Introduction

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In this section of our website, we would like to invite you to join us in the work of dismantling thought patterns and institutional processes that hinder and harm women, replacing them in ways that support equity for all. This is work that all women and men within the denomination are called to do.

 

It includes:

1. taking seriously the stories of FMC women who have faced obstacles to leadership, and prioritizing dismantling those obstacles over protecting the status quo. (Read more on the blog.)

2. reading the resources provided, sitting with the discomfort they may cause, and allowing this new knowledge to change previous patterns of thought and behavior.

3. repenting* for participation in the marginalization of women in the FMC in the past with the hope of reconciliation and co-ministry moving forward.

4. implementing new models of family and church leadership in current spheres of influence, based on collaboration and mutual regard.

 

Repenting includes: (1) confessing to a same-gender partner the specific instances of participation in male supremacy, acknowledging sorrow for harm done and accepting responsibility for participating in the marginalization of women; (2) making restitution when possible and apologizing to the person/s impacted, if doing so would not cause further harm to that/those persons; (3) taking specific action/s to prevent further occurrences; (4) implementing a specific plan for rebuilding trust, [Adapted from Gary Chapman's The Five Languages of Apology]

 

Note that if you have harmed specific women, you will harm them further by expecting them to go through this process alongside you. Part of repentance includes acknowledging their feelings and their timetable. If they are unwilling to reconcile, take that as evidence of the size of the harm you caused, not the size of their faith.