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Christians for Biblical Equality: St Louis

Friday June 19, 2009

This summer, July 24th-26th, the annual meeting for Christians for Biblical Equality will be meeting in St. Louis -- and there are scholarships for those who are full-time students and in financial need.

Let's hear from those who have attended these sessions.

Comments (10)

Filed Under: CBE, Christians for Biblical Equality

posted by Scot McKnight @ 1:25pm Permalink email icon

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jane

June 20, 2009 8:41 AM

I have been to several wonderful CBE conferences, and think year's is an important discussion to have. As aware as I try to be of cultural and gender stereotypes, I, too, find myself lapsing into generalities sometimes. This cracked eikon needs to remember we were all created in God's image, female and male, with unique capabilities, passions, and giftings to build the Kingdom of God.

CBE has been a lifeline to me as a woman called into ministry, and I heartily recommend their conferences and the book recommended above, 'Discovering Biblical Equality'. ]
'
Shalom

RJS

June 20, 2009 9:40 AM

Kenton,

My impression

what is good:
He did put in disclaimers, it is a relationship book - and it has many useful insights in building relationships. First and foremost it emphasizes thinking about where your spouse is coming from and adjusting response and expectations accordingly. This alone is significant - and it is in essence loving your spouse as you love yourself isn't it? In this sense it is an excellent book.

What is wrong:
He makes statements intimating that his divisions are correct 90% of the time and even occasionally suggests that something went "wrong" in those cases where his divisions don't really fit. I think that this is overly simplistic - many (almost all?) people are more complex.

Outside of a marriage relationship there are problems with this basically black and white (or Mars and Venus) kind of thinking.

The generalizations can hurt because instead of making the diversity in response normal - it suggests that diversity is abnormal and even that the person who is abnormal is flawed.

The generalizations can also hurt because they become walls that prevent those who are "abnormal" from being welcomed and engaged in the church (using this as an example since we are talking about CBE).

Kenton

June 20, 2009 2:16 PM

RJS & Dave,

Thanks both of you for those thoughtful responses. Maybe we're at an impasse. At the time he wrote the book, there was a widely held notion that there were no differences between men and women. That the only differences were reproductive body parts. When Gray published his book he argued this radical notion that contrary to the zeitgeist, men and women were different. They thought differently and viewed the world differently. And while it may not always correlate, it was gender based, and that was OK - indeed it was a great thing! Not that one sex was better or smarter or more advanced than the other (so it did not contradict a notion of gender equality), and not that the rules correlated 100% (so that if you discovered areas were you diverged from the norm that you should feel "flawed"), but if they didn't correlate at all, then the whole premise of the book falls apart.

I don't know, but I think we've only been able to arrive at the place we are at today where somebody like me could get on board with the mission statement of the CBE because someone 15 years ago had the courage to say our genders make us different, and the differences are not just OK, but they're truly wonderful.

D C Cramer

June 20, 2009 5:03 PM

http://cramercomments.blogspot.com

I'll be reading a paper at the conference on "Creating a Culture of Equality." Looking forward to it and will be sure to report back.

Joe B

June 20, 2009 11:31 PM

I heard a pastor named Tim Timmons speaking on Focus on the family years before the Mars and Venus book. The similarity was incredible. Mars & Venus was goob-humored, but Timmons was absolutely hilarious.

Mrs Joe B and I are exeptions to most of the Mars & Venus rules, but it is still very insightful, and anyone who loves human beings can enjoy the book.

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Scot McKnight is a widely-recognized authority on the New Testament, early Christianity, and the historical Jesus. He is the Karl A. Olsson Professor in Religious Studies at North Park University (Chicago, Illinois). A popular and witty speaker, Dr. McKnight has given interviews on radios across the nation, has appeared on television, and is regularly asked to speak in local churches and educational events. Dr. McKnight obtained his Ph.D. at the University of Nottingham (1986). Click to continue reading Scot McKnight's Bio...

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