Archive | gender RSS feed for this section

Aside

Boyfriends, Bad Ideas, and the Bella-Katniss Continuum: Jenny’s Message on Identity in Christ

I was SO blessed to be able to speak at my beloved Mission Covenant Church last Sunday! The topic was how cohabitation hurts women and children, but we focused on the why–WHY do women get involved in relationships they know are bad for themselves and their children, or stay in abusive, dysfunctional relationships that bear […]

Read full story · Comments { 4 }
Aside

Patriarchy, Pop Culture, and Pornography, Part 2

(Continued from Part 1) What it comes down to is that in many ways, society ascribes value to women based on how attractive they are to men. (This is only exacerbated by women’s idolatrous tendency to base their identity on who they are in relationship with others, rather than on who they are in Christ. […]

Read full story · Comments { 14 }
Aside

Patriarchy, Pop Culture, and Pornography, Part 1

Several years ago, I read “The DaVinci Code” to see what all the fuss was about. It was nothing special—a fast-paced novel with interesting, if inaccurate, historical details woven in—but one line still stands out to me. The leading lady recalls a conversation she had with her grandfather as a child, about the film “The […]

Read full story · Comments { 15 }
Aside

More Statistics on Child Abuse, Or, Why Single Moms Should Probably Stay That Way

(I know, I know–another inflammatory title. But if you’re not feeling a bit inflamed by the end of this post, I don’t know what’s wrong with you.) Wading through statistics makes me cranky. My inner journalist, latent as she may be, pitches a fit when she hears people making making vague allusions to “research,” or […]

Read full story · Comments { 49 }
Aside

Are Women More Physically Abusive than Men? Why Mommies Hit Their Babies.

Okay, yes, inflammatory title. But I read something last night that made my stomach knot up into a ball Contrary to public perception, research shows that the most likely physical abuser of a young child will be that child’s mother, not a male in the household, although the mother’s plight often is complicated by her […]

Read full story · Comments { 16 }
Aside

Simulcasting, Shacking Up, and Very Bad Blogging

I will be the first to admit that I have been a Very Bad Blogger lately. I gave myself permission to put my online presence aside for Lent, but by the time Easter rolled around, I had other things to tackle before I flung myself back into the blogosphere. Like–well–Easter. And kidney stone comebacks. And […]

Read full story · Comments { 4 }
Aside

A Short Word About Birth Control, Health Insurance, and “Religious Organizations”

(Disclaimer–I am recovering from the flu, and only have a few minutes to bang out this post, so I am going to apologize in advance for the gross lack of citation. But that’s what Google is for, right?) This isn’t exactly normal fare for this blog, but the brouhaha about forcing religious organizations to offer […]

Read full story · Comments { 16 }
Aside

Adoption, Women, and BFFs: More Jumbled Thoughts

Writing isn’t supposed to be therapy–at least not the kind that happens outside your journal. But sometimes it is. This was certainly the case with my recent post about adoption. I was always a little bit conflicted about it, aware that it didn’t express my whole heart on the matter and could easily be taken […]

Read full story · Comments { 16 }
Aside

Evangelicals and Eating Disorders

Yep, you read that right. “Evangelicals and Eating Disorders.” That’s what I’m writing about today. Rachel Stone just rocked my world with her post “How Patriarchy Gave Me an Eating Disorder.” I didn’t quite have the courage to share it on my Facebook wall without a little bit of context, but can I just say […]

Read full story · Comments { 23 }
Aside

Pride and Prejudice: How We Sabotage Ourselves Into Silence, and Why

Can I make a generalization? Women sell themselves WAY short. To themselves, as well as others. I remember the first time I wanted to teach a Bible study (and I use this term loosely) for adults. I was petrified. I reasoned that surely someone else could do it better than me. (But nobody was offering […]

Read full story · Comments { 20 }
Aside

Junia Is Not Alone

Anabaptist or not, Scot McKnight comes out swinging in his bite-sized eBook defending women in ministry, “Junia is Not Alone.” I. Loved. It. Of course it contained the solid, thoughtful scholarship we’ve come to expect from McKnight. But what blessed me about this book was his passion. Women have not only been silenced, our heroines […]

Read full story · Comments { 16 }
Aside

Video About Domestic Abuse and the Church: What ABUSERS Need From Their Church

Melody Harrison Hanson wrote a beautiful, brave post on her blog today about her experience growing up with a father who “was in ministry and was a generous, gracious, loving, God-fearing man,” but who was also abusive. In fact, he wrote a book about it: “Strongest in the Broken Places: A Story of Spiritual Recovery.” […]

Read full story · Comments { 9 }
Aside

Crocheted Afghans and Other Coverings: The Women Who Shaped Me

In my last post, I talked about some of the godly men who have had a profound influence in my life. Now it’s the women’s turn. Yesterday, as I was studying, a cold draft came through the window, and I pulled an afghan my Great-Grandma Harmon had crocheted up over my legs. I was overwhelmed […]

Read full story · Comments { 8 }
Aside

A Few Good Men

Happy almost-Thanksgiving, everyone! I wasn’t planning on blogging tonight, but to be honest, I am overflowing with gratitude, and need to get it out. Here’s why: I write a lot about women’s issues, and tackle some tough topics regarding gender relations. My article about sexual harassment was posted on Red Letter Christians earlier today, and something […]

Read full story · Comments { 1 }
Aside

The Girl Who Cried Wolf, and Other Myths

You can’t go online lately without hearing about hearing about Herman Cain and the allegations of sexual harassment haunting his campaign. Those posts inevitably make me wince—not the articles themselves, but the comments crowded beneath them like protestors punching hand-scrawled signs in the air, screaming at the “other side.” Now, before you get all riled […]

Read full story · Comments { 22 }