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I admit to being a bit perturbed here about some issues popping up over a certain book that has now become a movie. Nobody has to go see it, endorse it, or approve of it. People are free to question the theology, in fact, I really approve of that kind of thing. Discernment is a work of truth and beauty.

I am also the first one to step in line and defend the Fatherhood of God, the Divine patriarchy, the complementary nature of the masculine and feminine. I think there is so much truth to be found there, so much healing, so much order suddenly coming to our chaos when we embrace that concept, and these things lead me to totally reject the notion of “Mother God.” However, I’m certainly not going to condemn anyone who reaches for the more feminine face of God, because I have no idea where they have walked, what God is speaking to them. Ultimately God exists outside of our concepts of gender anyway. He is above and beyond and greater than our own biology. We need to stop navel gazing God.

The very nature of the trinity should open up our minds to the idea that while I certainly believe in the masculine face of God, God is even bigger and beyond that rather limited human, biological ability to perceive Him. Notice I said “Him.” I truly do endorse the Fatherhood of God.

Jesus Christ, a man, but so much more, is our human face of God, given to us in part so we could fit the watermelon concept of God into our pea brains.

Jesus Christ who scandalously curled Himself up in a teen mom, was born in a stable, slept in manger, and spent His life in poverty and service to others, should not be limited to our human perceptions of what is proper and appropriate Godly-behavior.  We did not expect to find the King of Kings among the manure, sour milk rags, and humanity’s mess, and yet that’s exactly where we found Him.

God is full of surprises, scandalous, shocking, offensive even. The cross is offensive to far more than our delicate sensibilities about what Godly behavior is supposed to look like. It was a brutal, humiliating, painful, vulnerable, sacrifice, made on our behalf. It was not what one would expect of a King, but as He said, “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.”

A King who would call us friends, pretty shocking and out of the ordinary. What is man that you are mindful of him?

God Himself has many names in the bible, He portrays Himself in parables and allegories, He speaks of pulling us into the comfort of his wings, of warming us like baby chicks. God is not a chicken or an angel, nor is He really a sweet babe in a manger, but He gifted us with all those images to bring us into closer relationship with Him.

So, those of you who would be horrified, offended, outraged by the fact that God may appear to someone as a black woman, really need to re-examine that, take a hard look at what you are saying about yourself, your God, and the world around you. It’s an allegory, not a doctrinal decree.

There was a black woman long ago when I was a child. Her name was Louise and she added an “er” to every thing she said. She wore house slippers 24/7. No, she wasn’t God, but I saw the face of Christ in her in ways I never saw it in anyone else. He words, her face were all I had to hang onto for many years.

Every time I have wrestled with faith, every time I have struggled to believe that God is good, He has whispered to me, remember when I sent you Louise? Louise simply loved me as Christ loved her and it changed everything.

No theology, no doctrine, no book, no wagging little pharistical fingers, could ever do what Louise did. She simply put a human face on the love of Christ and showed me He was real. Those who think a black woman can’t do that or an Asian woman, or a woman at all, need to ask themselves some serious questions. All is not well with your soul.

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