God’s Gender Confusion: Some Polymorphously Perverse Pastoral Theology

Abstract

Many Christians today are unaware of the historical debates concerning God’s body. For this reason, I believe that there is a pastoral payoff, especially for men, in reminding ourselves about such questions. By talking about God’s own gender confusion, it is my intention to offer support to men who actually are confused about their gender, while, at the same time, it is also my intention to confuse other men who might be a little too certain and a little too rigid about their own gender, gender roles, and sexuality. My argument goes something like this: God is gender confused and has made some rather poor decisions in the midst of this confusion, but, if, however, God were able to accept a wider range of masculinities and sexualities, especially in himself, God would be much better off—as also would contemporary American Christian men. Put another way, if contemporary American Christian men who relate to the Bible were to become aware of the problems of gender and sexuality in the Bible, particularly regarding God’s body, perhaps this would give them permission to ask questions about their own bodies, genders, and sexualities. And such questions are especially needed as churches begin to face new questions regarding gender, such as what to think about transgendered pastors like the Reverend Drew Phoenix, as well as and what to think about the fate of diagnosing gender in the forthcoming Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM – V), which has medical and financial—and, therefore, pastoral—implications.