In my opinion, the problem with Christianity (and the Old Testament writings before Jesus) is that we have neglected our Mother Spirit, Sophia. She is clearly identified and discussed in the Bible but the writers and founders of Christianity (all men) have neglected to identify her as a centrigal figure in our faith.

Who is Sophia?

In Proverbs 8, Sophia speaks for herself and identifies herself as the companion and master contractor at the creation of the Universe. She is pure wisdom, the mother of all that is. She is also mentioned many times in the Apocryphal texts, which makes you wonder if men were uncomfortable with God being named a woman in such direct terms, and therefore, rejecting them in Biblical canons.

God, “The Breasted One”

The term El Shaddai is typically translated as, “God Almighty.” Yet, it can also be translated as “God, the breasted one.” What a powerful and beautiful phrase! God is showing herself to be a nurturing mother. The image is of a mother that holds her infact close and feeds him at her breast. As a woman who has feed my children with my body, I remember this as the most tender and vulnerable of times. It requires a level of openness and transparency from the mother. She exposes herself to her child so that the infant may receive from the depths of her Being.

Imagine if we knew God as a nurturing mother. In Genesis, El Shaddai is used again and again when telling Abram, Isaac, and Jacob to multiply and become a blessed nation. Mother God, the breasted one, is holding her infants close and encouraging them to feed on her love and nurturance so that they may grow to become men of faith and integrity–fathers of a nation blessed by their Mother.

God, “The Winged One”

In Psalm 91, God is described as a mother hen. She tucks her children under her wings for protection. Her children are like her little chicks that run toward the Mother in times of threat. Her children, however, have a decision about running toward safety or staying vulnerably independent and exposed to the threat outside of her protective wings.

The Female Spirit of Jesus

In other texts, God is described as an anguished woman in labor or a mother that grieves the loss of her children. Jesus’ spirit was also described in these ways. He was a man who lived and spoke from the female Spirit of wisdom. Jesus was the perfect balance of male and female energy, or what Jung calls anima and animus.

So, why were the early writers, the early Christian founders, and Christians of this day so offended by the idea of God being female? First, Western thinkers struggle with both/and. We like to compartmentalize everything into this box OR that box. We have a hard time understanding that God could be BOTH male and female. Ohhhh doesn’t that come a little too close to identifying God as “gender fluid” and we don’t like that one! But Eastern thinkers (Jesus, being one) easily embrace the idea of both/and. They easily recognize the yin and yang of most concepts in all things. This is called non-duality. They embrace the idea that two or more things can be true at the same time. Christians today like to think in the dualistic terms of either/or. Everything is either holy or evil. Right or wrong. Bad or good. Unfortunately for them, the Bible is a collection of non-dualistic concepts.

Second, early canon collectors saw women as weak. Let’s face it. Men throughout history have seen women as weak. The fragile, too-emotional sex that must be dominated and ruled with a firm hand. Left to our own devices, we are too permissible, too mouthy, too inconsistent, too weak. I don’t know about you but I often heard these words spoken about me or my sisters. So, God is described as a strong, male warrior. He provides for and protects his family. Great. But the problem with describing God as only male is that he too often jumps over to the toxic/extreme attributes of masculinity without the much-needed female characteristics.

Look around you. A lot of men are so deeply offended by the idea of balanced anima/animus energy. They cannot tolerate the idea that the softer, female characteristics of nurturing, protecting, and emotional attunement could possibly describe them or their God. So, we have an epidemic of toxically masculine men who refuse to recognize the female attributes of God and refuse to grow their own emotional intelligence.

Now, in fairness, I have noticed women taking this concept to the other extreme (remember, we are either/or thinkers). Some women have run with this concept and yelling out in the streets, “GOD IS FEMALE! THE FUTURE IS FEMALE!” without recognizing that God is both/and. Ladies, toxic femininity is also a thing.

So, how is all of this sitting with you? Do you find yourself angry or resistant to the idea of God being also female? Why? What do you think might happen if Christians began to embrace Mother God? Notice feelings that surface: anger, fear, dismissiveness?

What might happen to you if you became more receptive of the feminine attributes of God? How might this understanding of Scripture change you for the better?