Being they: God and nonbinary gender
We call God "Father" and "Mother" because children don't say "Parent, Parent." But what will my children call me?
![](/sites/default/files/styles/article_page_vertical/public/images/detail/081716nonbinary_detail.jpg?itok=37KUEvU6)
This year Pilgrim Press published my first book. Like any new author, I was overjoyed to be done. But one thing made me especially proud: as far as I know, Glorify: Reclaiming the Heart of Progressive Christianity is the first book published by a major church press to deliberately use gender-neutral pronouns throughout.
My use of the singular they, them, and their triggered some copyediting anxiety at first. I get that. I was an English major, and I was taught always to write “he or she” when I wanted to be gender inclusive. Besides, Glorify is not a book about gender theory. It’s a book calling mainline churches back to the task of cultivating Christian disciples. It seems like an odd place to make a stand for a nonbinary understanding of gender.
But for me, this was personal.