Tag: Aimee Byrd

The Sexual Reformation: Restoring the Dignity and Personhood of Man and Woman by Aimee Byrd: There’s a Lot to Commend, but Maybe not Enough

DETAILS:
Publisher: Zondervan
Publication Date: March 7, 2022
Format: Paperback
Length: 207 pg.
Read Date: January 1-15, 2023

The Back of the Book

Protestants have confessed that the church is always reforming.

But has this been the case when it comes to sexuality?

What if, in trying to be faithful to the beauty of God’s design for man and woman, the church has instead latched onto a pagan concept of our nature and missed the theological meaning of our sexes? We’ve inadvertently robbed both men and women of the dignity of personhood as created in the image of God. Then we miss the beautiful message that our bodies, and our whole selves as men and women, tell: the story of the great joy in which the Son received the gift of his bride, the church.

Through an exploration of the Song of Songs, Aimee Byrd examines what this often-ignored book can teach us about Christ, his church, man, and woman. The Church is ripe for a sexual reformation, and recovering a good theological footing is imperative to it. Byrd invites you to enter into the Song’s treasures as its lyrics reveal the point of it all—not a list of roles and hierarchy, but a love song.

The Song

Like many (most?) contemporary believers, I struggle with The Song of Songs. A lot of the allegorical interpretations seem a little off to me, but I can’t rule them out. I definitely can’t buy the idea that it’s simply an erotic poem and/or erotic manual smack in the middle of the Old Testament.

Byrd draws on both older allegorical interpretations and more recent versions—shaped by the insights of Biblical Theology to come up with her observations on the Song. I found this material fascinating and wanted much more of it. I really should grab some of the works she footnoted and study them.

Call to Reformation

Along with—intermixed with—the Song material is Byrd’s continuing work on re-evaluating the way that men and women relate to themselves in the Protestant Church—particularly the ways that groups like the Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood or the Council on Biblical Equality call for. She critiques both poles of these disputed ideas (although she seems to have more to say about CBMW).

Her goal for the book is to bring insights from the Song to the ideas of roles, relations, and treatment of people of both genders—but primarily for women, because that’s where most of the controversy lies.

Her contention is that as we better understand the Song, we’ll better understand the telos of both sexes, which will lead to better—and more harmonious—relations between all the members of the church.

So, what did I think about The Sexual Reformation?

If this book was only the material (expanded) on the Song of Songs, I think I’d really have enjoyed it. If the book was only the other materials, it’d have been thought-provoking—and maybe convincing. But the mix of the two…ehhhhh. I’m not sure. It felt like two half-books that didn’t necessarily belong together. If one (or both) of them got a chance to be fully baked, that’d have been so much better.

Historically, the interpretation of the Song is so varied that it can easily be seen as a wax nose that can be used to say whatever an author wants. I’m not saying that Byrd did that. But I can see where it could be seen that way—yet another reason for the two books to be split.

It’s an accessible read, relatable, and the issues it wants to focus on are very important for believers to wrestle with. Making this the kind of book we need more of (both those that agree with her and those who differ, so we can think about these things). Although we got a little more about what’s going on with Byrd personally than the book really needed, and a lot of the sexual reformation material is a reiteration of her last couple of books, just presented through a different prism.

Ultimately, the Song gives me enough trouble that I’m not really sure what I think of what she says—but I liked it and want to read more like it to see it better. I’m generally on-board with her reformation ideas in broad strokes. So, I’ve got every reason to like this book, but I’m not wholly sold.

Still, I recommend the book for those who want to wrestle with these ideas—or to get pushed on the content of the Song.

3.5 Stars

This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, the opinions expressed are my own.

No Little Women by Aimee Byrd

By HCNewton

On February 19, 2017

In Non-Fiction, Theology/Christian Living

No Little Women: Equipping All Women in the Household of God

by Aimee Byrd
Paperback, 278 pg.
P&R Publishing, 2016

Read: February 12, 2017

This book is — by and large — an examination and critique of contemporary Women’s Ministries, and the materials marketed towards women in a Christian context. Byrd doesn’t call for an abolition of Women’s Ministries — but does want to encourage women and the churches that they’re members of to evaluate these with a greater level of discernment, for churches to work at cultivating and equipping female members the same way they seek to for the males in the congregation.

Byrd examines the warnings Paul gives about those seeking to deceive and lead away women — and the impact that would have on the churches of the First Century (and today!) when they succeeded in drawing away women from the truth. Why does Paul focus on women in this context? Should pastors today do the same? Which leads to a discussion of the proper means and motives for educating the females in a congregation, and the roles that women (and laymen) should have in the ministry of the Church.

Byrd discusses (and critiques) the contemporary concept “ministries” of the Church in contrast to The Ministry of Word and Sacrament. And in that light, examines the role of “Women’s Ministries” (even if she finds the term problematic, it’s what everyone uses, so her discussion needs to use the term) in the Church today. So much goes on in even conservative, confessional churches under the umbrella of Women’s Ministry that diverges from — even flat-out contradicts — the teachings from the pulpits. How did we get to this point, and how does the Church respond to this in ways that will lead us all to maturity without causing harm and disunity in a local congregation?

Byrd doesn’t claim to have all the answers here, but she has some good places to start. One of the biggest ways is to improve the level of involvement from Church Leadership in the Women’s Ministries/Initiatives. Another is to improve discernment in women when it comes to dealing with books/teachings marketed toward them. Byrd devotes a chapter to citing problematic (and worse!) passages in popular books targeted to the Christian Woman Non-Fiction audience, with questions that discerning (or would-be discerning) readers should be asking. She even includes questions that people should be asking about No Little Women!

It should be noted — and stressed — that nowhere does Byrd argue for a change in the Church’s teaching on male/female relationships and roles, female ordination, or anything along those lines — she does argue that we might not be the best at applying those teachings right now.

What makes this book poignant is Byrd’s repeated call — maybe pleading would be a better way of putting it — for Church Officers (Pastors, Elders) to pay attention to the theological and spiritual development and education of the women in their congregations (and the never stated, but obvious, indictment of the all-too-frequent abandonment of their call in this regard). Yes, when it comes to the official and regular Ministry of Word and Sacrament, these officers are doing their duty — but when it comes to the books (and other materials) marketed towards them, the studies they use, the “Women’s Ministries,” etc. — all too often, it’s ignored. Byrd asks for Shepherds and Leaders to step up and help the women in their congregations — and even gives some tips for how they can effectively relate to these oft-neglected parishioners. Do I think most of the men she’s addressing here think they’re ignoring any part their flocks? No (and I doubt Byrd does either), but they sure appear to be.

A quick digression: At one point, Byrd cites statistics saying that Women buy 72% of the Christian Fiction sold and 59% of the Christian Non-Fiction, and another survey stating that Women read twice as much Christian Non-Fiction as men. Seriously? This is rather disheartening. What do Christian men read? Are we (on the whole) an illiterate group? This blog isn’t the proper setting for this question — and I’m sure not the one to answer it, but I hope someone takes this up (Sinclair Ferguson helps to remedy the problem in this small [and 15-year-old] booklet).

Byrd writes in her typical straight-forward manner, in a prose that’s smooth and easy to read. Despite challenging her readers, she never comes across and condemnatory or anything but encouraging. There’s a call to action (sometimes implicit, frequently explicit), but consistently done in a positive manner. Byrd’s seeking to improve how the Church — women, pastors/elders, and laymen — carries out Her mission, not to tear down.

Ultimately, I’m not one of the main target audiences — women and Church Officers — so I had a hard(er) time really getting into sections of this book than I’d like. But as a husband, father of a daughter, and layman concerned with the theological education of his fellow laity — a lot of this book was alarming, yet encouraging. Someone’s taking this seriously — and hopefully she’s raising enough awareness that others will follow suit. You don’t have to be a feminist or ecclesiological revolutionary to be concerned with the state of theological training of Christian women (and everything she says about Women goes for our teens and children) — it’s a matter for all laity to take up. This is as close to a must-read as I can think of.

—–

4 Stars