God the Mother?
I've been away from the blog world this week because we were trying to catch a little bit of vacation time. Tuesday we went to Cincinnati, OH to Paramount's King's Island for an exhausting but fun day. All the walking took its toll on me and it has taken me a few days to get back to my normal self. Also youth soccer season here is starting and both of the younger boys had their first practices (separate teams). Finally, yesterday Big J decided to take all three boys fishing for the first annual family fishing trip. Everyone caught fish and had fun. I got to spend the day alone watching chick flicks and blog surfing.
During the time I've been away from the computer, I've had several ideas and topics pop into my head. I'm still cogitating over some of them and I'll get back to that.
I just this morning checked over some of the UU Blogs and someone (maybe ChaliceChick) posted about an upcoming UU Blog Carnival with possible topics. One that jumped out at me was the reaction I had the first time I heard God referred to as female. This is one that gets me.
I consider myself a relative feminist. I mean, considering where I live and the majority of people I interact with, I am about as feminist as you can get (fellow UU congregants notwithstanding). But in the big spectrum, I'm starting to get feelings that I am more conservative than I previously thought. Sometimes that bothers me. I don't like feeling like I am conservative. But then I ask myself what is wrong with being conservative? I think I have too many close-minded connections that confuse the matter.
Anyway, back to my original thought...when I saw God referred to as "she" I almost literally rolled my eyes. It just seemed silly to me. Like the author is Trying Too Hard. While I don't think God is male, I also don't think God is female. And switching back and forth between two genders makes God seem schizophrenic.
I don't have a problem referring to God the Father (but then I love my father so that image isn't problematic for me). The whole thing is metaphoric anyway so I have trouble seeing why it even matters so much. It seems to me that only those with open gender wounds are the ones up in arms about it. In my life experience, a father figure isn't bad.
I don't mind God in the feminine, but it does make the whole thing a little less serious for me and a little distracting from the main spiritual message of whatever I'm reading (generally I only encounter this in print). Well, now that I think of it, some of the Pagan-oriented services I've been to recently have invoked the name Mother Earth and I had the same reaction. I know this really works for some people, but it just doesn't work for me. It seems too fabricated. Strange, but the more traditional language doesn't.
During the time I've been away from the computer, I've had several ideas and topics pop into my head. I'm still cogitating over some of them and I'll get back to that.
I just this morning checked over some of the UU Blogs and someone (maybe ChaliceChick) posted about an upcoming UU Blog Carnival with possible topics. One that jumped out at me was the reaction I had the first time I heard God referred to as female. This is one that gets me.
I consider myself a relative feminist. I mean, considering where I live and the majority of people I interact with, I am about as feminist as you can get (fellow UU congregants notwithstanding). But in the big spectrum, I'm starting to get feelings that I am more conservative than I previously thought. Sometimes that bothers me. I don't like feeling like I am conservative. But then I ask myself what is wrong with being conservative? I think I have too many close-minded connections that confuse the matter.
Anyway, back to my original thought...when I saw God referred to as "she" I almost literally rolled my eyes. It just seemed silly to me. Like the author is Trying Too Hard. While I don't think God is male, I also don't think God is female. And switching back and forth between two genders makes God seem schizophrenic.
I don't have a problem referring to God the Father (but then I love my father so that image isn't problematic for me). The whole thing is metaphoric anyway so I have trouble seeing why it even matters so much. It seems to me that only those with open gender wounds are the ones up in arms about it. In my life experience, a father figure isn't bad.
I don't mind God in the feminine, but it does make the whole thing a little less serious for me and a little distracting from the main spiritual message of whatever I'm reading (generally I only encounter this in print). Well, now that I think of it, some of the Pagan-oriented services I've been to recently have invoked the name Mother Earth and I had the same reaction. I know this really works for some people, but it just doesn't work for me. It seems too fabricated. Strange, but the more traditional language doesn't.
Labels: Theology
posted by Mama G @ 9:53 AM
2 Comments:
At 10:25 PM,
JoKeR said…
I like using different ways to refer to god as a way to prod people to think about Godde instead of just trudging down familiar paths of overly familiar rhetoric.
But, that aside, the thing that prompted me to comment was your discomfort with thinking of yourself as conservative. It brought to mind an episode of Kate and Allie that I've talked about for years.
One of them (the non-Jane Curtin actress, can't remember the name) winds up making a date during a power outage only to find when the power comes back on the man she agreed to go out with is black. Being a good, liberal, open minded person she went on the date without much reservation about whether it was appropriate. However, at the end of the date when she would normally kiss her date she felt uncomfortable when she did so.
She then asked why this should be so uncomfortable for both of them? Did this mean they were bigoted?
Her date replied, no, it just means we're conservative.
To which she replied (this is the quote I've loved since I first heard it) "I'd rather be conservative than bigoted, but I'd rather be DEAD than conservative."
I've thought that fit me pretty well. At least, it is how I like to think of myself.
At 10:16 AM,
Anonymous said…
I believe God is half male and half female and I'm NOT a feminist. I believe the divine feminine (the goddess half i believe in NOT Gaia). I believe the divine feminine represents motherhood, family, marriage, beauty, health, joy, and bliss, while the divine masculine represents discipline, strength, and courage.
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