(RoyalPatriot.com )- Later this year, bishops at the Church of England plan to launch a project “on gendered language” surrounding God.
Rev. Joanna Stobart asked Church officials whether there was a possibility “to establish more inclusive wording in our sanctioned liturgy,” which served as the impetus for this most recent woke endeavor.
To reportedly foster a more inclusive vision of the divine, the increasingly progressive Church of England will launch a study to adopt more gender-neutral vocabulary for the god.
We have been investigating the use of gendered language regarding God for some years, in partnership with the Faith and Order Commission, according to the Rt Rev Michael Ipgrave, Bishop of Lichfield and vice-chairman of the Liturgical Commission.
After considerable discussion between the commissioners, a new collaborative initiative on gendered language will start this spring.
As a result, words like “Our Father” may be replaced with neutral or feminine words. This is because some church members have argued that equating God with men has led to sexism within the faith.
Stobart pursued her activism by requesting that bishops “provide additional alternatives for individuals who prefer to utilize authorized liturgy and speak of God in a non-gendered fashion, notably in authorized absolutions where many of the prayers available for use allude to God using male pronouns.”
Rev. Church of England’s General Synod and Archbishops’ Council member Ian Paul criticized the decision. While claiming that masculine pronouns for God should not be taken to infer that God is a man, Rev. Paul also observed that “male and female imagery is not interchangeable” and that the Bible generally employs masculine pronouns for God for a purpose.
“The fact that God is referred to as ‘Father’ cannot be replaced by ‘Mother,’ nor can it be made gender-neutral to ‘Parent,’ without losing significance. “If the Liturgical Commission wants to modify this, then in an essential manner, they will be shifting the teaching of the Church away from being anchored in the Scriptures,” says the Liturgical Commission. “Father and mother are not interchangeable; they connect to their kids in distinct ways.”
Mother Nature has not weighed in.
