Sermon : On Liberating Theology From Sexual, Racial Bias

I feel unconnected with the word feminist. This must be because I do not necessarily embrace all the issues that white middle- and upper-class women advocate in seeking to represent women across all cultures and classes. We cannot talk about gender issues without race and class because they are interlocking. The terms gender, man and woman are status- and class-loaded.

There are definite differences in the way white feminists and minority women experience life. Women of different classes and races struggle with different issues. Despite the feminists’ impact of bringing some equilibrium in gender hierarchy, one of the shortfalls is that white women excluded minority women while seeking to be included in a man’s world.

People dealing with gender issues need to be far more sensitive to racial and class variations without superimposing certain class agendas as if all women are represented. Likewise, I see deliberate blind spots in many men. Minority men tend to be hypersensitive and indignant about racism. However, when it comes to sexism, they tend to be oblivious. They conveniently hide behind a patriarchal culture.

While Christian women are being swept into a more progressive view on gender, what still haunts us are phrases like, “Women should be silent in the church” and “The woman should be submissive to the man.” Patriarchal interpretation of the Scripture, just like white feminists’ interpretation of the women’s movement, is exclusive and culturally biased. There is no culture-free theology. Thus we need to stay humble in our claiming Bible verses for a particular group’s interest.

When we follow how Jesus interacted with women of all classes, we realize how much transformation has to take place in gender relationships. The book of John summarizes beautifully how Jesus broke down the most difficult gender, class, and race barriers with which people today still struggle. Our ethnicity and gender are like computer hardware: They are givens. But class and status are like software: They are achieved. Thus racism and sexism are unjust because race and sex cannot be changed.

The Samaritan woman’s response to Jesus’ request for a drink of water is a good example. Imagine what must have gone through her mind: “You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan. You are a man, I am a woman. You are a rabbi, I am nobody. You are not even supposed to talk to me.” Jesus not only refuses to buy into her stereotypes, but through his dialogue, he gives her back her original “software” that helps her see that she is created in God’s image and worthy to meet his need.

Jesus transforms power to rule and power to serve; transcending human exclusion through inclusion. It is important to remember that both men and women need to be liberated to be who they really are. Whether man or woman, whoever rules over the other is also enslaved. Jesus models empowerment rather than enslavement.