He or She? Why is God 'Male'?

Update, 5/6/2012:

Recently I have done more reading and more praying on this issue, and I have come to a new understanding; God is both male and female. Because God created all things in His image, including gender, God is both male and female, as both genders are images of God.  Furthermore, because male is no greater than female, and female is no greater than male, God is equally male and female. I believe in  English, the Christian God is referred to as male because the Old Testament Jews viewed Him as their King, and so addressed Him as 'Male'. The below theories are still entertaining. Interesting how so much thought can go into something, and yet you can still change your mind. I will continue to call God He, because He is my Father. I have not completely reconciled this. Guidance and ideas are much welcome.

Published 4/3/2012::

Recently, I began thinking more seriously about why god is 'He' rather than 'She', and if it really matters. Indeed, in my very first post I originally wrote He/She everywhere I called God He. My husband quickly sat me down to talk to me, to tell me that God indeed refers to himself as He, therefore he is not a she but a he. OK, I was intimidated and believed that God is "He", but I was not entirely convinced on his logic. Faith I told myself, have faith. SO I quickly changed all my posts to 'He' and erased any evidence of the S/He's, so as not to be embarrassed in front of all of my loyal die-hard christian  readers (there are so many..) and of course, my husband. Then I prayed for understanding.

Now I am convinced, God is 'He'. The following are some of my realizations.  Warning, it gets philosophical. My reasoning may not be sound, but it has convinced me.

In a nutshell, I believe God is 'He' because

1. The bible says so, he is Father.

2. Gender is different than sex, I do not believe God has a sex, but I do believe his gender traits are male, not female, thus he is He. (I will address the creation aspect, the "mother nature'' nature of God as I talk about this).

3. Out of male, came female. The rib of Adam can be metaphorically seen as the X Chromosome (this kind of has to do with point 2, and is by far the most philosophical part of my discussion as well as the biggest stretch).

1. The bible says so, he is Father.

So first, God is male because the Bible says so. He describes himself as male and tells us to call him Abba, Father. Fathers are male, so God is male. Simple enough.

Unfortunately, I am not always convinced by things in this way (a huge shortcoming of my faith by the way), so I also looked to some other arguments.

2. Gender is different than sex, I do not believe God has a sex, but I do believe his gender traits are male, not female, thus he is He.

I do not believe God is male by sex, but by gender. I believe sex is most likely designed for reproduction, and God has no need for sex because he creates simply by speaking. So I don't think god is male in that he has male genitalia. But, I do think he is male by gender. What do I mean? Well, I recently read Perelandra, by C.S. Lewis, in this book he explains gender as follows;

"Our ancestors did not make mountains masculine because they projected male characteristics onto them. The process is the reverse. Gender is a reality, a more fundamental reality, than sex. Sex is, in fact, merely the adaptation to organic life of a fundamental polarity which divides all created beings. Female sex is simply one of the things that have female gender; there are many others. Masculine and feminine meet us on planes of reality where male and female would simply be meaningless. Masculine is not attenuated male, nor feminine attenuated female. On the contrary, the male and female of organic creatures are rather faint and blurred reflections of masculine and feminine." <C.S. Lewis, Perelandra, (New York: MacMillan 1965),  200.>.

In this explanation, the male and female sex characteristics are an expression or "reflection" of male and female gender. Socrates explained similar phenomenon in his theory of forms, which I won't go into here. Gender is greater than sex, it’s the traits of male-ness or female-ness.

In my understanding, one of the most  female traits include nourishing. Two traits that are male include providing and protecting. WOAH woah wait a minute, gender role bias!! Yes, yes but I am not saying men or women need to act masculine or feminine, just that these are traits of the gender which surpass sex. Don't get the two confused.

Why are mountains male? They protect. Why is the earth female? It nourishes.


God provides (both creation and the mechanisms for creation to continue) and protects his creation. His creation (mother nature) nourishes that which he provides for.  Male protects, female nourishes. I will continue below.

3. Out of male, came female. The rib of Adam can be metaphorically seen as the X Chromosome

I started thinking about sex, the fun kind, how the male provides the sperm, which then connects to the egg and then life begins. A woman does not create life. The woman nourishes the life created in her womb until it is birthed into a newborn baby. It is the uniting of male and female, with the miracle of God's breath, that creates life. After birth, a woman continues to nourish the life by breast-feeding. This process, I believe, is one of the ultimate expressions of gender. The male provides the catalyst for life, the female nourishes it. In the same way, God created the world. He was the catalyst for life, the provider. Mother nature (the earth which God created) is what nourishes the life, by the will of God. Since god (male) created life and mother nature, male must have come before female, or out of male must have come female. Can this be argued? I think so.

It’s kind of like the chicken or the egg question. But, the Bible teaches that out of Adam, came Eve. God took one of Adam’s ribs, and with his breath created Eve. Then my brain got all biological on me, could science, indeed evolution even, support this? I think so.

Warning, this is purely theoretical and mostly metaphorical, and way way over simplified. But think about male and female sex, represented in genetics as two X chromosomes (XX female), or an X and a Y chromosome (XY male). Female gametes (egg) are always (in normal conditions) filled with one X chromosome, male gametes (sperm) can contain one X or one Y chromosome. The combination of the female X with either an  X sperm or Y sperm, determines the sex of the offspring (XX female, XY male). This is why males are 'credited' with 'determining' the sex of babies (obviously they don't choose the sex consciously though).  So which came first, male or female? 


I started thinking that maybe the X chromosome was the metaphorical equivilant of Adams rib. I think because male has X and Y, it had to come first. It’s as if an X from XY was permanently ‘donated’ to create female. You see, you can get X from male (XY), but you cannot get Y from female (XY), female XX has no Y. So, therefore, XY had to come first, because otherwise there is no other way to get Y. If XX came first, XY would not be possible, but XX is possible from XY. I know this is confusing, and a big stretch. But think about it. Where did Y come from if female existed first? ((NOTE::In no way am I suggesting that a male X and another male X would create a woman, this is preposterous. Obviously, much more than just an x and a y chromosome is needed to truly create life. Indeed, God need not only the rib, but also to provide the breath and design of woman. He took the rib (or maybe the X chromosome) from Adam (male) and 'breathed' life into it to create female.)))


Yes, God took the 'rib' of Adam (male), breathed life into it and created Eve (female). Maybe the rib is the X chromosome. Maybe god took the X chromosome from male, Adam, and breathed life into it to create female (XX) Eve.

In this way, I see some vague glimmer of some possible theory (albeit very overly-simplified in it’s current form) of a biological explanation of the gender of God. I think that it shows that it’s possible to get the female sex from male ‘parts’ (XY), but not male parts from ‘female parts’ (XX). If sex is a reflection of gender, then the mechanism of female sex being derived from the male sex migh represent a possibility for female gender to be an extension of male gender. If female is more likely to be derived from male, rather than male from female, if female came out of male, and if everything came from God, then I think it follows that God is more male, or rather male-ness is more like God in that it existed first.

However, this doesn’t mean that men are more God-like than women, that would be getting sex mixed up with gender. They are simply reflections of one another, and this is simply a fool’s theory. But maybe the rib is symbolic of the X chromosome. Man, created in God’s image, is therefore a reflection of God, just like sex is a reflection of gender. It could be possible that something like this exists or did exist. Indeed, think of how God provides and protects the Hebrews in the Old Testament. Think of how God is provider, Abba Father, and how his creation, an extension of himself – mother earth – nourishes the life that God provides for and protects.  Like a biological father, God gives life and protects His children, and Mother Nature nourishes the life – providing the conditions and nutrients to Gods children, much like a pregnant and nursing mother does for her own offspring. Indeed, a mother does not ‘create’ life, God creates life. A mother simply provides a safe environment (a womb) and nutrition for the life to grow.  A father provides the seed, which starts life growing. He then is responsible for protecting that life as it grows. Much like God. Mother earth would have no life to provide for, if Father God did not breathe life, and design the mechanisms for life to continue. They are all extensions of himself, designed by Him, for life. Much like Eve was created out of Adam, so was the world and universe created out of God. Think of Adam as the human representation of the epitome of male-ness, and eve of female-ness. Indeed, they are two separate creations, but from the same origin. Something like Yin-Yang, from Yin comes Yang, from Yang comes Yin. Two separate, but both one. Female from Male, different but both female and male are Adam, both are created by God. If the rib of Adam was used to create Eve, if the X chromosome was used to create female, everything female then must have ultimately have it's origin in Male, and Male it's origin in God; the same way Eve has her origin in Adam, and Adam in God. Mother nature and the entire universe, can be thought of as the 'Eve' of God. 


Food for thought.

"I like your Jesus. I don't like your Christians. Your christians are so unlike your Jesus."

-Gandhi

I couldn't have said it better myself. I love Jesus, I want to live like him, to follow after him. For the longest time I resented christianity and christians, because they are so un-like Christ. I wouldn't call myself a christian for years because of this discrepancy. But now, I've re-claimed my Christianity. I will no longer let others who claim to be Christian, define for me what a christian is, or what christians believe.
I don't believe the same thing a lot of christians today believe, especially here in the great US of A. But I have learned there are others out there who see things the way I see them. They give me hope.

So, what is a christian? To me, a christian is someone who tries to live like Jesus, follow in his example  and live the way he taught people to live.

How did Jesus live? In poverty, serving others and loving others, regardless of who they were or what they had done. He was homeless, giving, loving and non-judgmental.

I think consumerism is counter-christian.
I think it is wrong to go to war, Christ taught non-violence.
I think it's wrong to have more than you need, of anything, when others have none or not enough. Christianity teaches this.
I think it's wrong to be attached to material goods, whatever they are. Jesus taught this.
I think it is wrong to be wasteful. Christianity teaches this.
I think it is wrong to be judgmental, especially to tell others they are sinful. Christianity teaches to love, and not to judge or condemn.
I think the most important way to share your faith is not through preaching and condemnation, but by living by example. Christ taught this.
I believe there are evil forces out there, trying to get us to turn away from what God wants for us, pushing us to be self-serving, selfish and hoarders. These forces are both in and around us, and it is against these forces we are to fight, to be loving, selfless and giving  of all things, to all people. I believe most suffering comes from these forces, or us following these instead of God.
I believe all people are equal, even the 'bad' ones.
I believe in the power of forgiveness.
I don't believe Christ chooses you, you choose Him. There are no 'special' chosen ones, we are all children of God.

Yes, I believe these things. The bible, teaches these, Christ teaches these. The more I read the bible, the more I see how much I fail, and realize I can't blame 'the christians' because it's really, really really hard  to be a christian. I fail. I fail miserably.

I hoard. I judge. I hold grudges. I am attached. I am selfish and greedy. I don't forgive. I am wasteful. the list of failures goes on.

But I am working on improving. Every day is a struggle. To love others, to see them as equal, or even better than me, to give without expectation of receiving, to consume less, to live simply so others can simply live. To live by example rather than preaching. Not to boast. Not to consume things that have the price of human blood on them. To treat others fairly.

To be honest, I am now ashamed to call myself a christian because I so badly fail. But I keep the name because I believe in living like Christ. I must keep trying. Christ knows I will fail every day, but He forgives me. To me, this says that we should never give up trying, especially not because we fail. We must keep working on it.

In this world, I think the real followers of Christ, the real Christians, the ones who actually do what Christ told us to do, are on the streets. They are probably living in poverty. They are definitely helping those who need it most. They are fighting along side them, they are serving others. They are on the battlefront of injustice, telling people who feel forgotten that they are not, that they are loved. They are reliant on God for everything, from food to shelter to safety. They are warriors. They do not spend money lightly or needlessly. They do not own expensive things for they know their money can be, should be, spent on the needs of others not their own luxuries. They consume only what they need and rely on their community. They are peaceful. The take in and love everyone, regardless of their sexual orientation, race, gender, ability and health. They love God above and before all else.

I one day hope to be that kind of Christian. Today I fail, but I am working on it.

The Book of Numbers

Wow, so it has been a little while since I have written a post.

No, it's not because I have been too busy. I haven't been that busy. Since December my life has really, and enjoyably, slowed down.

It's not because I have forgotten, or given up on this project. I think about it often.

It's because I have been reading the book of Numbers.

Well, if reading is what you want to call it. It was more like zoning out while following the lines of words on the pages. You know, that trance state you get into, then you realize after completing the page that you have no idea what you just read? It was like that.

It was grudgingly detailed, full of laws and rules, and do this and don't do that. Numbers of people in the land, names and numbers of tribes. How to sacrifice, how to punish... Calendars, and names, moving from here to there. Israelites complaining, not following Gods commandments, God reprimanding them and putting down more laws. plagues, death. lots of old testament stuff.

One interesting thing that did happen, was that Moses didn't pass on a message to the Isrealites correctly, and God reprimanded him by telling him he would not be able to go to the land that God had promised, the land that moses is leading the people to.

Another interesting concept in this book were the cities of refuge, although I don't have any interesting comments to make.

There were a few other events that did happen, but to be honest, I could hardly tell you what. I just tried to get through it. I bet a lot of it was pretty significant, and important. I am sorry I don't have much more to say than that.

Tyler did point out to me that this book was written before the Israelites had asked for a king, so God was their king and so created all of the laws of the land. That made a lot of sense to me, and made me think how important this book must really be if it is how God would govern, or did govern.

But I have finally completed it. I don't remember much of it. I spent most of the time 'rea

Christmas - Looking for the light

This year I was really weighed down with frustration surrounding how the media and our culture corrupt the sacred spirit of Christmas.  Friends, if you feel this way too, please read on. Hope found me this year. I want to share it with you.

The celebration of Jesus' birth is one of the most important holidays for us Christians. Unfortunately, it has also been tainted to reflect the epitome of our counter-christian, consumer culture - the ultimate defiance of what Christianity really stands for. The irony of this weighs heavy on my heart. It inevitably, always dampens my spirit around Christmas time. I struggle to fight and ignore the greed and gluttony that this season brings, and try with great effort to enjoy a peaceful christmas spirit, quality time with family and friends, and remembrance of the miracle of Jesus' birth and life.

But, as I sat listening to the pastor preach at the candlelight service on Christmas Eve, I was reminded not to look at the darkness - but to look at the light.

"As the first Christians came to see Jesus in the manger - the 3 wise-men, the shepherds, the angels - they did not come with heavy hearts to criticize the darkness that surrounded and consumed the world. They came to rejoice and behold the tiny but great light that had entered the world."

The light. A baby. A helpless newborn baby. A small, delicate seedling. A divine light sprouting. The smallest, most helpless form. Yet, this small light would grow, and bring unending light into the world. A light that would grow so strong that it would still shine bright over 2,000 years later. And is still growing.

Is there darkness in this world? Yes.
Is there terror and horror, greed and selfishness, injustice and sorrow? Yes, of course.
Is it overwhelming? Yes.

But, there is also light.

Sometimes, I am not sure which is more common in this world - the light or the darkness. Usually I feel that there is more darkness, because I focus on it. I see it, I criticize it, I despise it, and I try to fight it. But this only wears me down. It only distracts me from the good, and in doing so makes me spend less energy doing good, and fighting for good. Ultimately, subtracting from the energy going to the good in this world.

 There is also light. And light is more powerful than darkness. 

I realize that focusing on what I see wrong with the world, our culture, the people here does no good. It is painful though, to witness so many things deteriorating what could be a better world, destroying potential for goodness and love. I cannot forget that focusing on these things brings me closer not to light but to the darkness. Such thoughts take away from the light that does exist in me, and ultimately the world. It is all too easy to focus on the darkness and feel as if there is no hope- and that only leads me closer to falling, and being consumed by the greed, evil and hate in this world. One less hopeful, faithful soul to fight for good.

I chose instead to focus on the light, no matter how small. For everyone who turns from darkness and looks to light looks to God and glorifies His work. It is better to look for the light, shed light on the good, and to remind myself and others that there is still, some inch of hope, some ray of light. Then when darkness comes I can say that it is not all-powerful, for some good still exists- and if some exists it can grow. Just like that baby grew into a man - and into a divine God who to this day still pours His love out on me and so many others. If a light that small can grow as exponentially as it has, a light any size, can grow to be great. 

This is what Christmas taught me this year. I pray in the future that I rejoice and behold the light. Fight not against evil, but for good. Will you join me?

What a Christian really is

It's funny how you can 'think' you really know what something means for years, and then in one instant it can finally 'hit you' just what it really means. A realization.

I recently realized what it means that "Christ Saves". What it means to truly be a Christian.

I have always felt that it's not exactly about what Church you go to or what denomination you belong to. It's not exactly about whether or not you read the Bible or don't read the Bible. To some extent I have felt for a long time that it doesn't exactly have to do with whether or not you are a 'good' or 'bad' person either, because, the Bible and Christ say over and over that all it takes is belief in Christ, to truly be saved. We are all sinners- whether we are 'good' or 'bad' in this light then, is really irrelivant.

Going to Church and reading the Bible, calling yourself a Christian, doesn't make you a Christian. It's about something deeper, something more transformative.

Now I finally know that it's not, primarily, about any of these things.

I've heard so many times that it's about surrendering your will to Christ, and letting Him guide you. About submitting to Him.

And it is! I thought I got it, but now I think I get it in a whole new way!

A Christian, is led by Christ.

You see, when you truly accept Christ into your life as your savior, He is the one that saves you. You don't save yourself. Trying to be a good person, trying to please God of your own vilition - is all in vain. Christ does the work. When you truly, honestly and fully invite Him into your heart and life, He changes you from the inside out. You do none of the work. Trying to do it yourself just hinders Him further. When you honestly let Him lead you, He changes you into a loving, Christ-like person. You can't do it! Your job is to just let Him lead you. Your job is to LET GO and let Him lead.

A Christian, is led by Christ alone. 

I am not saying it isn't work to fight against everything inside of you that goes against what Christ is trying to do to change you. That's where it is work. Submission is work. The work isn't in trying to be Christ like, it's in letting go of your own desires. Letting go of self, so that Christ can truly lead you. It's letting go of the wheel, and letting Christ take it - without trying to still be a back-seat driver!

Once you do this, if you have truly let Christ drive you, you are automatically (but slowly) changed into a person that embodies Him. God changes your heart for you, if you allow Him to, and what follows is loving others unconditionally, being selfless, letting go of the desires of the world and being filled with Godly desires. A consequence of letting Christ into your life is that you become a good person, but being a good person doesn't mean that you have truly let Christ in your life. A consequence of letting Christ save you, is that His desires become your desires by default. Not by your own attempt to force them to be. You go to Church because Christ compells you to, not because you think you should. You read the Bible to learn more about how to surrender further to Christ, to know Him more intimately, because He compells you to, not out of obligation to the Church.

I am not saying that going to church and reading the bible out of obligation once in a while is a bad thing- indeed we are all going to find times when it seems like work.

What it comes down to is; is it you who is trying to lead your life and fill your desires with what you think God wants? Or are you letting Christ lead your life and letting Him fill your heart and desires with what He wants? Even if it goes against your own?

I have been very liberated by this thought. I realize I am no longer responsible for making the right or the wrong decision, instead I am responsible for letting Christ into my heart and letting Him lead. I know that if I truly do that, I won't be the one making the decisions. I will only be the one deciding to submit, so that the right decision is made.


Now, daily I remind myself to let go, to stop trying to control my life and my 'holiness' and to daily- surrender it to Christ. I will stop 'trying' to be a good Christian, and instead just be filled with you Christ, so that you can be through me Lord.


Lord, your will be done, not mine.

Amen.

The Ten Commandments - Lessons from Exodus

The Ten Commandments

Eventually the Moses calms down and stops releasing his rage on the Israelites. Then the Lord calls Moses back to the mountain to give him, once again, the ten commandments. These are the commandments, that if only we would abide by, would make the world a better, maybe even a perfect, place. 

1.   I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery; you shall have no other gods besides me.
2.  You shall not make for yourself an idol, whether in the form of anything that is in heaven above, or that is on the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, punishing children if those who reject me, but showing steadfast love to the thousandth generation of those who love me and keep my commandments.
3. You shall not make wrongful use of the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not acquit anyone who misuses his name. 
4. Remember the sabbath day and keep it holy. Six days a week you shall labor and do all your work. But the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God; you shall not do any work-you, your son or daughter, your male or female slave, your livestock, or the alien resident in your towns. For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea and all that is in them, but rested on the seventh day; therefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day and consecrated it.
5. Honor your father and your mother, so that your days may be long in the land that your Lord your God is giving you
6. You shall not kill
7. You shall not commit adultery
8. You shall not steal
9. You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor
10. You shall not covet your neighbor's house; you shall not covet your neighbor's wife; or male or female slave, or ox, or donkey, or anything that belongs to you neighbor. 

It's obvious God wants us to only worship and love Him, to bring our trials to Him alone, and to treat Him and others, with dignity and respect.

Can you remember to abide by them, or will you too (like me, and the Israelites), forget?

 Oh yes, the rest of the book is filled with ways that the Israelites can make sacrifices to give thanks to God. It's very detailed. Almost all of the traditions are ones we Christians have deviated away from, but I am guessing that later God teaches us new ways to honor Him. I know he denounces animal sacrifices. We will see about the rest.

Until then- give thanks through prayer and faith. Go up to your neck, be brave, God will always provide exactly what you need, when you need it.

Reminders why God shows His power - Lessons from Exodus

Reminders- Why God shows His power

Shortly after God calls Moses to the top of a mountain, where he spends 40 days and 40 nights and is given the ten commandments. But, while he is gone, the Israelites grow impatient, lose faith, create idols and begin worshipping them. When God finds out about this He grows so angry He wants to kill them all, but Moses pleads with him and God agrees not to. God shows mercy.

 Moses descends the mountains, sees the idol the Israelites are worshiping and is filled with rage. Moses throws the stones with the commandments God had given him and breaks them, and then releases his own rage on the Israelites. A lot of Israelites are killed, but many still survive. Although I am disturbed by the massacre, it is here that I finally begin to understand why God was so adamant about showing His power in these days. The Israelites were full of doubt, and eager to follow whichever 'god' they believed would provide for them. Unlike Moses, their faith wasn't in God alone, but in whatever any god could DO for them, and if they weren't getting what they wanted, they were quick to serve whomever or whatever they thought would get them what they searched for. What shallow faith.

And after all God had done from them! After all of the plagues, after the separation of the waters, after being provided abundant food and water (food literally rains from the sky in this book); all it took was 40 days of Moses' absence, for them to turn on God and worship an idol. Really? If the acts that God had done hadn't convinced them yet, what would? What could? God shows very human emotion here- so much frustration with the people who He has done so much for. What unfaithfulness! What doubt! Understandably, He is quite angry. Had they forgotten what God had done for them? Had they forgotten His power? Quite possibly - yes. Surprising? Maybe not. 

Don't we all do this? Aren't these the trials and tribulations we all fight?

Just like me, as long as God is providing I am content and happy and worship God easily. But, as soon as I feel He is no longer there, I begin doubting. I get angry, I turn to alternatives. Don't we all do this? Haven't we learned by now that God is greater than us, and can do anything? That He was here before we were ever born, and that He will continue to be here after we are gone? That He created us and everything we know and beyond? He is greater than I, and will never leave me. It is only ME that leaves Him.

But in a way, this is our condition - not just today but a condition of the Israelites as well.  A side-effect of the fall- we no longer completely and utterly trust in God- now we have knowledge, and we try to be gods ourselves.  But this is our fight, our fight of faith. NOT to give in to the temptation of denying that God will provide- this is the hallmark of superficial faith. Not to be steadfast in love and belief in God only while things are going well, like the Israelites- but to hang on through the trials and tribulations - like Moses. My prayer is to be more like Moses- steadfast in faith. Knowing that if God put me here to do something, He WILL provide everything I need exactly when I need it. There is no need to doubt or be scared. And if I feel He is not near, to pray harder, to hang on longer, to keep going up to my neck, so He can perform a miracle.