An Addendum to Feminist Theology

Guilty as charged. I did what every feminist theologian has been criticized for. I wrote from only one woman’s perspective.

In the attempt I made last week to bring a Christian voice to the “Why Women Still Can’t Have it All” conversation, I wrote from the perspective of and responded very much to wealthy, educated women of privilege. So here I am one week later, saying, “There are more feminist Christian voices than I may have let on…”

Don’t get me wrong. I stand by my response to Anne-Marie Slaughter’s piece in The Atlantic.  In it, she clearly states, “I am well aware that the majority of American women face problems far greater than any discussed in this article. I am writing for my demographic – highly educated, well-off women who are privileged enough to have choices in the first place.” And at the time of my last post, I didn’t feel like it was fair to criticize Slaughter for not including another perspective; after all, she thoughtfully acknowledges it early on in her piece.  Read, “Many … women are worrying not about having it all, but rather about holding on to what they do have.”  I think she gets it, as best she can.  But after all, her piece ran in The Atlantic, and was read mostly by people who read… The Atlantic.

Seeing as how Faithful Democrats has a slightly different readership, I want to invite comments and emails about how you see yourself as a Christian feminist… or maybe how you don’t. In the meantime, listen for other feminist voices: the feminist who struggles to put food on the table, the feminist of the two-thirds world, and what about the feminist in the military?  These are all voices we need to listen for because they will ultimately broaden our conversation. They will make it richer, sweeter, and more fruitful, thus opening our hearts and minds to more of God’s love. 

Jessica Rae Church can be contacted at church.jessicarae@gmail.com.