God: Neither Male Nor Female

There seems to be so much literature and debate about the importance of humans’ perceptions of God’s sex. Why? God has no sex anyway, so why are we trying so hard to lead people away from a male view of God towards a more female perception? Instead of pushing for a more female view of God, perhaps we should be actively reminding people that their idea of God as a male is just that, an idea; God is neither male nor female. For centuries people have imagined God as a man, and as Carol Christ and Mary Daly both explain, the idea of God as a male has shaped the patriarchal society in which we continue to live today. For example, I have been taught that God is a male since I was old enough to talk. Therefore, for nineteen years now I have associated God with the males I have known in my life. Until recently, this association has shaped my views of marriage, parenthood, leadership roles, the Church, etc. I have awakened in the past few months, though, to the realization that God is not a male. The solution to the problem of viewing God as male is not pushing people to view God as female; this metaphor also fails to accurately describe what/who/how God is: a being. I believe that if parents and the Church would stop teaching children and congregations that God is male, then perhaps people would begin to think of God as God is: neither male nor female, but a being beyond our comprehension. .