Church of England says gender-neutral terms for God are up for discussion

 

Church of England says gender¹-neutral terms for God are up for discussion

Transcript²

The Church of England will consider the use of gender-neutral terms when referring to God.

ASMA KHALID, HOST:

Why is God so often referred to as a he? That's been a debate among many worshippers who speak gendered languages, like English. Now the Church of England is considering whether to use gender-neutral terms for God. A spokesperson for the church says that Christians⁴ have recognized that God is neither male nor female since ancient times. Yii-Jan Lin is an associate professor who studies the New Testament⁵ at Yale Divinity School.

YII-JAN LIN: There is also the Christian³ understanding that God is transcendent of human ideas. And so this understands God as beyond human complete understanding of who God is and what God is.

A MART?NEZ, HOST:

She says the terms father and he are commonly used when referring to God because of the culture we live in.

LIN: That is just the history of patriarchal society through almost all of history. And so that has just been a part of human constructions of God, which has been dominated by masculine power.

KHALID: In the coming months, the Church of England plans to launch a new project studying the issue of gendered language. Reverend Amy Peeler, the author of "Women And The Gender of God," says she is not surprised.

AMY PEELER: It has risen to the front of the list of things that need to be addressed, given. The cultural moment.

MART?NEZ: Church of England currently has no plans to drop the use of male pronouns for God. But some Christians are already using gender-neutral terms for God. Joseph Newton is a 24-year-old non-binary theology student.

JOSEPH NEWTON: I struggle to understand how people want to believe in a God who is exclusive as opposed to inclusive.

KHALID: Newton says no matter what terms we use, God will still be God. But using gender-neutral pronouns could help make some churches feel more inclusive.

(SOUNDBITE OF ECHO ISLAND'S "FLOURISH")

1 gender   

n.（生理上的）性，（名词、代词等的）性

参考例句：

• French differs from English in having gender for all nouns.法语不同于英语，所有的名词都有性。
• Women are sometimes denied opportunities solely because of their gender.妇女有时仅仅因为性别而无法获得种种机会。

2 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

3 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

4 Christians   

n.基督教徒( Christian的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Christians of all denominations attended the conference. 基督教所有教派的人都出席了这次会议。
• His novel about Jesus caused a furore among Christians. 他关于耶稣的小说激起了基督教徒的公愤。

5 testament   

n.遗嘱；证明

参考例句：

• This is his last will and testament.这是他的遗愿和遗嘱。
• It is a testament to the power of political mythology.这说明，编造政治神话可以产生多大的威力。