Frenki-Samuel Lulgjuraj

Dr. Clark

RELS 238

16 November 2021

Critical Review #2: Traci C. West

In “Ethical Black Ministerial Practices”, Traci C. West talks about the sexual oppression

and misogyny in Black Christian Churches. She sees sexuality as one of the many gifts that God

gave us, thus people should embrace it instead of refuting it and denying themselves of it. West

mentions different cases where sexual misconduct has occurred between pastors and parishioners

and discusses the misogynistic approach that each church has taken to resolve the situation.

The author opens up by mentioning the 1980’s novel “Say Jesus and Come To Me”, a

fictional account of a Black minister who falls in love and opens her Church. The feminist novel

depicts and sheds light on the sexual dynamics that are going on within Black churches and

raises questions on spirituality and sexuality, gender roles, and the integral structure of

Christianity. West thinks of sexuality as beneficial to humans, however, integrating that into the

Black Christian community requires changes in clergy and church practices.

Sexual Desire and Moral Conduct

Constituting moral conduct within the church is one of the most difficult issues when

trying to affirm sexuality in the church. Normalizing sexual desires in heteronormative Christian

lifestyles sounds paradoxical because it goes against the notions of purity that the church has

always taught. The author mentions St. Augustine of Hippo and how he thought of sexuality as

sinful and such desires as moral corruption and disobedience to God. This view is shared by

many within the church, which means that abstinence is highly regarded, and even in marriage,

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intercourse should happen only with the intent of procreation. Priests abstain to show the ideal

example of a Christian lifestyle and restrict the sexuality of the parishioners. This then creates

ideal normative sexual practices within the church which oppress many of the members’

identities and desires. One of the ways to control the churches’ sexuality and keep up the

heteronormative and misogynistic standards is the “shaming policy”. By publicly shaming

pregnant, unwed women, in most cases teenagers, the Black church puts less blame on men and

allows the reoccurrence of sexual abuse on women. Not only does the church reprimand the

women who got pregnant or engaged in sexual activity, but it also blames the women’s mother

for not teaching them the right etiquette and behavior.

If the expression of heterosexual sexuality was not seen as shameful and sinful, but rather

normalized as a human characteristic, as a gift from God, it would inspire more gender equality

within the religion, instead of fueling a hieararchial patriarchal society and strengthening the

already existing misogynistic ministerial practices. The author mentions the 1 Corinthians 12

passage, where the pastor is an interdependent part of the body of Christ, who performs needed

function, but does not have a superior relationship to God or other Christians. By playing such a

crucial role, a preacher should recognize human sexuality and reinforce equality across genders,

race, ethnicity, etc, instead of reinforcing male privileges within the clergy.

Another point that West makes is the God-given beauty of Black bodies and the

preciousness of Black sexuality. She points out that this gift gives Christians the endless

opportunities to explore their sexuality, be it in heterosexual covenantal relationships or not. Just

as God has created a large array of skin tones, God has also created a large array of sexualities

which one ought to explore. However, this exploration of sexuality must remain within the

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bounds of Christian conduct and still be understood as a gift from God, rather than being taken

for granted and abused.

Sexual Needs and Clergy Conduct

In Black churches, most clergies are men while most of the parishioners are single

women. The church should be able to offer a solution to personal needs, which are both spiritual

and sexual. When accounting for all of these sex/gender issues, we should also take into

consideration the abuses of ministers within the church. A Black church has to take into

consideration all distortions of heterosexuality within the community to envision constructive

alternatives for sexual pleasures. West mentions relationships within the church where ministers

abuse their powers. Even though it is normal for ministers to have sexual desires, the existence of

certain boundaries is needed to provide stability within church relationships and the way these

relationships develop. In most cases of sexual misconduct, all that is needed from the ministers is

a very humble and “heartfelt” apology to return to their leadership roles, while women are often

ostracized and reprimanded. In a few cases, ministers have been legally prosecuted.

Women often go to ministers because they can trust them, and one would think that a

minister would never get involved in such shameful, immoral, and sinful acts. Vulnerability and

trust go hand in hand, and both spirituality and sexuality have these elements in common. This

position of power allows ministers to manipulate others into being sexually trusting and

vulnerable as well. There is also the case of Michael Dyson, the ministerial casanova; who

believes that the erotic realm is an area of fulfillment because it is forbidden, and he deserves

sexual pleasures because of his sacrificial leadership of the church. At the same time, women

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have sexual desires and they invite a minister to fulfill them. Yet, it is not in the parochial duties

of the minister to fulfill the sexual needs of his community.

The author lists many instances where women are not the victim of sexual misconduct

within the church, instead, it is young men that are being taken advantage of. Seeing someone as

a toy one can use to fulfill their sexual needs is different from sexual attraction and sexuality,

which are both gifts from God. A Christian sexual ethic should promote mutual sexual pleasure

within covenantal relationships, as well as sexual guidance for adult singles to express

themselves.

If the church continues its policy of shaming, it will only oppress the sexuality of its

congregation as well as have more cases of sexual misconduct in its clergy. The Church should

normalize the idea of humans as sexual beings, see it as a gift from God, and teach its

community reciprocity and how people can express themselves by being mindful of others.

Critically summarize the article. Do you agree or disagree with the author’s position?

Specifically, take a position on West’s use of the concept “equality” as it relates to sexual

ethics in the church. How might Mary Daly respond to West’s argument?

Traci West makes some very based arguments when discussing sexuality in Christianity.

She elaborates on her main thesis and provides many examples of how suppressing or neglecting

one’s sexuality feeds into the toxic masculinity and the flawed patriarchy of the church. As

mentioned in the summary, West sees sexuality as a gift from God, thus people should not be

afraid to express themselves. However, this should be done while being mindful of another’s

personal space and nurturing healthy reciprocal relationships with one another. Although I agree

with the author’s way of approaching the issue, I still believe that freedom of sexual expression

within Christianity is an idealistic view that will take a lot of effort to become real. The thought

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of normalizing human sexual desires beyond heterosexual and covenantal norms would

inevitably solve a lot of gender issues within the church, however, many members are not willing

to change just yet.

History has taught us that religion and society go hand in hand to form a symbiotic

relationship. There is a fine line between the two and it is very hard to distinguish what parts of

religion are affected by society and vice versa. In theory, religion teaches its believers about

good morals and about a benevolent God. And if this all-loving deity tells us to love, respect, be

kind, and help one another, then homophobia, racism, xenophobia, misogyny, etc. must be social

constructs. Thus, as much as I agree with West, liberation theology needs to reform social

constructs as well as religious ones. And that is one of the reasons Mary Daly might disagree

with Traci West.

Mainly, Daly would argue that freedom of sexual expression within Christianity is not

only unachievable, but at the same time, that religion does not deserve such privilege. For

hundreds of years, Christianity has publicly shamed women for being unwed, single mothers, or

even for being openly sexual. On the other hand, they have justified sexual misdemeanors of

their male clergy and never investigated in depth who are the fathers of those children who were

raised by a single mother. For Daly, Christianity has gone past the point of no return, and the

only way in which one could get rid of the patriarchy is by joining a newly reformed religion. If

Traci West is trying to fix Black Christian churches, Mary Daly thinks of Christianity as a whole,

as a deeply flawed patriarchal system that cannot be saved.