Mutuality | Blog + Magazine | Spring 2016
The print + digital magazine of CBE International
Mutuality offers articles from diverse writers who share egalitarian theology and explore its intersection with everyday life.
Blog + Magazine ArticlesThe opinions expressed in these articles are those of the authors. They do not purport to reflect the opinions or views of CBE International or its members.
Spring 2016
Volume: 23 | Number: 1
Telling Better Stories
This issue examines the stories that shape our understanding of gender, whether in relationships, history, or the Bible. It exposes stories that fall short of God’s ideal and challenges us to let God transform the stories we embody and the stories we pass along to others.
Contents
Many of the stories we learn about gender show us a world where selfish fantasies are fulfilled or fears are realized, but they teach us very little about actual love. They teach us even less about who God made us to be.
We are shaped by our stories. In fact, our stories, once in place, determine much of our behavior without regard to their accuracy or helpfulness. Once these stories are stored in our minds, they stay there largely unchallenged until we die. And here is the main point: these narratives are running (and often ruining) our [...]
Both men and women take responsibility for God’s vision for their life. Both parties express their gifts and callings without restriction. It is God’s original and best design, forgotten but now remembered. It is a vision of equal wheels—a partnership where the enlargement of one doesn’t mean the diminishment of the [...]
The story that “women need love and men need respect” is simple and appealing, but is one with a dirty little secret (okay, maybe it’s not that much of a secret): it places all the power in a relationship squarely in the hands of men.
Who would think we would find important truths about marriage from the ancient agricultural implements found along the highways and byways of South India?
Salome Alexandra was a Hasmonean, born almost twenty years after her family had taken leadership over the land. She grew up privileged, educated, and incredibly strong. She excelled in her studies of God’s Holy Law and in political affairs.
I hear You cry, "I thirst," / and I cry tears I would gladly share / with Your cracked lips. / It is drier than any desert / to hear my Wellspring say, "I thirst."
During my PhD studies at the University of Durham (Durham, England), I lived and studied beside some of the most dedicated Christians I have ever known. Separated for years from their families, they worked without ceasing, seven days a week, indebted to the communities that supported their education. Often struggling with English and the bitter [...]
