REVIEWS
37
MOUNTAINS MOVE
ACHIEVING SOCIAL COHESION IN A MULTICULTURAL SOCIETY
Steve Bell ( Paternoster Press , July 2021 ) 240pp , paperback , RRP £ 12.99
The Making of Biblical Womanhood
How the Subjugation of Women became Gospel Truth
Beth Allison Barr ( Brazos Press , April 2021 )) 245pp , paperback , RRP £ 14.99
Alan Rashleigh
One would reasonably expect the title and sub-title to reflect the contents of the book . However , in the book , the author takes a very narrow view by reflecting only on the ‘ clash ’ between Islam and Christianity , or more specifically the ultra-conservative versions thereof . It is difficult to understand the context in which the author has written his book .
There is very little acknowledgement of other religions , all of which help to form a multicultural society . However , once the reader is over this expectation , the way this book looks at various aspects of Christianity and Islam is quite novel and it does attempt to make the reader aware of the differing conciliatory and conflicting differences surrounding religion and culture .
The author uses the well-known story of a group of blind people , stationed at different parts of an elephant , that can only touch the bit in front of them to describe what it is ( the trunk – a snake , the tail – a rope ). The story vividly illustrates the difficulty of attempting to describe the whole , when we only have a small part before us , because we have differing views and experiences of religion to guide us .
By using the analogy of mountains , chapter titles describe different aspects of Islam and Christianity ( with a few references to other religions ). For example : Mount Imperial looks at colonisation and its impact on the thinking of adherents and Mount Strident looks at what sort of society we are becoming . Each chapter begins with a clear description of the aim it is attempting to achieve . Mount Mission – which may be particularly useful to preachers and leaders – deals with when we are less of a help and more of a hindrance , and battle over interactive styles . It looks at good and bad examples and how these styles can help rather than compete with one another . The styles examined are ‘ Conversation and Dialogue ’ – as people , and ‘ Apologetics and Confrontation ’ – as religion .
Another chapter all preachers and leaders should read is Mount Correct which considers the impact of weaponised political correctness ( PC ) on society , the church and other faith groups . It examines PC in detail : its use , its impact and the way in which it has changed views relating to sexuality .
Alan has been a Methodist local preacher for 48 years and is a retired ATC chaplain ; he is a VAT consultant specialising in charities and is a former Finance Director of LWPT and LWPHomes .
Jan Thompson
Dr Barr is a Medieval historian who grew up in a small-town Southern Baptist church in Texas , where evangelical views about women ’ s roles in the church are extreme . She sums it up as ‘ Men lead . Women follow . The Bible tells us so ’ ( p11 ). For many years , she held her tongue until she could keep silent no longer , with repercussions for her whole family . She wrote this book for her women students and for her evangelical friends in the church they had to leave .
The book is easy to read because there are interesting references throughout to Barr ’ s personal experiences , but it is also a scholarly analysis of her subject . She makes the case for women ’ s leadership roles throughout church history , with a particular emphasis on the medieval period , showing how church attitudes to women changed with the Protestant Reformation . She explains the difference between patriarchy ( where men are given all the power ) and complementarity ( where men and women are seen to have different but complementary roles ), and she considers the problems with each approach .
Most interesting for me was the chapter on the early church , entitled ‘ What if Biblical Womanhood doesn ’ t come from Paul ?’ With the help of biblical scholars , she takes a fresh look at the passages from Paul which are used to support the subjugation of women in the church ( 1 Corinthians 11 and 14 , Ephesians 5 , 1 Timothy 2 , Titus 2 , Colossians 3 ). She directs us to Romans 16 , which lists the numerous women who worked with Paul , pointing out how prejudice has affected some English translations of the text . She encourages us to read Paul in the light of his claim that ‘ in Christ … there is no longer male and female ’ ( Galatians 3.26-28 ). She concludes , ‘ We have ditched the freedom in Christ that Paul was trying so hard to give us ’ ( p63 ). This reference to Christ is important , because elsewhere in the book she argues that Jesus broke with convention in the gospels in his treatment of women .
The author makes an impassioned case in this book for one side of the argument , but the side that has so often been suppressed . I suggest it is essential reading for both men and women in churches where patriarchy holds sway . For others , it is always helpful to be on our guard against prejudice and to be aware of different ways of understanding the text , when preaching on relevant biblical passages .
Jan is a Church of England lay reader and part of the ministry team in a benefice of three rural parishes in Kent .