We Abandoned Our Mother God (Series, Pt. 3)

You may have noticed that there’s been a resurgence of patriarchal delirium in the past few years. Misogynist influencers, fueled by fear and grievance, have made it their mission to recruit young men into the dark world of female hatred and contempt.¹One example among many is white nationalist political commentator and live streamer, Nick Fuentes, who has said–among many other disturbing things–women should be sent to “breeding gulags,” that the 19th Amendment should be repealed, and that women are made for sex alone. He boasts over 1 million followers on X and over 500,000 viewers of each of his episodes on Rumble. Information gathered via https://www.isdglobal.org/digital-dispatch/your-body-my-choice-hate-and-harassment-towards-women-spreads-online/. Under normal circumstances, wisdom might dictate that we don’t use precious words and time to platform such disgusting rhetoric, but circumstances are not normal and the stakes are too high to ignore the growing sentiment, even among the mainstream, that women are a problem.²This recent New York Times article created quite a stir by originally titling this piece “Did Women Ruin the Workplace?” before changing it to “Did Liberal Feminism Ruin the Workplace?” as a response to the outcry. One might hope that the Church would stand as a refuge in times like these, in which feminine-coded human qualities such as care, empathy, and accountability are under attack from the culture, but that is sadly not a given. While there are certainly many churches who are bravely holding the line on traditional Christian teachings regarding things like compassion, God’s preference for the weak and vulnerable, basic human rights, and egalitarian treatment of all, there are many more who have fallen prey to the Western philosophical arguments that women are meant for submission and men are meant for dominance.³Christian Nationalist preacher Doug Wilson recently prayed at the Pentagon, invited by Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, despite his beliefs that women should not have the right to vote and should be disenfranchised. Information gathered via https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2026/02/18/doug-wilson-pentagon-hegseth-christian-nationalist/.

The shock-influencers, for their part, are at least brave enough to speak plainly about their true beliefs regarding the intelligence, character, and capacity of women, which is that they are too stupid, too morally lax, and too soft to lead. It’s almost relieving to watch them pull off the mask, allowing us at last to see the incontrovertibly contorted face of raw dehumanization, without any appeal to science, empirical evidence, or–especially–theology. Christian leaders who ascribe to all the same beliefs, on the other hand, hide behind the guise of tradition, paternalism, and carefully chosen interpretations of Scripture to smooth over both their desire for power and their motivation of fear. They hide these desires and motivations not just from others, but often also from themselves.⁴Pastor Joel Webbon, with over 200k followers on various social media platforms, proposes that women should not have any public voice at all. See https://politicalresearch.org/about/in-the-news/christian-nationalist-pastor-joel-webbon-says-women-should-not-be-allowed-vote for more.

Gloriously, however, Scripture resists such abuse, painting a picture of human interdependence that is as hopeful for the world as it is terrifying for fearful folks still clinging to the raft of patriarchy, because they struggle to swim in God’s massive ocean of grace. In this series so far, we’ve explored the mothering love of God, the complex relationship between men and women as womb-mates, and the invitation to co-creating a Church where healing is valued over hierarchy. Yet there’s one important element to this conversation that has the potential to make or break any movement toward reconciling the relationship between men, women, and church. Western patriarchal dominance proposes that men were always intended to be initiators, while women were always intended to be receivers of initiation. Men are active characters in the drama of human existence and women are passive.⁵Patriarchy was anciently cultural before it was theologized. Aristotle (Politics, Book I) taught that the male is naturally superior, women are deficient in rational ability, and the natural order of male over female is built into human existence. Later, Thomas Aquinas integrated Aristotle’s hierarchy into Christian doctrine (Summa Theologiae). From a Christian perspective, this notion is deeply problematic.

Scripture paints a picture of human interdependence that is as hopeful for the world as it is terrifying for fearful folks still clinging to the raft of patriarchy, because they struggle to swim in God’s massive ocean of grace. Share on X

What Happens in a Womb?

Scripture paints a picture of human relationships–both with God and with one another–as ultimately defined by mutuality and reciprocity, not dominance or control. We’ve been exploring the biblical concept of the mothering love of God, and God’s compassion as a kind of womb in which all humanity was intended to develop and be nurtured. What kinds of things happen in a womb? The fetus certainly doesn’t dominate the environment or take control of its host or the process of development. Rather, the womb is the context in which the baby receives oxygen, nutrients, hormones, antibodies, and protection from the harshness of the outside world. As the baby receives all of this, miracles take place that otherwise couldn’t. What occurs in the womb is an incredible transformation in which millions of genetic instructions activate in exact sequence, billions of cells migrate to correct locations, organs form within narrow developmental windows, the mother’s immune system tolerates a genetically distinct fetus, and the placenta automatically functions perfectly for months. When Scripture describes God’s compassion as a womb, and when Jesus transmits the truth to us that we must be born again to receive the Kingdom of God, the message is for the spiritual survival of every man and woman on earth–no distinctions, no hierarchy, no exceptions.

And the subtext is clear: Any control we think we have is an illusion. We are receivers, God is the Giver. 

Scripture paints a picture of human relationships–both with God and with one another–as ultimately defined by mutuality and reciprocity, not dominance or control. Share on X

God Initiates, We (All) Receive 

 ^“In fulfillment of his own purpose he gave birth to us by the word of truth.” (James 1:18)

Central to the Christian message is the understanding that God gives birth to us, physically and spiritually. Quantum theory has taught us that we are more “event” than “object,” as our bodies are composed of dynamically stabilized patterns sustained by constant interaction. Christian understanding of this fact of existence is that we are being held together by the very breath of God, an instantly equalizing and humbling revelation. As Paul writes in Colossians 1:

“He himself is before all things, and in him all things hold together.” (Colossians 1:17)

Not by our might, nor by our power, but by the Spirit of God are the very particles that make up our world being held together. We are not in control, no matter what the loud, clanging message of patriarchy tells us.

Both men and women are completely dependent creatures, childlike in comparison to the God of the Universe in whose womb we live and move and have our being (Acts 17:28). The biblical pattern is that God initiates and the human soul consents. The ego must be quiet for divine life to grow within. Transformation is received, not initiated. While patriarchal philosophy emphasizes the necessity for men to strive, produce, control, conquer, acquire, and initiate through speech and action; the biblical motif compels striving men to also abide, receive, trust, practice silence in God’s presence, and surrender. Christians who over privilege biblical themes of a violent Warrior God, or of authority flowing from the top down, or of battle imagery found in the apocalyptic literature, and fail to balance it with the abundant Scriptural imagery of intimacy and human dependence, run the risk of gravely misrepresenting God’s character and tragically overshadowing God’s desire for intimacy with humankind. 

In other words, adopting the notion that men are intended to be the active initiators in home, society, and church is an incomplete understanding of both women’s purpose and potential and the full humanity of men. 

TO BE CONTINUED ON MONDAY, MARCH 23RD WITH “THE WOMB OF GOD: RECEIVING DIVINE INITIATION (PT. 2)

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*Editorial Note: I have immense respect for Rev. Dr. Amber Hogan Jones. Her deep writing, impeccable theological research, and warm formational invitation into the nurturing, mothering heart of God is compelling. I urge you to listen to her.  Amber’s ongoing series, “We Abandoned Our Mothering God” can be read here and here.~CK

The biblical pattern is that God initiates and the human soul consents. The ego must be quiet for divine life to grow within. Transformation is received, not initiated. Share on X