Feb 27, 2009
God as Masculine and Feminine… This Isn’t Goddess Worship
A certain pastor doesn’t like a certain best selling book because God appears at one point in the book as a woman. He says that such a depiction of God is the equivalent of some kind of goddess worship, making God the Father into something other than what scripture reveals.
Orthodoxy in his view requires a masculine God.
But I find such a take troubling because it conveniently overlooks a small, but no doubt important element of scripture: God’s feminine side.
We have our first clue in Genesis where God creates man and woman in God’s own image: male and female (Genesis 1:27).
Isaiah picks up on God’s desire to comfort Israel, “As a mother consoles a child, so I will console you, and you will be consoled over Jerusalem” (Isaiah 66:13).
Jesus shares a similar feminine sentiments, but adds the twist of a chicken, “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing” (Matthew 23:37).
This teaches us that our language for God will always be inadequate, as the masculine pronoun “he” should always remind us. I can’t think of any workable way around the limitations of our pronouns in the English language, but our theology should leave room for this side of God rather than branding as heretical or new age any suggestion that God has feminine traits.
“He” does.
I agree. While I have other problems with that certain book, this was not one of them.
Out of curiosity: did this pastor have a problem with the Holy Spirit being presented as a woman, or only God the Father?
Ha! Good point. No mention of the Spirit… resisting harsh joke right now… OK, the temptation has passed.
Yeah, the main point was that God is the “FATHER”. So anything feminine is goddess worship. That sounds like I’m being too simplistic in presenting his view, but I’m afraid that’s his fault.
I recall a story I heard a long while back – a preacher felt strongly constrained to change his message to speak about the mother-love of God, using verses such as you mention. Turned out, visiting the church was a woman who had been badly damaged by an abusive and over-strict father and who therefore could not respond to any sort of message about God as father. But God as mother was something she could relate to, and came to faith as a result.
I also by chance saw a blog posting yesterday, highlighting the point that the Hebrew word used for the Holy Spirit is feminine.
Blessings
Tony
Thanks Tony. Powerful story. I didn’t get into the Holy Spirit here, but you’re absolutely right. Just another way that God is beyond our comprehension.
Blessings,
Ed
I just want to say that I am glad I stumbled on this post. I read this book and heard this critique from the “certain pastor” as well. I felt that by becoming so defensive of God depicted as a woman, a broader view of God is missed. This may sound dumb, but in my journey with (God), I have discovered an authentic love for him in a new way by comparing how I conduct my relationship with him, to how I would conduct a relationship with a girl. All too often I find that I fall short in the former and could put so much more energy into my relationship with God.
Thanks Steve. I think you’re simply dealing with the full revelation of God and finding life there. That’s a wonderful thing!