The debate over
has come to the forefront of public discourse in recent years. With more and more people realising the dangers of gender stereotyping, and campaigning for things such as gender neutral bathrooms as well as increased flexibility on gender norms when it comes to raising children, it's safe to say that we have at least become more aware of the complexities of what it means to be "male" or "female". However, some still cling to traditional conceptions of what it entails to be a man or woman; believing that pink is for girls, blue is for boys. Moreover, plenty of people still believe that women should reside in the domestic sphere, whereas men are responsible for going out into the world, and providing for their family.
The Church of Sweden, nonetheless, is committed to turning some of these customs on their heads and has announced that it will start using gender-neutral terms to refer to god.
The Swedish National Evangelical Lutheran Church announced the move in conjunction with other updates of a 31-year-old handbook, which documented rules on language and hymns, among other things.
The clergy is encouraged to refrain from using the terms "Lord" and "He", and to instead refer to God simply as "God", as it is not gender specific.
The change, which is sure to be a controversial move for many church-goers has been made so that the church stays in line with how contemporary society is moving. It's due to come into effect on the 20th of May, next year.
The Chaplain of Lund Cathedral, Lena Sjostrand, talked to PBS News Hour about the change. He said:
"We have a consciousness about gender questions, which is stronger in our time than it has been before. And, of course, this has had an impact on theology and on church life and pastoral reflection. And I think that is — we should have that. I don’t think that God is a big mother or a father sitting up in the sky. I don’t think that makes sense. God is something much bigger than this."
This radical move will alter the way over six million registered churchgoers practice their faith, and as such, it was not a decision that was taken lightly. It was made after an eight-day meeting, which was attended by 251 members of the church's decision-making body.
And Archbishop Jackelen has been vocal in his conviction that the church is "not giving up on tradition". He asserted:
"In the tradition, there are all these elements already present. Like Julian of Norwich in the 14th century said, ‘as sure as God is our father, God is our mother’. So, I mean, this is not something that’s newly invented. It’s part of our tradition. God is beyond our human categories of gender. It’s actually already in the Prophet Isaiah in the 11 Chapter.
God says, ‘I am God’ and not human or a man. God is beyond that, and we need help to remind us of that, because due to the restrictions of our brains, we tend to think of God in very human categories. We are not worshipping political correctness. We are worshipping God, the creator of the universe."
The change means that several key expressions will be changed. For example, "in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit" will be altered to "In God the Trinity’s name".
And although priests will not be forced to embrace the changes, the church strongly encourages them to do so.
