The internet and freedom for Christian women
Perhaps no tool has been used by God to set more Christian women free over the past decade than the internet. Consider the following.
1. The freedom to publish to a wide audience. In the past, women had limited opportunities to publish. The gatekeepers were publishing houses, magazine editors, and the like. If a woman wanted to write an article about women in the church, she had a very slim chance of getting it approved in any of the widely-read Christian magazines. Getting a book published is always a daunting task. The odds of getting a book about women in the church published? Slim to none unless you are someone with connections or a speaking ministry. And even then the ability to publish it will be far more dependent on whether it is seen as “marketable” instead of whether it adds value to the church.
We now have women (and men) who are able to set up a blog online and write. People are also able to publish ebooks that don’t require the financial resources of self-publishing. They are not constrained by the traditional gatekeeping in the Christian publishing world. This is especially important because this gatekeeping has traditionally been performed by complementarian men. Women are no longer shut out and shut up by those who would seek to silence them.
In addition, publishing online or in ebooks affords many more readers. Most traditionally published books go through one run of less than ten thousand copies. Even bloggers with an average following reach that many readers many times over in the course of a year or two. Even more importantly, the materials stay online indefinitely and are accessible at any moment through search engines. A book sits on a bookstore shelf and is less likely to be found.
2. The opportunity to hear solid teaching from a different viewpoint. Pretty much everything on Christian radio is from a patriarchal/hierarchtical/complementarian viewpoint. Much of Christian television programming is either traditional/conservative or an embarrassment to the church. Most Bible studies for women are complementarian in nature. There are very few opportunities to hear solid biblical teaching from a different view point.
Now we have gifted women (and men) who can do podcasts online, create You Tube videos, and otherwise offer media that provides a different perspective.
3. The opportunity to meet other searching people. Prior to the internet, there were very limited opportunities for people to meet others who might be asking the same questions and having the same troubles reconciling complementarian teachings with what they were experiencing or thinking about. Now they can search the internet and find a community of caring men and women who have begun to discern the same things.
People have the opportunity to be Bereans in a new kind of community. They can read, study and discuss with other people from literally around the world. They can use their God-given intellect to seek Truth.
4. Awareness of spiritual abuse is on the rise. It is staggering to consider how many Christian women of all ages are currently in abusive situations. Story after story continues to trickle out online. For every horrific story that is told online, there are probably hundreds that we don’t hear about. Whether it is an abusive marriage, an abusive church, or abusive patriarchal families, many of our sisters in Christ are suffering horribly. What is especially heartbreaking is the abuse often causes them to turn their backs completely on Christianity when they finally do break free from it. Thank God people are exposing the abuse going on. People are realizing it isn’t them with the problem as they’ve been told over and over again. It is about an abusive leader, an abusive church or an abusive spouse. Truth brings freedom.
5. The breaking of over-hyped stereotypes. People who embrace a view contrary to hard core complementarianism are usually portrayed by pastors and other teachers as angry feminists, Bible haters, power grabbers, and women who are unwilling to submit to male authority. With the internet, it has opened the eyes of many that this is an inaccurate stereotype. Instead of finding angry women who hate men, the internet shows Christian women who deeply love the Lord, believe the Bible, love their husbands and children, and eagerly desire to serve Christ with their gifts. These are not angry women looking for excuses. These are deeply committed Christians who feel compelled to follow Christ, even at the expense of being ostracized by other Christians who disagree with them.
6. The bullies cannot shut down those with whom they disagree. If you haven’t been around theological blogs much you might be surprised to know there are bullies. Yes, there are. Christian bully bloggers. If these men had their way, women would not blog at all unless it was recipes, decorating, and breastfeeding tips. Think I’m exaggerating? I’m not. There are numerous prominent bloggers who think it is wrong and downright dangerous for women to be blogging about theology, church issues, and the like. These women would have next to no voice in their churches if these men were in charge. However, these bullies are not in charge of the internet and they cannot silence women who have something valuable to say.
It is astonishing how the internet has given women a measure of freedom they never had before. Even my writing this post today is a tremendous gift to me that God has provided through the internet. In the past, a Roman woman could not even be present at the table if her husband had guests over. Women were seen as incapable of thinking well enough to become a doctor. Now women can study, discuss and learn freely. The freedom we have is absolutely mind-boggling compared to most women throughout history. The access to Bible study tools is astounding. The ability to sharpen one another is phenomenal.
I praise God for these gifts and eagerly look forward to how He will continue to work through the internet in the lives of the women He loves.
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