Jesus and Gender

Humble Confidence--
Fearless Gentleness

These are qualities of character I would like to live more fully into. Humility, confidence, fearlessness and gentleness. Yet these each need to be tempered. Fearless-Confidence seems dangerous as does Humble-Gentleness. Though I sense these match-ups are more culturally in tune. Particularly along lines of gender formation. We want fearlessness and confidence in male leadership. We instinctively understand the importance of these qualities when worn by those in positions of power. And they seem unsuitable or dissonant when worn by women. A fearless, confident woman is still a bitch or a dyke or a ball-buster. Hmm...but just maybe there is one tiny piece of such mindless bigotry and critique which I can accept. No person whose dominant qualities are fearlessness and confidence appeals to me--regardless of sex. I think of dictators and hard-line rules (whether of countries or living rooms). The notion that so many find this sort of leadership acceptable (in males) is unacceptable!

Since we're just entering the waiting room again--another season of Advent--I will wait for these qualities of character to be born in me. But in balance. Fearlessness, Humility, Confidence, Gentleness. The incarnate Light--Jesus the person--wore these qualities well. Balanced. Neither hard-line ruler or meek pushover, this guy showed us a way beyond the binary.

Humble Confidence--

Fearless Gentleness

He probably wouldn't win our vote today, or make the best football coach for that matter. And though some of us feminists still wonder if anyone could have even recognized a woman-Savior, I'll let that angst rest for just this moment. For now I'll wait for that gentle little boy to be born--the one who fearlessly took on the great powers of his time and won. By losing.