The Church of England will begin exploring the possibility of using gender-neutral terminology to refer to God, officials for the religious institution said Wednesday.
"Christians have recognized since ancient times that God is neither male nor female," a church spokesperson said in a statement to Reuters, while also acknowledging that "the variety of ways of addressing and describing God found in scripture has not always been reflected in our worship."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Any official charges would mark a significant departure from prior teachings, The Washington Post notes, and "there is no consensus so far on the best language to use." Additionally, the spokesperson said there were "absolutely no plans to abolish or substantially revise" current church services, something that could not be done without "extensive legislation."
The church's statement came in response to remarks by Rev. Dr. Michael Ipgrave, the vice-chair of the new commission, who said the Church of England had been "exploring the use of gendered language in relation to God for several years."
"After some dialogue between the two commissions in this area, a new joint project on gendered language will begin this spring," Ipgrave said, adding that "changing the wording and number of authorized forms of absolution would require a full synodical process for approval."
The commission's creation follows the recent news that the Church of England would begin blessing same-sex marriages, though would controversially still not allow same-sex couples to marry in their churches.
-
August 23 editorial cartoonsCartoons Saturday's political cartoons include deficit dimness, steamroller-in-chief, and more
-
5 museum-grade cartoons about Trump's Smithsonian purgeCartoons Artists take on institutional rebranding, exhibit interpretation, and more
-
Settling the West Bank: a death knell for a Palestine state?In the Spotlight The reality on the ground is that the annexation of the West Bank is all but a done deal
-
Southern Baptists endorse gay marriage banSpeed Read The largest US Protestant denomination voted to ban same-sex marriage and pornography at their national meeting
-
Prevost elected first US pope, becomes Leo XIVspeed read Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost is a Chicago native who spent decades living in Peru
-
Pope Francis dies at 88Speed Read 'How much contempt is stirred up at times toward the vulnerable, the marginalized and migrants,' Pope Francis wrote in his final living message
-
Pope returns to Vatican after long hospital staySpeed Read Pope Francis entered the hospital on Feb. 14 and battled double pneumonia
-
Texas megachurch founder charged with sex crimesSpeed Read Robert Morris, former spiritual adviser to President Donald Trump, is accused of sexually abusing a child
-
Pope Francis suffers setback with respiratory episodesSpeed Read The 88-year-old pope continues to battle pneumonia
-
US Christianity's long decline has halted, Pew findsSpeed Read 62% of Americans call themselves Christian, a population that has been 'relatively stable' for the past five years
-
Pope Francis hospitalized with 'complex' illnessSpeed Read The Vatican says their leader has a respiratory infection, raising new concerns about his health
