Well, well, well … I guess you learn something new everyday. 
According to the Church of England, God might be gender-neutral. The Church is considering reframing its text and teachings to include more inclusive language when speaking of our almighty father.
A Telegraph writeup this week suggested that God’s gender has been in debate “for decades” within the Church. The author suggested that male specific names and pronouns should “be scrapped in favour of either gender neutral or female alternatives.”
What in tarnation?
What happened to capital “He,” or “Our Father,” or “The Holy Father”? Last I checked, “he” and “father” indicate men.
Apparently, bishops in the UK are planning to launch a project “on gendered language.”
The Telegraph report said that “Liberal Christians,” love the idea of new, inclusive, gender-neutral terms for God. Supposedly they claimed, “theological misreading of God as exclusively male is a driver of much continuing discrimination and sexism against women.”
Someone queue Ariana Grande’s “God is a Woman.”
The move for a shift came after Rev Joanna Stobart asked Church leaders if there was a way to provide more “inclusive” language in the liturgy. All five of her parishioners must have demanded it.
Luckily, Rev. Dr. Ian Paul of the General Synod and the Archbishops' Council of the Church of England was not on board with any changes.
He said the following:
The Bible uses feminine imagery and metaphors of God, but primarily identifies God using masculine pronouns, names, and imagery. Male and female imagery is not interchangeable.
The fact that God is called ‘Father’ can’t be substituted by ‘Mother’ without changing meaning, nor can it be gender-neutralised to ‘Parent’ without loss of meaning. Fathers and mothers are not interchangeable but relate to their offspring in different ways.
This announcement comes at a groundbreaking time with the Church of England as the church officials prepare to vote on same-sex couple policies. Last month, the C of E consented to bless same-sex civil unions, but to the surprise of many, it reiterated that it would not perform same-sex marriages.
For now. The fact that it's even entertaining the notion of rewriting the liturgy and scripture to accommodate feminists doesn't give confidence that traditionalists will triumph long-term.
The question raises, what next? Is mother Mary going to be “parent” Mary? “Holy Mary, Parent of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen.”
Well, one thing is straight, prayer is what these social justice warriors need. That and maybe a slap into reality.
