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Jesus Feminist: An Invitation to Revisit the Bible's View of Women Paperback – November 5, 2013
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A freedom song for the church.
Sarah Bessey didn’t ask for Jesus to come in and mess up all her ideas about a woman’s place in the world and in the church. But patriarchy, she came to learn, was not God’s dream for humanity.
Bessey engages critically with Scripture in this gentle and provocative love letter to the Church. Written with poetic rhythm, a prophetic voice, and a deeply biblical foundation, this loving yet fearless book urges today’s church to move beyond man-made restrictions and fully welcome women’s diverse voices and experiences.
It’s at once a call to find freedom in the fullness, hope, glory, and work of Christ, and a very personal and moving story of how Jesus made a feminist out of her.
- Print length256 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- Publication dateNovember 5, 2013
- Dimensions5.5 x 0.6 x 8.38 inches
- ISBN-101476717257
- ISBN-13978-1476717258
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Review
"Never strident, Bessy's approach is instead solid and clear....An excellent choice." ― Booklist
"Jesus Feminist is a must read." -- Glennon Doyle, New York Times bestselling author of Love Warrior
"I want to write like Sarah Bessey. What she does with words is extraordinary, and the topic she's chosen is so deeply important. Jesus Feminist is a beautiful, challenging, rich, gutsy book, an absolute must-read." -- Shauna Niequist, author of Bread & Wine
“I’ve read countless books addressing the place of women in the kingdom, and I have never, ever read anything so lovely, so generous, profound and humble as Jesus Feminist." -- Jen Hatmaker, New York Times bestselling author of Of Mess and Moxie
"Sarah Bessey makes her case—not as a fire-breathing debater—but as a woman utterly captivated by Jesus who will stop at nothing to follow him." -- Carolyn Custis James, author of Half the Church
"A powerful and empowering narrative that both men and women will find compelling and readable." -- Tony Jones, theologian and author of The New Christians
“I love writers who are insightful enough to be cynical but choose not to be. I love books that help me see things I'd never noticed before—in life, in myself, in others, in the Bible, in Jesus. I love writing that makes reading enjoyable and easy, because I know how hard it is to write that way. For these reasons and more, I love Jesus Feminist. It's not ‘just a woman's book.’ In fact, it's the kind of book that will help both women and men see how unhelpful that distinction is.” -- Brian D. McLaren, author, speaker, activist
"Jesus Feminist is a critically important work; a must-read for everyone in the Church." -- Nish Weiseth, author of Speak
“With Jesus Feminist, Bessey is a modern-day Moses, seeking to not only free a Church held captive by dogma but also to redeem generations of women who have been stifled and silenced far too long.” -- Matthew Paul Turner, author of Our Great Big American God
“Jesus Feminist is a revelation, a genre-defying tour-de-force that soars above the caustic rhetoric that has defined these conversations in the Church.” -- Jonathan Martin, author of Prototype
"Sarah's voice is prophetic and she will free other women to speak and act with power, love, and courage." -- Adam S. McHugh, author of Introverts in the Church
"With grace, humility, and confidence (even in the unknown), Sarah Bessey's Jesus Feminist masterfully humanizes one of the most controversial topics of the day." -- Andrew Marin, author of Love Is an Orientation
"Jesus Feminist is a book that needed to be written! With honest vulnerability and a strong biblical foundation, Sarah Bessey shares her very personal journey and insight regarding the roles and qualifications for women in ministry." -- Helen Burns, author of Miracle in a Mother’s Hug and What Dads Need to Know About Daughters and Moms Need to Know About Sons
“Sarah Bessey makes me want to get to know Jesus all over again, but this time specifically through my womanly flesh, engaging God with the glorious gift of being a woman rather than in spite of it.” -- Enuma Okoro, author of Silence and Reluctant Pilgrim
“Jesus Feminist summons the Church to join in a conversation about women in God’s Kingdom. Sarah Bessey disarms us and then hands us a cup of tea. She creates a safe space for deep discussion, gentle reflection and holy imagination. She calls, converses and commissions us into the wild ways of Jesus. This is a holy invitation for all my sisters to come to the table at last. A must read!” -- Kelley Nikondeha, co-founder of Amahoro Africa
About the Author
Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
Jesus made a feminist out of me.
It’s true.
I can’t make apologies for it, even though I know that Jesus plus feminist might be the one label that could alienate almost everyone. I understand that—I do.
I know feminism carries a lot of baggage, particularly within the evangelical church. There are the stereotypes: shrill killjoys, man-haters, and rabid abortion-pushers, extreme lesbians, terrifying some of us on cable news programs, deriding motherhood and homemaking. Feminism has been blamed for the breakdown of the nuclear family, day care, physical and sexual abuse, hurricanes, the downfall of “real manhood,” the decline of the Christian Church in Western society, and spectacularly bad television. Most of what has passed for a description of feminism is fearmongering misinformation.
In some circles, using the word feminist is the equivalent of an f-bomb dropped in church—outrageous, offensive. It’s likely some people saw this book sitting on the shelf and figured they knew what sort of author was behind the words written here: a bitter man-hater arguing that men and women had no discernable differences, a ferocious and humorless woman, perhaps, and so it’s no wonder they reacted at the sight of Jesus alongside feminist like someone had raked long fingernails across a chalkboard. Who could blame them with the lines we’ve been fed about feminists for so long?
It’s a risk to use the word feminism here in this book—I know. But it’s a risk I’d like you to take with me. Me? I like the word feminist, even if it worries people or causes a bit of pearl clutching. The word feminist does not frighten or offend me: in fact, I’d like to see the Church (re)claim it.
Some people think the concept of a Christian feminist is a misnomer, an embarrassing and misguided capitulation to our secular culture. It might surprise antifeminists and anti-Christians equally to know that feminism’s roots are tangled up with the strong Christian women’s commitments to the temperance movement, suffragist movements, and in America and England in particular, the abolitionist movements of the nineteenth century.1 There is a rich tradition of pro-life feminism, which continues today.2 Christian feminism predates the works of second- and third-wave secular feminist writers, such as Betty Friedan, Simone de Beauvoir, Gloria Steinem, Rebecca Walker, and Naomi Wolf. Feminism is complicated and it varies for each person, much like Christianity. It’s not necessary to subscribe to all the diverse—and contrary—opinions within feminism to call oneself a feminist.
Feminism gained popularity as a result of “secular” work and scholarship, but the line between sacred and secular is man-made. Because God is the source of truth, Christians can still give thanks to God for the good works associated with feminism, such as the gaining of status for women as “persons” under the law, voting, owning property, and defending themselves in a court of law against domestic violence and rape. As Canadian theologian Dr. John G. Stackhouse Jr. says, “Christian feminists can celebrate any sort of feminism that brings more justice and human flourishing to the world, no matter who is bringing it, since we recognize the hand of God in all that is good.”3 Modern Christian feminism is alive and well, from social justice movements to seminaries and churches to suburban living rooms, worldwide.
At the core, feminism simply consists of the radical notion that women are people, too. Feminism only means we champion the dignity, rights, responsibilities, and glories of women as equal in importance—not greater than, but certainly not less than—to those of men, and we refuse discrimination against women.4
Several years ago, when I began to refer to myself as a feminist, a few Christians raised their eyebrows and asked, “What kind of feminist exactly?” Off the top of my head, I laughed and said, “Oh, a Jesus feminist!” It stuck, in a cheeky sort of way, and now I call myself a Jesus feminist because to me, the qualifier means I am a feminist precisely because of my lifelong commitment to Jesus and his Way.
PATRIARCHY IS NOT God’s dream for humanity.
I’ll say that again, louder, and I’ll stand up beside our small bonfire and shout it out loud. I’ll scare the starfish and the powerful alike: patriarchy is not God’s dream for humanity. It never was; it never will be.
Instead, in Christ, and because of Christ, we are invited to participate in the Kingdom of God through redemptive movement—for both men and women—toward equality and freedom. We can choose to move with God, further into justice and wholeness, or we can choose to prop up the world’s dead systems, baptizing injustice and power in sacred language. Feminism is just one way to participate in this redemptive movement.
In the context of our conversation here, two common labels used regarding the roles and voices of women in the church today, for better or for worse, are egalitarian and complementarian.
In general, according to theologian Carolyn Custis James, egalitarians “believe that leadership is not determined by gender but by the gifting and calling of the Holy Spirit, and that God calls all believers to submit to one another.” In contrast, complementarians “believe the Bible establishes male authority over women, making male leadership the biblical standard.”5
Both sides can treat the Bible like a weapon. On both sides, there are extremists and dogmatists. We attempt to outdo each other with proof texts and apologetics, and I’ve heard it said that there is no more hateful person than a Christian who thinks you’ve got your theology wrong. In our hunger to be right, we memorize arguments, ready to spit them out at a moment’s notice. Sadly, we reduce each other, brothers and sisters, to straw men arguments, and brand each other “enemies of the gospel.”
I know some people like to poke holes in each other’s arguments, pointing out inconsistencies and trading jabs of verses and scholars and church history like scrappy boxers. Some do this well, with kind skill and mutual respect, and it’s a joy to behold as they learn from each other. Others seem a bit more like mud wrestlers, hanging out on blogs or Facebook comment sections, at boardroom tables or in classrooms, at coffee shops or Christian bookstore shelves, with a lot of outrage—all in an effort to figure out how the other guy is wrong; it’s theology as a fight-to-the-death competition.
And all God’s people said, ”That’s exhausting.”
So could we agree on one quick thing before I keep going? I think the family of God is big and diverse, beautiful and global. So these dogmatic labels, while sometimes useful for discussion in books and classes, aren’t always the right boundaries for a life or a relationship. Most of us live somewhere in the in-between.
Let’s agree, for just a little while anyway, that both sides are probably wrong and right in some ways. I’m probably wrong, you’re probably wrong, and the opposite is true, because we still see through a glass, darkly.6 I want to approach the mysteries of God and the unique experiences of humanity with wonder and humility and a listener’s heart.
I have tried to stop caring about the big dustups between complementarians and egalitarians. I’m pretty sure my purpose here on earth isn’t to win arguments or perform hermeneutical gymnastics to impress the wealthiest 2 percent of the world. I don’t think God is glorified by tightly crafted arguments wielded as weaponry. Besides, I highly doubt this one slim book by a happy-clappy starry-eyed Jesus-loving Canadian mama will put any of this debate to bed when so many scholars and smarter-than-me people continue to debate and argue. That’s not what I’m after.
After years of reading the Gospels and the full canon of Scripture, here is, very simply, what I learned about Jesus and the ladies: he loves us.
He loves us. On our own terms. He treats us as equals to the men around him; he listens; he does not belittle; he honors us; he challenges us; he teaches us; he includes us—calls us all beloved. Gloriously, this flies in the face of the cultural expectations of his time—and even our own time. Scholar David Joel Hamilton calls Jesus’ words and actions toward women “controversial, provocative, even revolutionary.”7
Jesus loves us.
In a time when women were almost silent or invisible in literature, Scripture affirms and celebrates women. Women were a part of Jesus’ teaching, part of his life. Women were there for all of it.
Mary, the mother of God, was a teenage girl in an occupied land when she became pregnant with the Prince of Peace, and as Rachel Held Evans points out, Scripture emphasizes that her worthiness is in her obedience “not to a man, not to a culture, not even to a cause or a religion, but to the creative work of a God who lifts up the humble and fills the hungry with good things.”8
Even Mary’s Magnificat is surprisingly subversive and bold, isn’t it?9 In the face of evidence to the contrary, she sings how she is blessed, how God lifts up the lowly, filling the hungry with good things and sending the rich away empty.
Throughout the records of the Gospels, I saw how Jesus didn’t treat women any differently than men, and I liked that. We weren’t too precious for words, dainty like fine china. We received no free pass or delicate worries about our ability to understand or contribute or work. Women were not too sweet or weak for the conviction of the Holy Spirit, or too manipulative and prone to jealousy, insecurity, and deception to push back the kingdom of darkness. Jesus did not patronize, and he did not condescend.
Just like men, women need redemption. We all need the Cross of Jesus Christ, and we all need to follow him in the Way of life everlasting. In the words and actions of Christ as recorded in Scripture, we see what “neither male nor female, Jew nor Greek, slave nor free” looks like in real, walking-around life.10
During his time on earth, Jesus subverted the social norms dictating how a rabbi spoke to women, to the rich, the powerful, the housewife, the mother-in-law, the despised, the prostitute, the adulteress, the mentally ill and demon possessed, the poor. He spoke to women directly, instead of through their male-headship standards and contrary to the order of the day (and even of some religious sects today).
No, it was just him, incarnation of three-in-one on one. Women were not excluded or exempted from the community of God. Women stood before God on their own soul’s feet, and he called us, gathered us, as his own.
When they threw the woman caught in adultery down into the dust at Jesus’ feet and tried to use her shame to trap him, he leveled the playing field for both sin and marriage. There aren’t too many of us women who don’t imagine ourselves there, exposed, used, defiant or broken—sometimes both—and humiliated. And he, bless his name, restored, forgave, protected, drew a shield of grace around her with his dusty fingertip; and her accusers vanished. “Go,” he said, “and sin no more.”11
When the woman with the issue of blood reached out to touch the hem of his garment, Jesus did not respond with frustration. No, he touched her in return, praised her faith, set her free without recoiling.”12
When Jesus healed the woman who was bent over, he did it in the synagogue, in full view. He called her “daughter of Abraham,” which likely sent a shock wave through the room; it was the first time the phrase had ever been spoken.13 People had only ever heard of “sons of Abraham”—never daughters. But at the sound of Jesus’ words daughter of Abraham, he gave her a place to stand alongside the sons, especially the ones snarling with their sense of ownership and exclusivity over it all, watching. In him, you are part of the family; you always were part of the family.14
When Mary of Bethany sat at his feet, she was in the posture of a rabbinical pupil. Men and women rarely sat together, let alone for religious training, but there she was among them, at his feet. She was formally learning from him, the way the sons of Abraham had always sat—the daughters never had that spot. Even after Martha tried to remind her of her duties and responsibilities to their guests, Jesus defended her right to learn as his disciple; he honored her choice as the better one and said, “It will not be taken away from her.”15
When Mary, the sister of Lazarus, reproached Jesus after her brother’s death, he wept. In fact, he privately taught her one of the central tenets of our faith—the same thing he taught Peter: “I am the resurrection and the life”; this is the rock upon which he builds his church.16 Martha received this teaching, too; she believed him, and where would we be if she hadn’t shared what she heard from the lips of her beloved friend and Savior?17
When the Samaritan woman at the well met Jesus, he treated her like any other thirsty soul needing the living water.18 She was leading a life that likely generated the hiss of shame and eyes of judgment. She was among the least valued and most dishonored of her day. Yet Jesus engaged her in serious theological discussion; in fact, hers is the longest personal conversation with Jesus ever recorded in Scripture. It was also the first time that the words “I am the Messiah” were spoken from his lips, and she became an evangelist. She told her story. She told of Jesus, and many were saved. When the disciples expressed their surprise at this turn, Jesus was matter-of-fact: this is simply the way of things.
When Jesus finished teaching in a synagogue one day, a woman called out from the audience, “God bless your mother—the womb from which you came, and the breasts that nursed you!” Yet Jesus replied to this common blessing with “But even more blessed are all who hear the word of God and put it into practice.”19 Women aren’t simply or only blessed by giving birth to greatness; no, we are all blessed when we hear the Word of God—Jesus—and put it into practice. We don’t rely on secondhand blessings in Jesus.
We also see seven women in the Gospels described with the Greek verb diakoneo, which means to minister or to serve. It’s “the same one used to describe the ministry of the seven men appointed to leadership in the early church.”20 These women were Peter’s mother-in-law; Mary Magdalene; Mary, the mother of Jesus and Joseph; Salome, the mother of Zebedee’s sons; Joanna, the wife of Chuza; Susanna; and Martha, the sister of Mary and Lazarus.21
Even though the word of a woman was not considered sufficient proof in court, Mary Magdalene was the first witness of the resurrected Christ and the first preacher of the Resurrection. Jesus commanded her to go tell his brothers, the disciples, that he was returning to “my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.” Before the male disciples even knew he was breathing, Jesus sent a woman to proclaim the good news: he is risen!22 The last shall be first, again, always.
The women of the gospel narrative ministered to Jesus, and they ministered with him. The lack of women among the twelve disciples isn’t prescriptive or a precedent for exclusion of women any more than the choice of twelve Jewish men excludes Gentile men from leadership.
We can miss the crazy beauty of it because of the lack of fanfare in Scripture. Women were simply there, part of the revolution of love, sometimes unnamed, sometimes in the background, sometimes the receiver, sometimes the giver—just like every other man in Scripture, to be engaged on their own merit in the midst of their own story.
Jesus thinks women are people, too.
Product details
- Publisher : Howard Books; Original edition (November 5, 2013)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 256 pages
- ISBN-10 : 1476717257
- ISBN-13 : 978-1476717258
- Item Weight : 2.31 pounds
- Dimensions : 5.5 x 0.6 x 8.38 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #53,540 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #33 in Religious Leadership (Books)
- #396 in Inspirational Spirituality (Books)
- #633 in Christian Women's Issues
- Customer Reviews:
About the author
SARAH BESSEY is the editor of the New York Times, Globe and Mail, and Publisher's Weekly bestselling book, "A Rhythm of Prayer." She is also the author of three popular and critically acclaimed books: "Miracles and Other Reasonable Things;" "Out of Sorts: Making Peace with an Evolving Faith;" and "Jesus Feminist." Sarah leads Evolving Faith, a conference and community for wanderers and wonderers. She lives in Calgary, Alberta with her husband and their four children. You can find her online at sarahbessey.com.
Customer reviews
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Learn more how customers reviews work on AmazonCustomers say
Customers find the book thought-provoking and encouraging. They describe it as an enjoyable read with beautiful writing. The book affirms women as beloved by God and encourages loving deeply and sacrificially as Christ does. Readers praise the author's storytelling as wonderful and engaging. They appreciate the gentleness, tenderness, and power of the tone.
AI-generated from the text of customer reviews
Customers find the book thought-provoking and encouraging. They appreciate the passionate vision for the Kingdom of God and the author's storytelling style. While some readers found parts of the book overly poetic, others found it deeply personal and a loving meditation on the church.
"...that we need to practice as we follow the way of Jesus: gentleness and beauty, faithfulness and kindness, and patience and peace...." Read more
"...She's a beautiful writer and seems to be a very lovely person...." Read more
"...to the gospel, it issues a call and gives some suggestions about how to work on feminist issues..." Read more
"...Jesus loved and respected women. He made room for them. He talked with them. He rejected societal labels and pushed through to see their heart...." Read more
Customers find the book easy to read and enjoyable. They describe it as genuine, life-affirming, and non-judgmental. The first half of the book is excellent, making it a good choice for church discussions. Many readers find it suitable for beginners or those unfamiliar with feminist topics. Overall, they describe it as a beautiful, timely book that provides encouragement.
"...This would be a great read for any church book discussion, and I'm not just talking about “women's” groups either...." Read more
"...Still, I think this book is worth reading. Here are a few of my favorite lines from Sarah B.'s book: "..." Read more
"...This is a book worth reading regardless of where you are on the egalitarian/complimentarian spectrum...." Read more
"...The book is well-researched and put in layman's terms that is enjoyable to read. The book is well-organized and split into manageable chapters." Read more
Customers appreciate the book's writing quality. They find it conversational, well-researched, and enjoyable to read. The topics are discussed with understanding and love.
"...one of the cornerstones of modern Christian fundamentalism, very explicitly in this book...." Read more
"...Plus she does her homework. She's not a scholar, but she's a very responsible writer who has done research and thought through her points such..." Read more
"...Instead the important of these books is hearing the actual voices of women (and sometimes men) as they wrestle with the right way to call women to a..." Read more
"...I love that about this book. It creates a much-needed space for conversation in an arena where such conversations are often criticized or held in..." Read more
Customers find the book affirms women's love and healing from hurt. They say it's a fantastic book for Christian women, with advice on loving deeply and sacrificially as Christ does. The book is a call to self-identified Christians, specifically within the context of church. Readers mention the book is a great book on theology, a beautiful journal of worship, and an incredible book of freedom in Christ.
"...and fathers—my way of stating this, not hers—is built on the four pillars of Scripture, church history and tradition, reason, and experience...." Read more
"...She's a beautiful writer and seems to be a very lovely person...." Read more
"...I think that this is a fantastic book for Christian women. It's written, oddly, by an evangelical Christian, who I believe is also a literalist...." Read more
"...I love her heart for others. She advises loving deeply and sacrificially as Christ does. She pulled me in with stories of suffering and restoration...." Read more
Customers appreciate the author's storytelling style. They find her writing engaging and heartfelt, with truthful words and biblical insights. The author shares personal stories that show what it means to be a woman who is sold-out. Readers also mention that the book contains good quotes that need to be pondered and prayed over.
"...is not an indexed answer book or life manual: it is also a grand story, mystery, invitation, truth and wisdom, and a passionate love..." Read more
"...These are memoir/narrative/calling books...." Read more
"...and was also incredibly moved by her storytelling and passionate vision for the Kingdom of God...." Read more
"...For me there were too many personal stories and overall very wordy...." Read more
Customers appreciate the gentle and tender tone of the book. They find it comforting, inspiring, and challenging. The author's heart and rich story illuminate every page of Jesus.
"...particular that we need to practice as we follow the way of Jesus: gentleness and beauty, faithfulness and kindness, and patience and peace...." Read more
"...She's so comfortable with herself, so agile in her ability to describe things vividly, and she's funny. Plus she does her homework...." Read more
"...It is gentle, but clear and open to discussion...." Read more
"...Sarah's writing is beautiful, gentle, loving, and life-giving...." Read more
Customers find the book powerful and helpful. They say it warms, cares for, and empowers all people. The book is relevant, important, and life-giving.
"...These are important, but I think they are probably overly valued by complementarians because many complementarians believe that there are no..." Read more
"...Sarah's writing is beautiful, gentle, loving, and life-giving...." Read more
"...Sarah does here, but I love that she frames her feminism as meek AND powerful, gentle and bold...." Read more
"...freedom to be the woman you were created to be, whole in every way , vital and fulfilled, that is expressed throughout these pages!..." Read more
Customers find the book a good argument for egalitarianism. They appreciate that it cares for all people equally and makes good arguments for the egalitarian position. The book is full of redemptive truths and is a peacemaker, reconciler, and person of God.
"...Work of justice and mercy. Labor of reconciliation and redemption. Grace and kindness. Unity beyond conformity. Freedom over fear. Life over death...." Read more
"...Most of these books are from complementarian to egalitarian. The best introduction to this is How I Changed by Mind About Women in Leadership...." Read more
"...had led her to be bitter, she shows a remarkable sense of peace and forgiveness...." Read more
"...I get her. I think she has weathered the storms and risen as a peacemaker, reconciler, and person of grace with this testament of a book...." Read more
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Justice that leaves no one out
Top reviews from the United States
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- Reviewed in the United States on June 20, 2014Sara Bessey's _ Jesus Feminist _ is a good read. It is at heart a memoir of one woman's walk of faith and family. But it is also demonstrates something that a lot of North American Christians need to learn and then practice. Bessey has spent much of her life engaging the Bible and Christianity in one particular area, that is, how women fit into, to paraphrase Douglas Adams, “Christian life, the universe, and everything.” She obviously loves the Bible, and spends time with it every single day. But I think she explains very nicely why it is just not possible, and it never has been, to go by any kind of simple “all I need is the Bible” approach to life and faith. And she explains how she came to understand this, for me at least, most engagingly.
There are a lot of good quotes in this book that need to be pondered and prayed over. I love this one, because she's right, and she puts it so well:
People want black-and-white answers, but Scripture is a rainbow arch across
a stormy sky. Our sacred book is not an indexed answer book or life manual:
it is also a grand story, mystery, invitation, truth and wisdom, and a passionate
love letter. (26%)
Bessey rejects the idea of “the Bible alone,” one of the cornerstones of modern Christian fundamentalism, very explicitly in this book. Our faith, she insists along with a lot of church mothers and fathers—my way of stating this, not hers—is built on the four pillars of Scripture, church history and tradition, reason, and experience. That means, of course, that we have to read the Bible, like we read everything, critically. That is, we have to look behind the words, for two very important reasons. First, most of us are reading words that have been translated through two or three languages at least, and none of them even remotely from an “original” manuscript. Second, we are reading about two very different times and places, the Ancient Near East of the Old Testament and the Greco-Roman world of the New Testament. She is right to insist that we are always interpreting Scripture in all its variety and context. She rightly notes, by way of the work of John Stackhouse in reference to 1 Timothy 2:11-15, that there are a lot of texts that simply cannot be definitively explained. We keep working on those anyway, with the help of the Holy Spirit.
This would be a great read for any church book discussion, and I'm not just talking about “women's” groups either. Of course, that is the whole point of this book: not only remembering that the ladies exist (to harken back to a far too under-appreciated Founding Mother, Abigail Adams), but also putting them in their proper place. (That's my attempt to be clever, not Sarah Bessey's). Some of the title chapters hint at just what great material you will find here: “The Silent Women of Paul,” “Dancing Warriors,” “Patron Saints, Spiritual Midwives, and 'Biblical' Womanhood,” and “Reclaiming the Church Ladies.” As important as it is is for some women to read about these things, its even more important, perhaps, that men read them. The important lesson, she teaches us, is that we should be more concerned about Biblical “personhood.”
When I read a book like this, I always make note of key words and phrases. Sarah Bessey includes many of my favorites here. Work of justice and mercy. Labor of reconciliation and redemption. Grace and kindness. Unity beyond conformity. Freedom over fear. Life over death. Mess of friendship and community. Bessey tells us there are three things in particular that we need to practice as we follow the way of Jesus: gentleness and beauty, faithfulness and kindness, and patience and peace. But at the same time, she tells us, we should be trying to be more like Jesus where we are, with the people around us, and in the context of whatever it is we do. The important work for each of us is in the small operations that we engage in, whether inside the home or outside of it.
I will let Sarah Bessey herself explain what she means by “Jesus Feminist,” because she does it so well. And I will say one more time, she explains lots of things very well. I will be reading a number of the sources in the bibliography in the months and years to come.
This is a book that a lot of Christians need to read.
- Reviewed in the United States on October 15, 2014I'm one of the people who does not like the word "feminist" because I think the word "Christian" entails everything that Sarah Bessey says a feminist is. If a person is a Christian, it seems to me that we would automatically be pro-women to the fullest in the Lord.
Though I was turned off by the title, I sure do like Sarah Bessey. She's a beautiful writer and seems to be a very lovely person. She's so comfortable with herself, so agile in her ability to describe things vividly, and she's funny. Plus she does her homework. She's not a scholar, but she's a very responsible writer who has done research and thought through her points such that her argument, as a whole, is cogent.
What I'd say is that she writes as well--or better--than John Eldredge, but she conveys to women and men a very different message than he does. (NOTE: I don't agree with Sarah Bessey or John Eldredge either one at every point.)
Still, I think this book is worth reading. Here are a few of my favorite lines from Sarah B.'s book:
"Life in Christ is not meant to mirror life in a Greco-Roman culture. An ancient Middle Eastern culture is not our standard. We are not meant to adopt the world of Luther's Reformation or the culture of the eighteenth-century Great Awakening or even 1950s America as our standard for righteousness. The culture, past or present, is not the point: Jesus and His Kingdom come, His will be done, right now--that is the point."
"I'm not quite sure when the Church decided that 'biblical' was the perfect adjective for subjective roles and situations. I don't think it's helped us. Usually when people use that phrase, they are thinking more about June Cleaver than the early church's Lydia, described as being 'diligent in business,' or perhaps a sanitized sitcom society that never actually existed instead of Deborah, the military strategist of Israel, let alone Junia, a respected apostle alongside Paul."
"We are not biblical women because we achieve status as a stay-at-home mother and home-cook every meal."
"You are not forgotten. . . . 'this resurrection life you received from God is not a timid, grave-tending life ... '"
"That is why waiting does not diminish us . . . We are enlarged in the waiting."
"And this is where I learned that sometimes our most holy mountain-moving faith looks more like spending our whole lives making that mountain move, rock by rock, unsexy day after daily day, casting the mountain to the sea stone by stone rather than watching a mountain suddenly rise up and cast itself."
"I think the Kingdom is in every good and perfect moment in our lives, because these moments serve as a taste, just a small taste, of what God truly intends for us. It's in our bonfire for dancing and laughter. It's friends who show up when it matters. It's making your tinies laugh. It's sleeping babes curled into their mother's breast and the heft of holding another soul."
These excerpts don't show the fullness of Sarah Bessey's winsome personality or intriguing personal life or the few theological mistakes I believe she makes, but they show her language of "we and us," not "us vs. them," and they make life-giving points. Even her worst critics should be able to imbibe and enjoy the truths she presents so gently.
I don't technically consider myself an egalitarian, but put me on the list of people who adore Sarah Bessey. The whole evangelical movement could gain from sitting together at her bonfire.
Top reviews from other countries
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Mrs.GeekyReviewed in Germany on February 21, 2016
5.0 out of 5 stars hervorragend
Ein Buch, das nicht nach abendländischer Tradition fragt, sondern versucht, die ursprünglichen Gedanken der Bibel über Frauen herauszufinden. Sicherlich stimme ich auch nicht mit allem überein, was in dem Buch steht. Aber bei all dem pseudobiblischen Unsinn, den Männer (und leider auch Frauen) konservativer Kreise über "Frauen im biblischen Sinn" von sich geben, ist es äußerst heilsam und ermutigend zu sehen, dass Jesus alles andere als ein Frauenunterdrücker war und die Misogynie in weiten Teilen der Kirche eben nicht dem Willen Gottes entspricht, sondern eher der Angst kleiner Männer, die sich eher um ihr Ego kümmern als um die Wahrheit.
Ich hoffe, dass viele Christen dieses Buch lesen und sich daran reiben. Denn nur so kann Wachstum entstehen.
- Amazon CustomerReviewed in the United Kingdom on December 6, 2015
5.0 out of 5 stars Superb, thorough, gentle, spirit-filled
Superb gentle spirit filled approach to a topic that has and continues to bring extreme hurt and disunity in the body of Christ. Wonderfully encouraging and thorough reflection on what God has to say to all of humanity and to see that being lived out in many different lives in many different ways. Can't wait to read the next book by this young insightful writer.
- Mamasrk4Reviewed in Canada on November 10, 2013
5.0 out of 5 stars Hope for all women
I am always nervous to read anything written by a friend. As a diagnosed compulsive bibliophile, I am a highly selective, critical reader. What if it’s badly written? What if she turns out to be a heretic? Fortunately, in Jesus Feminist, neither the former nor the latter is the case.
I tend to be able to handle “Christian Books,” in small doses. A chapter here, a chapter there. But I picked up this book today and only put it down to eat (well, maybe not entirely-there is a spot of guacamole on one of the pages) and (fortunately for those on the roads today) to drive.
Contrary to what you might think, this is not a controversy-sprouting, argumentative text. Bessey is less Pitbull and more Border Collie. The underlying theme is unmistakeable, the same as that of the Bible: love. It also mirrors the Word in the story of redemption, hope, forgiveness, truth, mercy and justice. This book, while not actually mentioning it, trumpets the verse in Micah 6, “He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.”
As the daughter of a woman pastor, I figured I knew the Bible’s stance on woman. But I experienced one surprise after another as Bessey pointed out so many things in Scripture I had never properly understood. What a message of hope for women and for the Church!
Bessey’s writing is engaging, personal and humorous. You can feel her heart beating throughout her prose. I can tell you from personal experience that the writer behind these words is the same woman in front of them-full of love, joy and laughter. I am privileged to call her friend.
I strongly recommend this book to all who claim to know and love Jesus, and to all who want to know more about Him.
- April CookReviewed in Canada on July 12, 2019
5.0 out of 5 stars Loved it
I loved this book, it challenged how I feel about my faith and the way Sarah writes is very engaging. I felt like I was a part of a community that challenged me to love Jesus more and to be a better ambassador for his kingdom
- Kari J.Reviewed in Germany on September 29, 2020
5.0 out of 5 stars :)
Pleased!