Introduction to the special issue on Gender and Christianity.

Hall, M. Elizabeth Lewis

It is with pleasure that we write this introduction to our special issue on Gender and Christianity. This issue represents a logical next step in a research endeavor that has been a focus of ours for the past several years. It began with a discussion regarding whether or not it would be possible to arrange our time, both professionally and personally, to pursue our interests in mentoring students in research and gender issues. Little did we know that this "balance" between the personal and the professional would come to be a central theme that would be defined and redefined, in our research and our personal lives, throughout the years that followed. Along the way we found new terminology that seemed to capture our experiences and the experiences of our participants. An example of this is our movement away from the term "balancing" and toward the more descriptive, experiential term of "weaving;" a concept that flowed from one participant's description of her life as both professor and mother (Hall, Anderson, & Willingham, 2004).

In researching the lives of women who are professionals and/or academicians, as well as mothers we found glimpses of our own lives and nuances that were both delightfully and poignantly unexpected. Our students have joined us on the journey, resulting in dissertations, publications and presentations (e.g., Carruthers, 2003; Deweese, 2004; Lee, submitted for publication; Phanco, 2004; Thorstad, in press), but as they have since shared with us, more importantly they gained a much desired insight into, "How does one really manage both family and career?" Hopefully, what they have witnessed is the reality that there is no perfect weave. Each life (cloth) is a unique blend of threads and colors.

Our presentations and publications in this area have brought us into contact with many individuals in Christian circles who have resonated with our ideas and experiences and have expressed interest in continuing dialogue on these important issues in the Christian community. In response, this special issue on Gender and Christianity provides a forum for the introduction of some of these ideas, which will hopefully result in continued dialogue on these important topics.

We have especially come to value the broader context in which our issues of interest are held. Concepts such as gender, Christian faith and vocation have taken on a depth and richness we hope will be reflected in this issue. Included here are studies that cover a range of topics particular to gender and Christianity. We considered gender an inclusive term that would invite a range of research into female and male issues. The articles included in this issue reflect the broad nature of the term gender (relating to such concepts as sex, gender identity, gender roles, gender stereotypes, masculinity/femininity, etc.), and in some unexpected ways.

The choice to consider gender in light of a Christian belief system rather than the less specific and more nebulous domain of "spirituality," was deliberate. In discussing the integration of psychological concepts and Christian theology, McMinn and Hall (2000) state:

Psychology, deeply rooted in a scientific epistemology, places great
value in systemic and measurable observations. Christian theology is
bounded by central doctrines, forged over centuries of dialog and based
on the authority of a sacred text. Those integrating psychology and
theology most effectively have learned to value both epistemologies.
(p. 251)

Christian theology (providing special revelation) and psychology (general revelation) may be seen as cornerstones, each with its own set of principles and doctrines that provide a contextual framework from which to view a variety of concepts. How gender is defined in Christian theology will certainly differ even among the various (evangelical or fundamentalist) Christian sub-cultures (Ingersoll, 2003). Included in this issue are some intriguing and thought-provoking articles that will hopefully broaden the reader's thoughts on gender and how it relates to Christianity.

The issue begins with an article by Heather Looy and Hessel Bouma, III that gives rise to some intriguing questions about the nature of gender. These authors present poignant case studies describing the experience of intersexed and transgendered people that highlight how gender identity and biological sex do not necessarily coincide nor are they always static and completely definable. In addition to discussing the biological aspects related to intersexed and transgendered conditions the authors go on to explore the theological implications and to challenge Christians to adopt an attitude of inclusion. They specifically call the Christian community to adopt an attitude of ministry with (versus to) those who live as intersexed and transgendered.

The second article also explores issues of gender role orientation--specifically, stereotypic thinking which usually equates feminine and masculine with female and male in regards to religiosity (or Christian attitude). In this article Leslie Francis presents research into gender identity, gender difference, and how these relate to religiosity. Francis used the Bem Sex Role Inventory (Bem, 1981) to assess gender role orientation, and the Francis Scale of Attitude toward Christianity (Francis & Stubbs, 1987) to assess religiosity among older men and women. Results suggest that femininity and not just femaleness are associated with religiosity. In this article Francis provides some fascinating links to Eysenck's (1976, 1992) theory on a biologically based model of personality where masculine and feminine are personality constructs we all share.

The last four articles included in this issue investigate similar themes regarding gender roles and role perceptions, interrole tension, and sanctification of work through a sense of calling. Nancy Crawford and Helen DeVries investigated the relationship between role perception and well being in married female missionaries. In this article the authors shed light on the perceptions that exist particularly in the intra-missionary community. It is striking to note that even on the mission field women are evaluated and valued based on perceptions of their roles and their contributions to the community and family. The authors point out the dilemma experienced by their participants with some telling quotes. The participants felt that if they were not busy doing the work of the mission they were perceived as non-contributors, yet at the same time if they were perceived as contributing they were thought to be neglecting their families. Based on their findings the authors make specific recommendations to mission boards and outline some important suggestions for future research into this oft overlooked group.

The following two articles are "fraternal twins," in that both utilized qualitative methodology to assess the experiences of Christian women who feel called to vocation and family. Tina Schermer Sellers, Jennifer Batts, Kris Thomas and Cami Ostman interviewed eleven women who shared numerous examples of the tension that exists between work life and home life. The authors identified four dominant themes that ranged from "formative messages" to "wisdom for the next generation." The latter includes wisdom that transcends this particular study and seems germane to any life. Of particular note was the advice to "choose what falls through the cracks." This logic assumes that there will be items that do fall between the cracks; however, rather than becoming a victim to this reality we could actually be purposeful and decisive about what we will let fall. The authors end with a statement of hope that the discourse of families such as those of which the participants were a part, will continue.

The next article presented in this issue, a product of our own research group, is by Kerris Oates, M. Elizabeth Lewis Hall, and Tamara Anderson. This study investigated the role of spirituality as a means of coping with interrole tension. The 32 participants were originally interviewed regarding how they weave together their personal/family and work life (see Hall, Anderson, & Willingham, 2004; Thorstad, in press; Carruthers, 2003). In addition to many interesting themes that emerged were the unsolicited statements made by the majority of the participants that were reflective of the belief that they were "called" to their career. This post-hoc finding was analyzed in the present article to better understand what the women meant by this terminology. The authors found that, among other things, the sanctification of work (a sense of being called by God to their work) was instrumental in their coping with interrole conflict. A theoretical framework was developed to explain this dynamic as well as other constructs present in working Christian mothers.

The special issue ends with a Research Note on gender role attitudes. Colleen Warner Colaner and Susan Warner looked specifically at egalitarian and complimentarian gender role attitudes. The authors investigated whether or not an adherence to either one of these attitudes would influence career ambition. This study surveyed an evangelical Christian, college age group of women. They found that there is indeed a relationship between theological perceptions regarding gender roles, and career aspirations. This research report is also a snapshot into the current state of gender role attitudes, finding that Evangelical Christianity continues to be largely hierarchical in its view of gender roles. This is consistent with the limited number of other studies which have investigated gender roles in evangelical samples, and which found that evangelical couples express support for the dominant, evangelical family ideals of husband providership and wifely domesticity, while viewing women's employment as an economic necessity (Bartkowski, 1999; Gallagher & Smith, 1999; Harville & Rienzi, 2000). This finding is particularly striking in that all of the young women investigated are investing significant amounts of time, energy, and financial resources into a college education.

It is our sincerest hope that this special issue on Gender and Christianity is but the beginning in a long, in-depth and fruitful discourse on issues related to gender and people of faith.

REFERENCES

Bartkowski, J.P. (1999). One step forward, one step back: "Progressive traditionalism" and the negotiation of domestic labor in evangelical families. Gender Issues, 17, 37-61.

Bem, S.L. (1981). Bem Sex Role Inventory: Professional manual. Palo Alto, CA: Consulting Psychologists Press.

Carruthers, L.A. (2003). The impact of faith, family, and career on the identity formation and internal conflict of Christian women in academia with children. Dissertation Abstracts International, 64(04), 1893B. (UMI No. 3088084)

Deweese, B. (2004). A qualitative study of Christian women in academia who are mothers and their experience of mentoring relationships. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Rosemead School of Psychology, Biola University.

Eysenck, H.J., & Eysenck, S.B.G. (1976). Psychoticism as a dimension of personality. London: Hodder and Stoughton.

Eysenck, H.J., Barrett, P., Wilson, G., & Jackson, C. (1992). Primary trait measurement of the 21 components of the PEN system. European Journal of Psychological Assessment, 8, 109-117.

Francis, L.J., & Stubbs, M.T. (1987). Measuring attitudes towards Christianity: From childhood into adulthood. Personality and Individual Differences, 8, 741-743.

Gallagher, S. K., & Smith, C. (1999). Symbolic traditionalism and pragmatic egalitarianism: Contemporary evangelicals, families, and gender. Gender & Society, 13, 211-233.

Hall, M.E.L., Anderson, T.L., & Willingham, M.M. (2004). Diapers, dissertations, and other holy things: The experiences of mothers working in Christian colleges and universities. Christian Higher Education, 3(1), 41-60.

Harville, M.L., & Rienzi, B.M. (2000). Equal worth and gracious submission: Judeo-Christian attitudes toward employed women. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 24, 145-147.

Ingersoll, J. (2003). Evangelical Christian women: War stories in the gender battles. New York: New York University Press.

Lee, C.A., Anderson, T.L., Hall, M.E.L., & Willingham, M.M. (2005). Asian and female in the White God's world: A qualitative exploration of discrimination in Christian academia. Manuscript submitted for publication.

McMinn, M.R., & Hall, T.W. (2000). Christian spirituality in a postmodern era. Journal of Psychology and Theology, 28(4), 251-253.

Phanco, M. (2004). Internal tension and faith: A qualitative exploration of mothers working in Christian academia. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Rosemead School of Psychology, Biola University.

Thorstad, R. R., Anderson, T. L., Hall, M.E.L., Willingham, M., & Carruthers, L. (in press). Breaking the mold: A qualitative exploration of mothers in Christian academia and their experiences of spousal support. Journal of Family Issues.

AUTHORS

ANDERSON, TAMARA L. Address: Rosemead School of Psychology, Biola University, 13800 Biola ave, La Mirada, CA, 90639. Titles: Director of Clinical Training; Associate Professor of Psychology. Degrees: PhD, California School of Professional Psychology; MA, Pepperdine University; BS, Biola University. Specializations: Individual and Marital Psychotherapy

HALL, M. ELIZABETH LEWIS. Address: Rosemead School of Psychology, Biola University, 13800 Biola ave, La Mirada, CA, 90639. Title: Associate Professor. Degrees: PhD, MA, BA, Biola University. Specializations: Psychodynamic psychotherapy; missions and mental health; women and work.

TAMARA L. ANDERSON and M. ELIZABETH LEWIS HALL

Rosemead School of Psychology, Biola University

Correspondence concerning this article may be sent to Tamara L. Anderson, PhD, Rosemead School of Psychology, Biola University, 13800 Biola ave, La Mirada, CA, 90639. Email: tamara.anderson@biola.edu