Review:
A recent Pantene ad (for hair
conditioner and shampoo) has taken the internet by storm: In 60 seconds this ad
pictures and decries what James equally decries in her book Half the Church – i.e., the unfair bias
globally against women in male-dominated cultures. The ad shows that the same actions by men and
women in the workplace are judged entirely differently. When men are the “boss,” that is acceptable;
when women are the boss, that behavior is “bossy.” When men speak strongly,
that is “forceful.” When women speak forcefully, they are “pushy,” etc. The ad ends: “Don’t let labels hold you back.
Be strong and shine.” (Pantene
#shinestrong.) The role stereotypes in the Pantene ad illustrate one
issue James tackles carefully and powerfully in her book. Using both Biblical material and references
from the recent book Half the Sky by
Krystol and WuDunn, she says that both the devaluation of women and the
cultural exploitation and abuse of women is a violation of God’s original
intention stated in Genesis 1:27-28 where “God created both men and women as
his image bearers and gave them both the exact same responsibilities to be
fruitful and multiply and to rule and subdue the whole earth” (p. 50). James
calls for the church to “value and foster the flourishing of women and girls
and to join together in leading in global advocacy and activism on behalf of
the widow, the trafficked, the marginalized and the oppressed…God’s vision for
his daughters is an implicit call to a full-orbed gospel…This shift (the
rescuing of girls and women in slavery) is a choice to be a force for God’s
justice for the helpless; it is not a distraction from the gospel but a
centering on its fullness” (Half the Church, Carolyn Custis James,
Zondervan, 2011, pp.42, 25).
James acknowledges the
serious debate within the church between the complimentarians and the
egalitarians regarding women’s roles (pp.
153-165). But she feels the sharp debate detracts
from the suffering of many women and children who are in slavery and at risk
world—wide. The situation is so desperate, it requires women to step up and use
all their resources in the fight for justice. “Equality is the foundational
truth that extends to every human being and is rooted in our image-bearing
identity. Equality distinguishes the kingdom of God from the kingdom of this
world that ranks, rates, discriminates and privileges some human beings over
others… [yet] equality went missing from human relationships as the human race
plunged into self-seeking, murder, violence, power and oppression”(p. 165).
I hope her book will become a
must read by both men and women globally so that women can take their
God-ordained place of value, dignity and leadership alongside men in God’s
kingdom-building agenda.
M.L. Codman-Wilson, Ph.D.
12/18/13
Excerpts:
“It is no small matter that
women comprise half the church. In many churches, women make up a significantly
higher percentage of believers – 80% in China, 90% in Japan. At times, in
India, during Amy Carmichael’s expanding ministry, it was nearly 100%. These
high percentages of women would make us wonder what God is doing. For he often
forges significant inroads for the gospel by beginning with women” (p. 27).
“Against the backdrop of the
ancient patriarchal culture [of the Bible] moments (and scripture is peppered
with them) when a women steps out to occupy center stage of the Biblical
narrative are countercultural events, for patriarchy’s interest is in men, and
what the men are achieving…Women in the Bible offer up a boat load of profound
theology intended to enrich the whole church’s understanding of who God is,
what it means to walk with him and how we are to build his kingdom in this
broken world” (p. 33).
“The plight of women in the
world became a tipping point confronting me with millions of shattered women
and girls who are forgotten in our quest to understand what God has to say to
us and who belong in this conversation…These women enduring unspeakable
atrocities and injustice [are] women for whom the Gospel message and its
redeeming power are intended” (pp. 35-36).
Some Statistics:
·
“More girls have
been killed in the last 50 years precisely because they were girls then men
were killed in all the wars of the 20th century.
·
More girls are
killed in this routine gendercide during one decade than people were slaughtered
in all the genocides of the 20th century” (p. 39).
·
Three
million women and girls have been kidnaped or sold into the sex trade—far more
women and girls are shipped into brothels each year in the early 21st
century then African slaves were shipped into slave plantations each year in
the 18th and 19th centuries” (p.39).
·
“Girls in India
from 1-5 years in age are 50% more likely to die than boys of the same age.
They don’t receive the same nutrition or medical care as their brothers. The
best estimate is that a little Indian girl dies from discrimination every 4
minutes” (p.46).
The Creation Account:
“In the Creation account, God
made both male and female in his image (Gen
1:26-27) and told them to “be fruitful and multiply and rule and subdue
the whole earth” (p. 50). David says God made humans a little lower than God
(Psalm 8:5) and crowned him with glory and honor. “His words underscore the
fact that the world is wide of the mark when it devalues and discards women and
girls…Our identity as God’s image bearers casts in cement a fundamental
equality, dignity and purpose among all human beings. By naming us as his image
bearers, God has made a relationship with himself the strategic center of his
purpose for humanity and for the world…The image-bearers image based
relationship with God is our north star. The reference point by with we begin
to understand everything else—including ourselves” (pp. 55, 56, 57).
“Be fruitful and multiply
means multiply image- bearers,…people who reflect God’s attributes of goodness,
mercy, injustice, truth and grace and more. Ruling and subduing means rescuing
the poor…the oppressed, a clarion called to leadership…God created both his
sons and his daughters to rule with justice and mercy and to fight the battles
necessary to subdue and push back the forces of evil that threaten us on all
sides” (pp. 70-75).
Ezer:
“God calls the first women
ezer. A name most frequently used in the Old Testament for God himself. Yet the
context for the 21 times that ezer appears in the Old Testament…The word is
used consistently in a military context. Israel seeks military aid from her
neighbors. God is his people’s shield and defense. The command to rule and
subdue puts God’s image bearers on high alert…Fierce resistance lies ahead…[So]…God
created his warriors to be ezer warriors with our brothers. He deploys the ezer
(woman) to break the man’s aloneness by soldiering with him whole heartedly and
at full strength for God’s gracious kingdom. The man needs everything she
brings to their global mission…Support from the ezer– the warrior- comes from
other Bible passages that use military language for women. Both Ruth and the Proverbs
31 women are called women of valor (hayil). Paul rallies both men and women
believers to put on all God’s armor in preparation to do battle with the evil
one…Descriptors of women as dependent, needy, vulnerable, deferential,
helpless, leaderless or weak are, to put it simply, wrong. Such definitions
betray cultural biases and, I fear, a deep seated misogyny. The ezer is a warrior;
like the man she is also God’s created masterpiece, for she is fearfully and
wonderfully made…This changes everything for women and girls! God deploys his
daughters – all of us – to be ezer warriors for his kingdom all the days of our
lives” (pp. 113-114).
Working Together
“Both men and women were
blessed by God to rule and subdue on his behalf…Our relationships with God and
with each other are the load-bearing walls of God’s original design…God created
his image bearers male and female, blessed them and spread before them the
global mandate to build his kingdom…There is surprising God-intended strength
and wisdom for all of us when men and women join forces and serve God together”
(pp. 137, 139, 140).
James cites the dual examples
of Esther and Mordechai and Mary and Joseph to demonstrate “the magnitude and
seriousness of God’s call on their lives…Esther and Mordechai are called to
rescue their people from genocide. Mary and Joseph are mobilized to rescue the
world from the clutches of the Enemy. Kingdom-mindedness centers them on God’s
purposes and summons forth from everyone a different way of living and
different ways of working together…Both Esther and Mary defy the norms of
culture and social conditioning to become bold risk takers. Both have
terrifying encounters with powerful men. Their actions reflect God’s heart for
the world and foreshadow Jesus’ gospel…Huge role reversals are in both stories.
Women take the lead and are the rescuers. The men are counting on the women to
step out and succeed…Mordechai’s life depends on Esther’s leadership. Joseph’s
salvation depends on Mary’s success…God’s tactics are counter intuitive to our
male-centered world. [But] when men and women are allied together richer
discussions result in better decisions, the elimination of blind spots, and a
greater kingdom force in the world” (pp.
147-149).
“In God’s good providence…two
alien worlds have come together - the world of those who prosper far in excess
of our needs and who are empowered to make a difference for others, and the
world of those who suffer without hope and whose oppressors ravage, degrade,
oppress, imprison and murder with impunity…God’s mandate for us to rule and
subdue removes from us the option to turn a blind eye or stand on the sidelines
wringing our hands…Whether we like it or not, God is confronting us with his
overarching command to love your neighbor as yourselves…Jesus didn’t give us a
small gospel, he gave us a full orbed gospel…that points us back to the cross.
It upends all our paradigms and pushes us beyond the confines of self-interest
to pour ourselves out for others. Jesus’ gospel brings salt and light to a
tasteless, dark world. His image bearers are agents of those life-transforming
forces” (pp. 181, 183, 184).
“God’s image bearers are
fearfully and wonderfully made. He invests them equally with the capacity to
know him and a boundless potential for creativity, curiosity, enterprise and
resourcefulness…Men and women are strategic to God’s vision for the world. He
entrusts the whole earth to their stewardship…even the relationship between
them holds out challenges and potential, for here they will learn love and
sacrifice and the power and beauty of oneness. Their God-given mission demands
vigilance, leadership, all they have to offer, and above all a solid connection
to their Creator” (pp. 188-189).
“The potential force for
kingdom good and the store house of gifts and abilities that reside in the
churches ezer population is simply staggering. God’s global vision for women
unlocks that plenty unleashing and un-parallel message of hope and an endless
array of kingdom possibilities that ripple out from home, family and community
to reach untouched places where human suffering and female oppression sink to
unimaginable lows” (p. 193).
“May it never be said that we
ignored the cries of the helpless and focused on ourselves. Let it instead be
said that God used those cries to awaken a sleeping giantess and filled her
with a terrible resolve – half the church, angered and outraged at the
unchecked forces of evil in God’s world. That we made up our mind to do
something, that our efforts forced the darkness to recede” (p. 193).