Bonnie Nicholas

Thank you for your thoughtful words and for your encouraging affirmation Jennifer. It's not easy to go against the grain, to break the culture of silence and speak up. Yet I believe, as it seems you also do, that there is great value in the telling of these stories, and much to be learned in the hearing. So, thank YOU so much  for listening and responding to the recording.

I appreciated what you said that, "Shifting the shame away from the survivor is critical and validating when the unspeakable is spoken is so important." Yes, I agree. May our congregations, not only the CRC but all who claim the name of our Lord, Jesus, acknowledge the unspeakable that happens among us, and validate the stories of those who have experienced it. It's time to end the silence. Blessings to you in your own journey; may you have good companionship along the way.

This comment is off-topic, please read the original article that was posted.

This comment is off-topic, please read the original article that was posted.

The Trump comments brought this issue to light, again, making this article timely. As we've said, the issue goes far beyond this election, and this country. I'd say it goes back to Genesis 3 - see v. 16 when God says to the woman, "your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you." That's not God's original plan, only a sad descriptor of fallen humanity. Thank goodness we've been redeemed in Christ, able to be restored to God's original intention, men and women as partners in the mandate to steward creation, men an women as joint heirs in Christ and members of his One Body...  There is no place in Christian community for devaluing and denigrating women; and yet it happens, even in our congregations. Other articles have been posted here on the Safe Church Network focusing on this topic; and they've been posted completely apart from this election moment in time. Please see: 

Teaching Boys to Respect Girls: Why it Matters

Where is the Church

What Would Jesus Do?

Hoping for Change

Football, Gender, Rape Culture and the Glory of God

And there are many, many more. All of these articles speak to the topic at hand. Trump only gives us a timely reason to talk about it yet again; and shows us the need to continue our efforts.

The topic is women, how they are degraded and devalued in our culture. So many women are hurting in our congregations and in our communities because of unjust patriarchal systems that have been in place for so long. I encourage you to listen to their stories!

And if you must be political, then let's discuss what can be done to change this culture. Perhaps we can begin with equal pay for equal work  (As a Senator, Clinton championed the Paycheck Fairness Act and cosponsored the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act in an effort to achieve equal pay and help close the wage gap)

What about acknowledging that this is a real problem (As Secretary of State, Clinton created the first ever Ambassador-at-Large for global women’s issues, which has become a permanent position. She also helped launch the first U.S. strategy to prevent and respond to gender-based violence globally.)

Where women thrive, societies thrive. There is a lot of evidence to back that up. Yes, it's a political issue, but it's it's so much more. It's also a kingdom of God issue.

The topic is how women are disparaged and devalued in our culture; one evidence of that is certainly that they are not equally compensated for their work. Another evidence is the way that they are treated, and also the way people talk about them. Women are not treated the same, or given the same value and respect as men - That's a problem. 

As I pointed out in a previous post - we have talked about this a lot! For a long time, unrelated to the U.S. election. 

Hi Joe,

It doesn't sound to me as if you've heard the message that we were trying to convey. Perhaps after the election is over, we can engage in reasonable conversation around some of these important issues, including a sanctity of life ethic that extends beyond the womb. But that's a different topic.

Thank you Nancy for your encouraging words.