The Bible for Normal People - Prof. Emilie Townes and "The Wisdom of Hope"
We are sharing another episode of The Bible for Normal People podcast. This episode features one of the most beloved womanist scholars in the world: Prof. Emilie Townes. I could say that her voice was much like the pied piper that took me away from the logics of patriarchalism within religion.
Or, I could say that she has demonstrated an ethics of accountability in my personal interactions with her. As a young scholar, enamored with the possibility of getting paid to think through theological and ethical concerns, I felt seen by one of the “rock stars” of religious scholarship. That is rare.
I would mostly say, however, that I still want to be just like her when I grow up. I hope you enjoy this pastoral voice, womanist scholarship and wealth of experience in none other than Emilie Townes.
Dr. CL Nash, The Misogynoir to Mishpat (M2M) Research Network © 2024
Show Notes:
In this episode of The Bible for Normal People Podcast, Pete and Jared talk with Emilie Townes about womanist ethics, interpreting the Bible, and hope as they explore the following questions:
What is womanist ethics?
Where did the term “womanist ethics” come from?
How does the Bible fit into womanist ethics?
What are the limits of using the Bible in ethics?
Does the Bible still have things to say to people today?
What is the role of community in biblical interpretation?
How do questions of religion help us stay engaged in other people’s lives?
What are the benefits of asking questions about the Bible and God?
How does seeking certainty and absolutes close us off to others?
What is the purpose of having hope?
What is the difference between God’s transcendence and imminence?
What gives Emilie hope?
Tweetables
Pithy, shareable, less-than-280-character statements from Emilie Townes you can share.
“Scripture… may have meant something to the people in that era that that passage comes from, but it could mean something completely different now because things have changed.” @emtownes
“I think we must wrestle with scripture and we often don’t. We want to come up with something that more rubber stamps our opinion as opposed to looking at the complicated world of the Bible.” @emtownes
“We so often in the church act like God can’t handle our questions.” @emtownes
“Genuine community is more like a cacophony rather than barbershop quartet harmony. It’s really having to recognize the kind of chaos the world was called into being through and to recognize that we all don’t have to agree.” @emtownes
“As an ethicist, I use the Bible very carefully because I have been trained to literally use the Bible. That does not mean that I’m really representing the diversity of thought that’s in the Bible as I have a viewpoint.” @emtownes
“I think the Bible is best engaged in community.” @emtownes
“More often than not we undersell the Bible, mostly out of our fear and our doubts, our “I don’t knows,” rather than taking it as an opportunity to dive right in there and try, as I say, wrestle with it in community to see what we come up with.” @emtownes
“If one can take seriously trusting in God and then living in that trust in God, then I think it opens us up to worlds we can’t see because we’re so invested in a straight and narrow view of the world where there’s certainty and absolutes. I don’t think that’s the biblical world, and I don’t think that really gets us into deeper faithfulness.” @emtownes
“Trust in God is a risk, it’s not something that you know.” @emtownes
Mentioned in This Episode
Website: Emilie Townes
Patreon: The Bible for Normal People
https://thebiblefornormalpeople.com/interview-with-emilie-townes-the-wisdom-of-hope/