![\"Lylee\"](\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/162\/2015\/11\/Lylee.jpg\")
<\/a>In late October, I had the privilege of teaching two workshops at the Indiana Faith and Writing Conference on the campus of Anderson University.<\/p>\nThe IFWC, originally known as the Indianapolis Christian Writers Conference, brings together writers of faith to help them develop in their craft and find opportunities for publishing. The director, Liz Boltz Ranfeld, is an Anderson English professor, an essayist, and the mother of two young children.<\/p>\n
One responsibility Ranfeld hadn\u2019t expected was answering to outrage over the closing keynote speaker, renowned poet Li-Young Lee. In the following conversation, I attempt to explore what happened, why, and what people of faith can learn.<\/p>\n
Tania Runyan:<\/em> What happened at the closing address?<\/p>\n Liz Boltz Ranfeld:<\/em> For the first part of the keynote address, things were fine. However, when Li-Young started reading \u201cThe Undressing<\/a>,\u201d the audience became uncomfortable.<\/p>\n I got a text that people were walking out. Of our small crowd, seven people ended up leaving. We received a handful of emails from people who said that because of the poem, they don\u2019t believe they can return to next year\u2019s event, despite enjoying everything else about the conference. I have since received evaluations describing his work as \u201cpornography,\u201d \u00a0\u201csmut,\u201d \u201cvulgarity\u201d and \u201cantithetical to Christianity.\u201d<\/p>\n TR:<\/em> What made people uncomfortable with the poem?<\/p>\n LBR:<\/em> I think there were a few things. First, a lot of people weren\u2019t expecting to hear explicitly sexual content at the conference. That\u2019s just not been a part of the event\u2019s history or ethos.<\/p>\n Second, the sexual content was quite violent. Those who were taken aback may not have been able to focus on the fact that the violence was being described with derision and self-criticism.<\/p>\n And third, I think our audience was troubled by the fact that Lee introduced the poem as being about Sophia, the feminine aspect of God. There were a lot of people in that room who felt squeamish because sexual language was used to talk about God\u2014especially a feminine aspect of God.<\/p>\n TR:<\/em> What place does potentially \u201ccontroversial\u201d or \u201coffensive\u201d art have in the faith conversation?<\/p>\n LBR:<\/em> There are times when we have to protect ourselves from art because we\u2019re not all ready for the same things at the same time. But offense isn\u2019t hurt. It isn\u2019t pain. Examining why something offends us can lead to a lot of personal growth, because often offense is one of our most unexplored reactions.<\/p>\n Unexamined offense causes us to shut down and plug our ears. Maybe we need to practice putting ourselves in situations where we are troubled by what we\u2019re hearing. Then we can learn to deal with those feelings.<\/p>\n Obviously here are times when we need to make a stand and let it be known that we can\u2019t approve of or condone what someone is saying. I don\u2019t ever want to take that away from anyone. But there are also times when offense can challenge and reward us.<\/p>\n I know I have grown more in my faith from participating in difficult conversations that have offended me than I have from really pleasant, encouraging conversations that don\u2019t have any conflict.<\/p>\n TR:<\/em> Where is the line between offensiveness and blasphemy?<\/p>\n LBR:<\/em> I\u2019m skeptical that someone could accidentally blaspheme. Blasphemy must be intentional.<\/p>\n The problem is that when you\u2019re sitting in a room listening to poetry that might be on that cusp between offensive and blasphemous, you don\u2019t know the poet\u2019s intent. How could you? Gauging intent is difficult enough when you\u2019re trying to understand the people you know and love. It\u2019s even more difficult when it\u2019s a stranger!<\/p>\n TR:<\/em> Was Li-Young Lee\u2019s language blasphemous?<\/p>\n LBR:<\/em> For me, the poem was not blasphemous, but that\u2019s because I believe the intent of the poem was in line with my values and beliefs about God. Specifically, I believe we often want to use the divine for our own selfish purposes, and sometimes that selfishness makes us downright vile and violent toward God.<\/p>\n God, in the meantime, is unfazed by our selfishness and our violence, and continues to offer wisdom and beauty in response to our audacity.<\/p>\n TR:<\/em> Do Christians get offended too often, then?<\/p>\n LBR:<\/em> I don\u2019t want to make the case that we shouldn\u2019t be offended by things. I hate those memes on Facebook that say, \u201cGood morning, America! What are we offended about today?\u201d It\u2019s important not to be dismissive of people\u2019s sincerely held beliefs.<\/p>\n Being offended by something is not the same thing as throwing a fit or being a crybaby. In fact, as far as I know, no one\u2019s reaction at our conference was inappropriate. No one yelled at us, threatened us, or called us names. They simply left the auditorium, and I respect that.<\/p>\n I try to put myself in a similar situation. What really offends me? Well, I\u2019m really troubled by humor that is at the expense of fat people. If someone was on a stage making fat jokes at a faith-based conference\u2014something I feel would be completely inappropriate\u2014I might even walk out.<\/p>\n I think what\u2019s important to me is understanding why I\u2019m offended. Is it because the person was saying truly offensive things? What if they were saying things in order to make a point that I ultimately agree with? What if they were just unaware of how hurtful their words could be?<\/p>\n Then, what is the most useful way for me to respond? Leaving could be effective for my own mental health. Staying could be effective if I want to engage people in conversation later about why I considered it a problem.<\/p>\n Obviously, Li-Young Lee didn\u2019t get on the stage and make fat jokes, but maybe the way I feel about that kind of humor is the way people in our audience felt about what he was reading. They just couldn\u2019t abide it.<\/p>\n TR:<\/em> How do you reconcile your views about taking offense with being a conference director, and a Christian conference director at that?<\/p>\n LBR:<\/em> I\u2019m never going to be an \u201canything goes\u201d sort of conference director, where anyone can just say anything they want. I do want to be somewhat hands-off, though, and let people hear things they might be uncomfortable with.<\/p>\n I feel terrible that people were so uncomfortable, but I also feel terrible that someone found mold on their breakfast Danish that morning!<\/p>\n I don\u2019t regret bringing Li-Young Lee to campus. Many people loved him and his talk and his reading. Many people absolutely did not. I hope that either way, people grew from the experience and know more about writing, literature, and faith than they did before.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n