what would I choose to believe and how was I going to choose to interact and behave in this world.
As good as an individual dumping can be, we do not live in a vacuum. We are part of a larger community and society. Our culture has a collective story that shapes how we think of each other and which dictates laws and policies about how we can treat each other.
We need to take a societal dump.
- We need to let go of the Doctrine of Original Sin
- We need to move beyond the Doctrine of the Atonement and the notion that there is a “heaven” somewhere out there that is better than what we have here. (As opposed to a new $5m study.)
- We need to stop using male centric language to refer to a deity, including “God”.
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
Blair Dodges Fresh Air
Listen to Terry Gross interview Bishop Blair and then read Religion Made Me Fat. http://www.npr.org/programs/fresh-air/
This is the bishop the Vatican appointed to reorganize the Leadership Conference of Women Religious. This group of women religious have been told they are doctrinally out of line with the teaching of the Catholic Church and are now fully under the direction of the male hierarchical leaders.
Bishop Blair is asked about issues such as women's equality in the church, birth control, homosexuality and more, but consistently appeals to "faith in God" and the "direct teachings from God" in answer to the interview questions. There is no reasonable engagement of these contemporary questions.
If this conversation frustrates you or causes you to wonder about faith assertions inserted into the domain of public policy, as well as evaluate the worth of women and others, then read Religion Made Me Fat.
This is the bishop the Vatican appointed to reorganize the Leadership Conference of Women Religious. This group of women religious have been told they are doctrinally out of line with the teaching of the Catholic Church and are now fully under the direction of the male hierarchical leaders.
Bishop Blair is asked about issues such as women's equality in the church, birth control, homosexuality and more, but consistently appeals to "faith in God" and the "direct teachings from God" in answer to the interview questions. There is no reasonable engagement of these contemporary questions.
If this conversation frustrates you or causes you to wonder about faith assertions inserted into the domain of public policy, as well as evaluate the worth of women and others, then read Religion Made Me Fat.
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