Truly Us: Jesus, Gender, and How to Be Human... Together.

Mrs. Lewis Ball (Chapter 4 & Epilogue)

So where does all this leave us? And why does it matter? In this episode, I summarize the journey we've been on: from feminism, women's rights, and Judith Butler's performativity, to an Evangelical response in complementarianism, women preaching, and sexism in the Church, to how Genesis, the Gospels, and Paul all point to Jesus as the ultimate framework for how to understand gender. After that, I share a metaphor for holding tensions well. Thank you so much for listening to this project! I'd love to hear your thoughts and reflections. (Info below.) Also, I'm not promising a second season, but if I did do one, what would you like to hear? Diving deeper on a particular topic already explored? Or expanding into new ones? Interviewing certain people or covering certain types of stories? What do you feel like is missing in the podcasting landscape? You tell me! (Seriously, I'd love to know.) Thanks again. Cheers! *** This is my thesis for my Masters of Theology on Mission degree from Northern Seminary. I'm releasing this as a combination of an audiobook (I'm reading it to you) and a podcast (a rhythm of weekly episodes so we can thoughtfully engage along the way). If you have thoughtful reflections or want to go deeper, you can get the eBook (with footnotes!) at ⁠⁠brianmenzie.com⁠⁠ [https://www.brianmenzie.com/]. You can also ⁠⁠@ me on Threads⁠⁠ [https://www.threads.net/@brian_menzie]. Here's to the journey of Truly Us: Jesus, Gender, and How to be Human... Together. Music Credits (Licensed via Soundstripe) * "Newport Nights" by LNDO * "Place in the World" by Demure

But What About Paul? (Chapter 3c)

Anyone who has ever tried to wrestle with gender and the Bible has inevitably run into Paul. While he's not the only Biblical author to do this, he definitely seems to say some things that are clearly complementarian. ...Right? In this episode, we sharpen our tools for reading Paul (and other Biblical authors) well, putting individual verses and passages within the context of larger sections, entire letters, and even Paul's theology as revealed across his entire library. It gives us space and hope for being able to gain understanding when it seems like Scripture is contradictory. Here's to wrestling with God and his Word well. *** This is my thesis for my Masters of Theology on Mission degree from Northern Seminary. I'm releasing this as a combination of an audiobook (I'm reading it to you) and a podcast (a rhythm of weekly episodes so we can thoughtfully engage along the way). If you have thoughtful reflections or want to go deeper, you can get the eBook (with footnotes!) at ⁠brianmenzie.com⁠ [https://www.brianmenzie.com/]. You can also ⁠@ me on Threads⁠ [https://www.threads.net/@brian_menzie]. Here's to the journey of Truly Us: Jesus, Gender, and How to be Human... Together. Music Credits (Licensed via Soundstripe) * "Newport Nights" by LNDO * "Forgiveness" by MOMENTS * "Twilight's Embrace" by MOMENTS * "With Love" by Shimmer

The Perfect Human (Chapter 3b)

So... why is Jesus the perfect framework for truly understanding gender? Because, as the perfect human (THE image of God), he reminds us that HUMANS are spiritual, physical, relational, and contextual. When we start the conversation about gender with what it means to be human, all sorts of new possibilities open up beyond the dogmatic approaches of strict feminism and strict patriarchy. In this episode, I explore the meaning and implications of each of the four parts of this framework. *** This is my thesis for my Masters of Theology on Mission degree from Northern Seminary. I'm releasing this as a combination of an audiobook (I'm reading it to you) and a podcast (a rhythm of weekly episodes so we can thoughtfully engage along the way). If you have thoughtful reflections or want to go deeper, you can get the eBook (with footnotes!) at ⁠⁠brianmenzie.com⁠⁠ [https://www.brianmenzie.com/]. You can also ⁠⁠@ me on Threads⁠⁠ [https://www.threads.net/@brian_menzie]. Here's to the journey of Truly Us: Jesus, Gender, and How to be Human... Together. Music Credits (Licensed via Soundstripe) * "Newport Nights" by LNDO * "We Can Make it Together" by Joshua Spacht * "The Ides of March" by Alsever Lake * "Nile Dancer" by PALA * "Long Live" by Adrian Walther

Back to the Beginning: Genesis & Gender (Chapter 3a)

"As Genesis 1-3 go, so goes the whole biblical debate. One way or the other, all the additional biblical texts on manhood and womanhood must be interpreted consistently with these chapters." That's Raymond C. Ortlund, Jr. from Recovering Biblical Manhood and Womanhood, and while I disagree with his interpretation of these chapters, it goes to show that anyone who wants to work out gender from a biblical worldview has to go back to the beginning. Genesis 1-3 are so often plagued with patriarchal interpretations, it can be hard to recognize our own theological assumptions. Let's take a fresh look at three of the most important chapters of the Bible. *** This is my thesis for my Masters of Theology on Mission degree from Northern Seminary. I'm releasing this as both an audiobook (I'm reading it to you) and a podcast (a rhythm of weekly episodes so we can thoughtfully engage along the way). If you have thoughtful reflections or want to go deeper, you can get the eBook (with footnotes!) at ⁠brianmenzie.com⁠ [https://www.brianmenzie.com/]. You can also ⁠@ me on Threads⁠ [https://www.threads.net/@brian_menzie]. Here's to the journey of Truly Us: Jesus, Gender, and How to be Human... Together. Music Credits (Licensed via Soundstripe) * "Newport Nights" by LNDO * "Sepulveda" by Musical Daydream * "Meltdown" by Shane Becker * "Carousel Lights" by Chelsea McGough

From Rotten Roots to Rotten Fruits (Chapter 2b)

Why has the complementarian movement fallen short? Heresy, internal contradictions, and toxic church cultures have all tainted this perspective. Of course, there are plenty of people who believe in male-only ordination, male-only eldership, or male-headship in the home without falling into these traps; however, this movement has been so pervasive in the evangelical church that all of us likely carry embedded theology from this perspective. As such, it's worth outlining a few challenges before we move on to reconstructing gender in the image of Jesus. *** This is my thesis for my Masters of Theology on Mission degree from Northern Seminary. I'm releasing this as both an audiobook (I'm reading it to you) and a podcast (a rhythm of weekly episodes so we can thoughtfully engage along the way). If you have thoughtful reflections or want to go deeper, you can get the eBook (with footnotes!) at brianmenzie.com [https://www.brianmenzie.com/]. You can also @ me on Threads [https://www.threads.net/@brian_menzie].Here's to the journey of Truly Us: Jesus, Gender, and How to be Human... Together. Music Credits (Licensed via Soundstripe) "Newport Nights" by LNDO "Friends" by Demure "Sleepy Human" by Midnight Daydream