--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: the way in which a faith community shapes…" description: "\"the way in which a faith community shapes language about God implicity represents what it takes to be the highest good, the profoundest truth, the most..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/746/elizabeth-a-johnson-42103_community_the-way-in-which-a-faith-community-shape_3036152.jpg" --- # the way in which a faith community shapes language about… ![“the way in which a faith community shapes language about God implicity represents what it takes to be the highest good, the profoundest truth, the most appealing beauty. ... While officially it is rightly and consistently said that God is spirit and so beyond identification with either male or…” quote by Elizabeth A. Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/746/elizabeth-a-johnson-42103_community_the-way-in-which-a-faith-community-shape_3036152.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/746/elizabeth-a-johnson-42103_community_the-way-in-which-a-faith-community-shape_3036152.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/746/elizabeth-a-johnson-42103_community_the-way-in-which-a-faith-community-shape_3036152.jpg) > “the way in which a faith community shapes language about God implicity represents what it takes to be the highest good, the profoundest truth, the most appealing beauty. ... While officially it is rightly and consistently said that God is spirit and so beyond identification with either male or female sex, yet the daily language of preaching, worship, catechesis, and instruction conveys a different message: God is male, or at least more like a man than a woman, or at least more fittingly addressed as male than as female.” [Elizabeth A. Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-a-johnson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Language used in faith communities often reflects cultural gender norms, shaping how God is described and understood, which can conflict with doctrinal statements of divine transcendence. **In simple terms:** Faith language mirrors cultural gender ideas, sometimes clashing with doctrine. Key Takeaway Recognize and challenge gendered language in worship. Themes theology gender language faith culture Mood reflective critical thoughtful Type theological analytical philosophical When to use this quote - Sermons - educational curricula - interfaith dialogues - personal reflection Key Concepts Patriarchal bias symbolic representation divine transcendence Questions to Reflect On - How does gendered language affect personal spirituality? - What alternatives can convey divine mystery without gender? A Different Perspective Changing deep‑seated linguistic habits is difficult and may meet resistance. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Community](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/community/) [Consistently](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/consistently/) [Different](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/different/) [Faith community](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faith-community/) [Female](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/female/) [God](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/god/) [God Male](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/god-male-1071464/) [God Spirit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/god-spirit/) [Highest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/highest/) [Identification](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/identification/) [Instruction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/instruction/) [Language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/) [Language God](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language-god-659700/) [Language Preaching](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language-preaching-4983088/) [Male](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/male/) [Males](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/males/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Message God](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/message-god-310074/) [Messages](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/messages/) [Preaching](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/preaching/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/said/) [Sex](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sex/) [Shapes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shapes/) [Spirit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirit/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) [Worship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/worship/) ## Related quotes > [We are all souls, and what I have learnt so far is that while God is male, the souls created by Him are female,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kailash-kher/we-are-all-souls-and-what-i-have-learnt-so-far-is-that-while-god-is/) [Kailash Kher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kailash-kher/) > [If God is male, then the male is God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-daly/if-god-is-male-then-the-male-is-god/) [Mary Daly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-daly/) > [Theologians frequently assert that God has no body, no gender, no race and no age. Most people state that God is neither male nor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-p-christ/theologians-frequently-assert-that-god-has-no-body-no-gender-no-race/) [Carol P. Christ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-p-christ/) > [ “God made them male and female’\[\*\] from the beginning of creation. 7 ‘This explains why a man leaves his father and mother and is joined… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/god-made-them-male-and-female-from-the-beginning-of-creation-7-this/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“The misrepresentation of God as strictly male has wounded women in every area of their lives. 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