As we were on a particularly long road trip this July, Jack (the husband, the baby was sleeping) and I discussed what potential employment avenues I might pursue after I complete my PhD. Two things emerged from those conversations:
1- I have an incredibly supportive husband.
2- Despite feeling a call to the ministry of theological education (which I still feel called to), there is a growing concern within me that the path to get a job doing that in a Baptist context is getting murky.
So when the social media explosion (or implosion) over the invitation of Russell Moore to be part of a preaching symposium at Truett, co-sponsored by the ISR erupted yesterday, that twinge of uncertainty reemerged. Given that this is much too long for a facebook post, but feeling that I want to contribute to the conversation, this blog post will need to suffice in lieu of a preferred face to face conversation.
Let me begin by asserting that my heart is rooted deeply in the Baptist tradition. I love business meetings. Yesterday morning I emailed my pastor to ask for a copy of the church by-laws because I had never read them, and then I did read them. I have a deep desire to one day be on the Committee on Committees - I'm not even positive what they do exactly, but my Baptist nature draws me toward it. And I absolutely adore the church we attend here. Our church family has nurtured me in multiple ways over the past 12 years and it's where I want to see my son grow up and learn about God and faith and even doubt.
That said, being Baptist, female, and progressive is exhausting.
I don't entirely hate that Moore was the SBC leader invited. I have been constantly surprised with the number of times I've found myself agreeing with him over the past year. He does seem to hold those in power to a higher ethical standard than a lot of people, and if we had to invite an SBC leader, Moore would have been my pick.
However, I'm still surprised and not surprised about it, given Truett's affirmation of women in ministry. The Southern Baptist Convention does not affirm this. For a woman to follow the call to ministry is sinful. Just up I-35 in Fort Worth, women at Southwestern Seminary are barred from taking courses on preaching, and in many places women are not allowed to teach grown men (and even teenage boys in some places). Moore, as a leader in the SBC, affirms this understanding of women in ministry and it hurts to think that Truett might be tacitly agreeing with this stance by inviting him.
What has been more frustrating in these discussions, though, is the concern by some men (and I have yet to find a female voice in these discussions that agrees with this view, so I'm honestly not trying to just generalize here), that the bigger issue at stake isn't that Moore's presence may strengthen those who already question if women should be ordained, but rather that disinviting him would break or weaken ties with the SBC.
So two things here:
1- The SBC has historically been the group to break ties. Why we should be concerned about breaking ties with a group that has already broken ties to the CBF (of which Truett is affiliated), doesn't make much sense to me.
2 - The issue at stake isn't about whether or not to invite someone to whom you hold theological disagreements (we're Baptists and in theory we should be able to be in fellowship even when we disagree).
Rather, the presence of Moore strikes a reminder that women, and other marginalized groups, are still barred from the same level of respect and opportunity afforded to men in the Church.
This goes beyond Truett and beyond Baptist life. There are no women faculty members teaching theology at either Truett (Baptist) or The University of Aberdeen (secular, UK). I will get my PhD in theology without having ever been taught theology by a woman.
In the UK (and I'd assume similar statistics in the US):
- more than half of the undergraduates earning degrees in religion/Christianity are female
- less than 1/3 of those undertaking doctoral work in religion/divinity/Christian studies etc. are female
- less than 1/4 of those teaching these subjects are female
- the fields least likely to have women teaching or studying are Systematic/Philosophical theology and Ethics
When I entered my program, there were approximately 30 students in Systematic Theology and a similar number in Ethics. I was one of roughly 4-5 women in each of those fields, and 2 of us overlapped in both, so in total, out of 60 doctoral students, 8 or so were women. Obviously those numbers fluctuate, but to my knowledge only 10% of the doctoral students are women and yet over 60% of the undergrads in these fields are. Which begs the question, where do they go?
The research carried out by Durham University (I've served on two different professional/academic working groups looking at Gender and the Academy) indicates that we lose those students because they don't see anyone like them in the Academy. When all you see are men teaching and preaching, it becomes harder to imagine there is a place for you in that field. When who you see leading churches are men, it becomes hard to see or understand a call to ministry.
I was told by a good friend that seeking ordination for my call would hurt me professionally, that Baptist universities would be leery of hiring a female minister, even if they 'officially' supported women in ministry. I don't think he was speaking of Truett or Baylor in particular, but as I've started thinking about potential schools to apply to for jobs, I can't help but think that the ordination bit is irrelevant and that my gender will be a bigger hurdle to overcome.
I also fear that, as we've seen with the BGCT this past year, dissension in Baptist life is becoming more starkly felt. One of the things I treasure about being Baptist is that we affirm that we live in fellowship with one another even if we disagree theologically. The BGCT seems to have drifted away from this, thankfully the CBF is at least attempting to figure out how this may be put into practice regarding LGBT inclusion and the Illumination Project.
My takeaway from the Moore discussions is one of frustration that too often we've stopped trying to be charitable with one another and that the question of women in ministry is far from settled.
I'm hopeful and I'm prayerful that I can be of service to the Church, and not just part of me but all of me, but today I'm just exhausted by the constant need to remind myself that I do love being Baptist and I do feel called to a ministry of theological study.
**This is not meant to indicate that I have not felt supported by male colleagues, pastors, and professors to this call, given that most of the individuals occupying those positions in my life are male, it has often been men encouraging me to attend seminary, do doctoral work, seek ordination. Rather, this is a reflection on the church and academy as a whole**
1- I have an incredibly supportive husband.
2- Despite feeling a call to the ministry of theological education (which I still feel called to), there is a growing concern within me that the path to get a job doing that in a Baptist context is getting murky.
So when the social media explosion (or implosion) over the invitation of Russell Moore to be part of a preaching symposium at Truett, co-sponsored by the ISR erupted yesterday, that twinge of uncertainty reemerged. Given that this is much too long for a facebook post, but feeling that I want to contribute to the conversation, this blog post will need to suffice in lieu of a preferred face to face conversation.
Let me begin by asserting that my heart is rooted deeply in the Baptist tradition. I love business meetings. Yesterday morning I emailed my pastor to ask for a copy of the church by-laws because I had never read them, and then I did read them. I have a deep desire to one day be on the Committee on Committees - I'm not even positive what they do exactly, but my Baptist nature draws me toward it. And I absolutely adore the church we attend here. Our church family has nurtured me in multiple ways over the past 12 years and it's where I want to see my son grow up and learn about God and faith and even doubt.
That said, being Baptist, female, and progressive is exhausting.
I don't entirely hate that Moore was the SBC leader invited. I have been constantly surprised with the number of times I've found myself agreeing with him over the past year. He does seem to hold those in power to a higher ethical standard than a lot of people, and if we had to invite an SBC leader, Moore would have been my pick.
However, I'm still surprised and not surprised about it, given Truett's affirmation of women in ministry. The Southern Baptist Convention does not affirm this. For a woman to follow the call to ministry is sinful. Just up I-35 in Fort Worth, women at Southwestern Seminary are barred from taking courses on preaching, and in many places women are not allowed to teach grown men (and even teenage boys in some places). Moore, as a leader in the SBC, affirms this understanding of women in ministry and it hurts to think that Truett might be tacitly agreeing with this stance by inviting him.
What has been more frustrating in these discussions, though, is the concern by some men (and I have yet to find a female voice in these discussions that agrees with this view, so I'm honestly not trying to just generalize here), that the bigger issue at stake isn't that Moore's presence may strengthen those who already question if women should be ordained, but rather that disinviting him would break or weaken ties with the SBC.
So two things here:
1- The SBC has historically been the group to break ties. Why we should be concerned about breaking ties with a group that has already broken ties to the CBF (of which Truett is affiliated), doesn't make much sense to me.
2 - The issue at stake isn't about whether or not to invite someone to whom you hold theological disagreements (we're Baptists and in theory we should be able to be in fellowship even when we disagree).
Rather, the presence of Moore strikes a reminder that women, and other marginalized groups, are still barred from the same level of respect and opportunity afforded to men in the Church.
This goes beyond Truett and beyond Baptist life. There are no women faculty members teaching theology at either Truett (Baptist) or The University of Aberdeen (secular, UK). I will get my PhD in theology without having ever been taught theology by a woman.
In the UK (and I'd assume similar statistics in the US):
- more than half of the undergraduates earning degrees in religion/Christianity are female
- less than 1/3 of those undertaking doctoral work in religion/divinity/Christian studies etc. are female
- less than 1/4 of those teaching these subjects are female
- the fields least likely to have women teaching or studying are Systematic/Philosophical theology and Ethics
When I entered my program, there were approximately 30 students in Systematic Theology and a similar number in Ethics. I was one of roughly 4-5 women in each of those fields, and 2 of us overlapped in both, so in total, out of 60 doctoral students, 8 or so were women. Obviously those numbers fluctuate, but to my knowledge only 10% of the doctoral students are women and yet over 60% of the undergrads in these fields are. Which begs the question, where do they go?
The research carried out by Durham University (I've served on two different professional/academic working groups looking at Gender and the Academy) indicates that we lose those students because they don't see anyone like them in the Academy. When all you see are men teaching and preaching, it becomes harder to imagine there is a place for you in that field. When who you see leading churches are men, it becomes hard to see or understand a call to ministry.
I was told by a good friend that seeking ordination for my call would hurt me professionally, that Baptist universities would be leery of hiring a female minister, even if they 'officially' supported women in ministry. I don't think he was speaking of Truett or Baylor in particular, but as I've started thinking about potential schools to apply to for jobs, I can't help but think that the ordination bit is irrelevant and that my gender will be a bigger hurdle to overcome.
I also fear that, as we've seen with the BGCT this past year, dissension in Baptist life is becoming more starkly felt. One of the things I treasure about being Baptist is that we affirm that we live in fellowship with one another even if we disagree theologically. The BGCT seems to have drifted away from this, thankfully the CBF is at least attempting to figure out how this may be put into practice regarding LGBT inclusion and the Illumination Project.
My takeaway from the Moore discussions is one of frustration that too often we've stopped trying to be charitable with one another and that the question of women in ministry is far from settled.
I'm hopeful and I'm prayerful that I can be of service to the Church, and not just part of me but all of me, but today I'm just exhausted by the constant need to remind myself that I do love being Baptist and I do feel called to a ministry of theological study.
**This is not meant to indicate that I have not felt supported by male colleagues, pastors, and professors to this call, given that most of the individuals occupying those positions in my life are male, it has often been men encouraging me to attend seminary, do doctoral work, seek ordination. Rather, this is a reflection on the church and academy as a whole**
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