Holy Heretics: Losing Religion and Finding Jesus · The Sophia Society

What Are God's Pronouns? w/ Gary Alan Taylor

·35 min·3 clips

Taylor reveals how institutionalizing God as male correlates with one-fifth of women being sexually abused as children and millions of missing girls.

This episode of Holy Heretics, hosted by Gary Alan Taylor, examines female imagery and language for God within the Bible and Christian tradition. Taylor argues that institutional Christianity has incorrectly presented a solely male God, leading to harmful societal imbalances. He explores historical and theological evidence for a divine feminine presence. The episode references theologian Mary Daly's statement, "if God is male, the male is God," linking a male-dominated theology to global issues like environmental exploitation and violence against women. Taylor cites statistics including that one-fifth of women are sexually abused as children and 61 million girls are missing due to infanticide and neglect. Scholars like Rosemary Radford Ruether and Joan Chittister are quoted on the symbolic and linguistic erasure of women. The Hebrew word for compassion, *rakhum*, is analyzed, showing its root in the word for womb (*rekhem*), connecting God's nature to motherhood. Marcus Borg's work is cited to explain Jesus's teaching to "be compassionate as God is compassionate" as a call to be "womb-like." Scriptural examples are given, such as God described as a mother in Deuteronomy 32:18 and as a mama bear in Hosea 13:8. The concept of Sophia, or Lady Wisdom from Proverbs, is presented as a feminine personification of God present at creation. The episode references the Wisdom of Solomon, Philo of Alexandria, and theologian Jürgen Moltmann on Sophia's role. Medieval mystics Julian of Norwich and Hildegard of Bingen are highlighted for their visions of God as mother. The episode suggests a direct link between Sophia and the Logos in the Gospel of John, implying Jesus embodies divine feminine wisdom. It claims groups like the Gnostics and Celtic Christians preserved veneration of the Divine Mother. Taylor describes the divine feminine as both nurturing, like a mother hen, and fierce, like the goddess Kali, who disrupts oppressive systems. The tone is educational and persuasive, blending scriptural analysis, historical references, and social critique. Listeners interested in feminist theology, biblical studies beyond traditional interpretations, and the intersection of spirituality and social justice would appreciate this episode. Those committed to strictly orthodox, complementarian Christian theology would likely find its premises and conclusions incompatible.

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