Enough already about gender issues
In my opinion, the question of human gender comes up way too often among us and way beyond its importance to society as a whole.
Let’s just use our God-given brains. This is primarily a biological issue. All of us are born with both male and female hormones. As exists in all aspects of the creation, the bell curve applies: there are always a few individuals at each end of the curve who will be exceptions.
In the case of sexuality, there will always be a few people who are born with more or less equal amounts of both male and female hormones, so their social and physical expressions could go either way. These are human beings just like the rest of us, and deserve to be accepted and treated just like the rest of us.
Regarding the Bible, any negative mention of gender most often reflects the tribalism—ignorance—of the times. We’ve come way beyond that in our society, except perhaps some of our poor brothers and sisters in places like Mexico and Bolivia.
If we call ourselves Christians—that usually means followers of Jesus of Nazareth known as the Christ—we need to show the tolerance and acceptance that he showed in deed and word. Richard Penner, Calgary
Kudos for Canadian Mennonite
Thanks for the Sept. 16 editorial, “A magazine is born.” Brings back many memories!
I enjoy every issue. You are doing a remarkable job. Keep it up! Look forward to coming issues. Ted Friesen, Altona, Man.
Ministry must never be practised alone
Re: “Healing sexual abuse,” Sept. 2, page 2. I like the title of this editorial. It speaks of God’s unlimited grace so prevalent throughout the Scriptures.
True, it’s repulsive to learn about John Howard Yoder’s sexual sins. I had him as my theology professor at AMBS in Elkhart, Ind., in the early 1960s. It would be redundant to speak of his brilliance, fame and influence well beyond the Mennonite Anabaptist fold. How could he have committed such sexual evil?
I am reminded of the David and Bathsheba story. How repulsive was the treachery and strategized deceit against Uriah, a Hittite and David’s trusted officer, putting him in a place where the battle was most intense. Yes, he’s the same King David of whom Samuel the judge said following the rejection of King Saul, “The Lord has sought out a man after his own heart.”
David was severely chastised by Nathan for having murdered Uriah and stolen his wife. Psalm 141:5 gives us some guidance for how we, too, need to take steps to keep our lives pure, and that is to invite accountability to a trusted brother or sister. (I have asked for that, but for whatever reason there is reluctance to do it.) But we need it for our own protection from any multitude of sins and so grow into the likeness of Christ.
It is noteworthy to recognize the strategy of Jesus in sending out the disciples in teams of two. Paul practised this with his many co-workers: Timothy, Titus, Peter, Apollos, Barnabas, Lydia and more. This strategy was preceded already in the Old Testament with Moses and Aaron, and Joshua and Caleb, among others.
Henry Nouwen writes of learning this lesson in In the Name of Jesus, after having taught at Harvard with great acclaim before moving to Daybreak, the L’Arche community for disabled adults in Toronto. He refers to Jesus’ comments to Peter: “Feed my sheep.” In many ways he makes it clear that ministry is a communal and mutual experience.
In our individualistic society, it was a great temptation for Yoder among the theological elites to go it alone. May this be a lesson for us to learn, that we need to partner in our ministry as disciples in God’s economy. May we learn as individual disciples, including senior pastors and elders, the lessons of partnering in ministry. Small groups should be a safe place to practise this discipline. George H. Epp, Chilliwack B.C.
Bishops existed in early church, reader claims
Re: “Holy contradictions,” Sept. 16, page 4. Will Braun quotes without comment Garry Wills’s claim that “the office of bishop did not exist in the first century.” But I Timothy 3:1 refers to bishops (aka “overseers”) and Ignatius of Antioch uses the same Greek word to describe a single leader of a congregation responsible for church unity and correct celebration of the eucharist, in letters written before his martyrdom under Emperor Trajan, who reigned from 98-117 AD.
Furthermore, even if I Timothy was written in the second century, these “unbiblical” bishops were responsible for deciding that our Bible should include it, Matthew and the rest of the New Testament.
We often forget that the first complete list of the 27 books in our New Testament appears not in the time of Jesus or the apostles, but in a letter from Athanasius in 367 AD.
But if the early church was utterly wrong to develop the office of bishop, how can we trust their development of the Christian Bible over the subsequent 250 years?
Whether we need bishops today is another question, and these early church leaders were certainly fallible. But the argument that they unanimously corrupted an obvious biblical teaching is too strong: it undermines not just bishops, but the Bible itself. Michael Buttrey, Toronto
A timely reminder
Thank you for you sharing the article “Seven shared convictions,” Sept. 2, page 19. We need to be reminded about our convictions. Marlene Hiebert, Blumenort, Man.
Correction Mennonite Collegiate Institute, Gretna, Man., has been offering education grounded in Anabaptist Christian values since 1889. Incorrect information appeared in the “MCI enrolment up,” article, Sept. 30, page 33. Canadian Mennonite regrets the error.
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