One mission of CBMW is to help Christians think through secular and ecclesial trends on gender and sexuality. Through this work, we pore over a lot of different news reports and articles as we attempt to wade through the ceaseless flow of information on the web. In our weekly Gender and Sexuality News Roundups, we aim to distill some of the more pertinent information for you.
The articles below are from a wide variety of sectors and publications, organized generally into three categories. They are presented in aggregate, not necessarily endorsed.
If you see an article that you think should be featured in future CBMW News Roundups, you can send it to [email protected] with the subject “News Roundup.”
Methodist Official Says Intersectionality Is Important to Combating Abuse, Supporting #MeToo, The Christian Post (Michael Gryboski)
“I think understanding and training pastors from the perspective of race and gender and sexism, and we can also speak to ability, and sexuality, and classism because all of those things intersect and combine to continue to keep black women subordinated.”
Dear John (Piper), Patheos (Jesus Creed) (Ruth Tucker)
“The question is a very serious one that all complementarians should answer straight up—what about women’s roles in society and in the workplace?”
In the #MeToo era, theologians publish ‘Women’s Bible’, France 24 AFP
“As the #MeToo movement continues to expose sexual abuse across cultures and industries, some scholars of Christianity are clamouring for a reckoning with biblical interpretations they say have entrenched negative images of women.”
Human Flourishing Program Releases New Study on Divorce, Harvard University
“New Harvard study on religious service attendance and divorce reveals 50% decrease in divorce rates.”
He Did Not Lead on AIDS’: For Bush, Activists See a Mixed Legacy, The New York Times (Liam Stack)
“The death of George Bush on the eve of World AIDS Day was a painful reminder for some of the most lethal days of the epidemic, when people — predominantly gay and bisexual — were struck down by an illness that few in the White House seemed to lose sleep over.”
Kansas sees LGBT milestones, yet big change may come slowly, The News Tribune (John Hanna)
“Kansas will swear in its first two openly LGBT state lawmakers next month and the new Democratic governor promises to end a ban on discrimination over sexual orientation or gender identity in state hiring and employment decisions once she takes office.”
Pence criticized for not mentioning gay community in World AIDS Day speech, NBC News (Reynaldo Leanos, Jr.)
“While Pence did not mention the toll HIV and AIDS has taken on the LGBTQ community in the U.S., he mentioned several times the impact it has had on communities in Africa. He also mentioned Ryan White, a young boy from Pence’s home state, Indiana, who in 1984 contracted AIDS following a blood transfusion.”
Nepal Stalls on LGBT Rights Despite Early Strides, Voice of America
“Nepal was hailed a leader in LGBT rights when it became the first country in conservative South Asia to recognize a third gender and assure equality for its sexual minorities. But more than a decade later, that trailblazing reputation has lost its luster, with gay and transgender Nepalis still confronting obstacles to jobs and schools, and marriage equality a distant prospect.”
Gay couples in Brazil marrying sooner for fear of Bolsonaro bias, Al Día
“Many fear an escalation of violence as well as legal concerns after controversial comments made by the president – elect.”
Starbucks says it is finally going to block customers from watching porn in stores after years of pressure, Business Insider (Kate Taylor)
“Next year, the coffee giant plans to introduce a new tool meant to prevent customers from viewing pornography or other explicit content in stores. While watching pornography is banned at Starbucks locations, the chain does not have content blockers on its Wi-Fi service.”
We are experimenting on children’, Spiked (Bob Withers)
“Psychotherapist Bob Withers on the dangers of trans ideology.”
Statement on Claim of First Gene-Edited Babies by Chinese Researcher, National Institutes of Health (Francis Collins)
“Lest there be any doubt, and as we have stated previously, NIH does not support the use of gene-editing technologies in human embryos.”
How a future Trump Cabinet member gave a serial sex abuser the deal of a lifetime, Miami Herald (Julie K. Brown)
“A decade before #MeToo, a multimillionaire sex offender from Florida got the ultimate break.”
Feminist journalist banned from Twitter for writing ‘men aren’t women’ speaks out, The Christian Post (Brandon Showalter)
“The social media giant, she notes, seems to have a particular problem with women who dissent from the claims of transactivists and they unfairly hijack the dialogue about these issues.”
Grindr president Scott Chen backtracks after saying, ‘Marriage is between a man and a woman’, NBC News (Alexander Kacala)
“Scott Chen, president of popular gay dating app Grindr, has come under fire for comments posted to his personal Facebook page.”
Author Ryan Anderson Defends His Views on the Transgender Debate, EWTN (Ryan Anderson)
“Heritage Foundation’s Ryan Anderson defends his view people gender dysphoria is more about distress and mental health than anything physical.”
Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity (SOGI) Laws Are Not Fairness for All, The Heritage Foundation (Ryan Anderson)
“In the United States of America, people who identify as LGBT are free to live as they want. But SOGI laws, including FFA, are not about freedom—they are about coercion.”
How to Evangelize Friends Identifying as LGBTQ, The Gospel Coalition (Rosaria Butterfield)
“How do we evangelize our LGBTQ neighbors? We remind our neighbors that only the love of Christ is seamless. Not so for our spouses or partners.”
How to Make Your Church an Encouraging Place for Single Moms, The Gospel Coalition (Melissa LaCross)
“These women didn’t see me as a project to fix or a fool to rescue; they saw me as a friend and a fellow Christian. They knew the shame I carried, yet they never reduced me to a label.”
What I Wish I Had Known About Purity, desiring God (Adrien Segal)
“When we treasure God, and desire to honor him with our lives by submitting to his plan for our sexuality, we not only avoid the pain and suffering that follows extramarital sex; we also mine greater depths of joy with our spouse and do what we were created to do: glorify God.”
Faith Starves Sexual Sin, desiring God (John Piper)
“In this lab, John Piper exposes the root of lust and calls us to fight sexual sin with the one weapon that can deal it a death blow: faith.”
May She Be Beautiful and Strong, desiring God (Carolyn Mahaney)
“Not only is God calling us to faithfully mother our daughters according to his word, he is also inviting us to bring all our mothering concerns and desires to him.”
Lift Her Chin with Love, desiring God (Greg Morse)
“Brothers, your wife may never be the “most attractive” to lustful men in a KFC world of breasts and thighs. But they cannot see what we see. We behold her as God does: as a creature with imperishable beauty.”
No Man in Their Corner, desiring God (Greg Morse)
“God certainly is the Father of the fatherless (Psalm 68:5), but he cares for his children through present, mature saints in local churches. God promises to give every adopted son many fathers when they become a member of the Body of Christ (Mark 10:29–30).”
Christopher Yuan on holy sexuality and the gospel, ERLC (Andrew T. Walker)
“Dr. Christopher Yuan has taught the Bible at Moody Bible Institute for over 10 years and his speaking ministry on faith and sexuality has reached five continents.”
#MeToo reminds us that Christian ethics are timeless truths, ERLC (Andrew T. Walker) “
One of the great treasures of Christian ethics is their consistency and constancy. When morality has God behind it, it does not change; it just ends up being validated.”
HIV/AIDS and our Christian responsibility, ERLC (Supriya G. Reddy)
“Caring for this vulnerable population is not an endorsement of unbiblical sexual activity or the use of illicit substances; it’s a commandment of the gospel.”
What We Long for the Church to Know about Sexual Violence, Christianity Today (Tammy Schultz and Sally Schwer Canning)
“Abuse can skew more than just a survivor’s relationship with the church.”
I Told My Husband I Had Feelings for Another Man, Christianity Today (Judy Wu Dominick)
“Regardless of your ability to share these kinds of things with your spouse, it’s vital to identify and confide in trustworthy, spiritually mature people who can hear your honest confessions, walk with you, and pray for you and your spouse.”
Your Empty Nest is God’s Opportunity, Christianity Today (Victoria Riollano)
“Erikson believes that the central challenge of those in middle adulthood is finding something worth investing in, also known as generativity. Generativity involves intentionally leaving your mark for the next generation through volunteer work, a second career (like my mother’s), a hobby that benefits your community, or other acts of generosity.”
A divorce lawyer’s guide to staying together, Vox (Sean Illing)
“Over the course of our conversation, I asked Sexton why people end up in his office, what advice he has for people struggling in their marriages, why he calls Facebook an “infidelity-generating machine,” and why he’s still a romantic after all these years.”
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