From a February 8, Washington Post article
"Is God They/Them? Church of England considers gender-neutral pronouns.
LONDON — The Church of England is exploring whether to use gender-neutral language instead of referring to God solely with masculine pronouns, such as “He” or “Our Father” — which would be a major change after millennia of prayer and teachings.
The church is launching a project on “gendered language” this spring, following a years-long effort to study the ways in which God is referred to and addressed in liturgy and worship.
“Christians have recognised since ancient times that God is neither male nor female,” the Church of England said in an emailed statement. “Yet the variety of ways of addressing and describing God found in scripture has not always been reflected in our worship.”
The British press, which had been following the synod’s discussion over the proposal to allow priests to bless same-sex couples, quickly picked up the comments. Some commentators framed it as a political decision by the church — with one unnamed priest telling the Times of London that some people “think we’re being a bit woke.”
Yet “assigning a gender to God has always been a matter of metaphor, since we are incapable of saying anything that encapsulates divinity effectively in human language,” the Rev. Diarmaid MacCulloch, emeritus professor of the history of the church at Oxford University, said in an email. “It’s therefore only natural that we should explore further how we might speak of God in the liturgy, given the vast shifts in understanding gender and sexuality that are going forward in society.”
LONDON — The Church of England is exploring whether to use gender-neutral language instead of referring to God solely with masculine pronouns, such as “He” or “Our Father” — which would be a major change after millennia of prayer and teachings.
The church is launching a project on “gendered language” this spring, following a years-long effort to study the ways in which God is referred to and addressed in liturgy and worship.
“Christians have recognised since ancient times that God is neither male nor female,” the Church of England said in an emailed statement. “Yet the variety of ways of addressing and describing God found in scripture has not always been reflected in our worship.”
The British press, which had been following the synod’s discussion over the proposal to allow priests to bless same-sex couples, quickly picked up the comments. Some commentators framed it as a political decision by the church — with one unnamed priest telling the Times of London that some people “think we’re being a bit woke.”
Yet “assigning a gender to God has always been a matter of metaphor, since we are incapable of saying anything that encapsulates divinity effectively in human language,” the Rev. Diarmaid MacCulloch, emeritus professor of the history of the church at Oxford University, said in an email. “It’s therefore only natural that we should explore further how we might speak of God in the liturgy, given the vast shifts in understanding gender and sexuality that are going forward in society.”
So, what do you think, drop the "He/Him/Father" designation and perhaps change it to "She/Her/Mother" for a while----like for a couple thousand years or so----to make up for the somewhat sexist designation god's been saddled with, or go right to "It"? . . Or ? ? ______your suggestion______ .
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