A few days ago, part of the Episcopal Church (specifically the Diocese of Washington D.C.) decided that God is no longer male.
I think the conversation went something like this:
Church: God, what is your preferred pronoun?
God: Well, as you can see from the many-
Church: Gender neutral. Got it.
God: That's not what I-
Church: Votes are in. Gender neutral it is!
Granted, that's not an entirely fair representation. What they decided was to refer to God using gender neutral pronouns in all future updates to their Book of Common Prayer. "Over the centuries our language and our understanding of God has continued to change and adapt," the resolution explains. "By expanding our language for God, we will expand our image of God and the nature of God."
One might argue that we should endeavor to change our understanding of God to match that of the Scriptures He has provided us, but then we might be accused of being Christians. The horror.
Anyway, I do want to say that, at one level, they are not wrong. God is spirit. He is neither male nor female. He is described in the Bible as having both masculine and feminine attributes. He created us male and female so that, combined, we would have a more complete understanding of who He is.
And yes, despite this, I just referred to God as "He" four times.
That's because God reveals himself to us as God our Father.
If we're going to be all politically correct and refer to people by their preferred pronouns, let's at least do God the courtesy of referring to Him by His.
Now, all of this isn't to say that it's somehow wrong to think of God in motherly terms. My wife, like many women, grew up with a pretty abysmal image of men. God the Father was not helpful. And so, God revealed himself to her as a mother. That's how He approached her. "[God] is patient... not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance." He meets us where we're at. (if that weren't the case, we'd all be lost)
But God doesn't leave us where we're at. The end goal isn't for Him to transform into your image, but for you to "be transformed by the renewal of your mind." In a culture of daddy issues - and if our culture is anything, it is certainly that - the solutions isn't to "expand our image of God" but to fix our broken image of fatherhood. You don't cure cancer by surrendering to it, and you don't cure society by giving into its whims.
But, sadly, giving into societal whims is precisely the outreach strategy that the Episcopal Church is determined to take. And it's been that way for some time. They've had openly gay clergy for over a decade. They've long given up on speaking the truths people most desperately need to hear.
And it shows.
In the opening chapter of Revelation, we see Jesus walking among seven golden lampstands. Each lampstand is a church, one of the seven local churches that the book was written to. It is a reminder that these churches exist because God has put them there. And, as Jesus reminds the church in Ephesus, it is God who can take them away. The church is Christ's, not ours.
That, I believe, is what is happening with the Episcopal Church.
As they've wandered from God, ignoring His every cry to return, He has taken their lampstand from them.
The Episcopal Church is not only in decline, it's on the verge of extinction. And the further they pull away from the truths of God, the faster they fall. They make changes in the name of inclusivity, not realizing that by so doing they are excluding Christ Himself. Every progressive step they take to become attractive actually costs them the very people they are trying to attract. Like the church of Laodicea, they are marching towards irrelevance: Tepid, lukewarm water, not useful for anything.
I pray that they would heed now the same warning that Jesus gave then. I pray we all would.
"Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent. Behold, I stand at the door and knock..." - Revelation 3:19-20