My letter to Mark Driscoll- I have up until now stayed silent on the subject- but this Blog post made me see red!
The full interview between Justin Brierly and Mark and Grace Driscoll can be heard here.
Dear Mark Driscoll,
I am a woman and a minister, in fact I have pastoral charge for 5 different Chapels! We do not have huge membership numbers but then we are based in small rural communities in the UK. That does not make us weak!
In the larger of the 5 Chapels 55% of the membership is male! That is unusual in rural England, but it is also true, they are godly men who love and serve God in a variety of ways. They range in age from 15 to 92, bringing to our fellowship the vibrancy of youth and the wisdom of years. They are not weak, nor are they macho misogynists, they respect and value the women in the congregation and they respect and value one another. Our Leadership team is a 50-50 split of men and women, we work and pray together , and we are seeing positive new growth taking place. Families are coming to join us, men, women and children, and we are welcoming them...
One young man has joined us in recent months and to our delight he has joined in fully with the life and work of the church, he is willing to help at Messy Church, assisting children with craft work and helping in any way he can. He is a beautiful role model for the children, and I see Jesus reflected in him as he welcomes the children.
Issues about sex and needs for sexual counselling are rare! It seems that my congregations are not fixated on things like pornography and masturbation in the way that you are. If a man were to approach me with a problem of this kind then I would ask one of my male colleagues to talk with him in exactly the same way that they would ask for my help should a woman approach them with problems of that nature. Your seeming assertion that all men need help in this way makes me wonder about your picture of manhood and question what kind of man you thought that Jesus was.
I make that last statement because I do not see a macho Jesus reflected in the Gospels, I see a Jesus who treated all with dignity! He was not afraid to let his tears be seen (think about his tears of Jerusalem and over Lazarus!). Yes he was challenging and forthright, but that was always tempered with love and grace and with a gentleness that I do not hear from your writing, or your preaching and speaking.
Don't get me wrong, I don't disagree with everything you say, but when it comes to women, especially women in ministry you have a really large blind spot. The fruits of the ministry of many godly women that I know and work with are evident for all to see! My suggestion to you is that you return to the Gospels re read them and ask yourself whether your ministry is modeled on the ministry of Jesus, for I suspect you will find it is not.
Oh and by the way, my gifts do not lie in baking or flower arranging, I am a preacher and an evangelist, and the last time I gave an appeal a number of people responded, and yes some of them were men!
May God bless you in your life and work.
Sally
A photo taken at my ordination at Liverpool Cathedral- and yes I wore dangly earrings and kitten heels!
