There seem to be two directions of thought for those who have been discussing this issue: (1) Why don’t more women want to join the biblioblogging community? and (2) There are probably more women out there that could be considered bibliobloggers (particularly if we allow for an expanded definition of biblioblogging) and we should find them. Many people are annoyed by the discussion and, if that describes you, you probably are no longer reading this. In any case, this particular post is an attempt to answer the first question–not by myself, but by some of the female bloggers outside our biblioblogging community. These are the initial responses coming in at the Emerging Women blog.
I’ll break the comments here up into categories:
- Is a stereotype just a stereotype? Someone else can decide whether it’s nature or nurture, but a lot of people want to talk about what women want versus what men want out of blogging or simply life in general.
“Maybe women aren’t as interested in writing straight academic theology, because you can only think about faith so much before experience of faith and theology at work becomes necessary. Many in the women’s movement make a sweeping division between the ‘rational’ male and the ‘mystical’ female (a stereotype and a generalization)–maybe as women bloggers the ‘rational’ exegetical work just isn’t as interesting. I know I’d rather hear the story of someone’s theology at work, than read their carefully studied out interpretation of something.”
“It’s just life happening. Most women are multi-taskers and that shows in their blogs. If you read my blog or . . . any of women in my blog roll . . . you’ll find all kinds of different posts from theology to dinner to shopping to health care to breast feeding. We have a hard time being as focused as men. And men have a hard time reading all that ‘twaddle’. They want some assurance about what’s going to be at a given blog every day. This is not a hard and fast rule by any means, but I think it is a general tendency which effects the way women blog and the way men read. I don’t think either way is good or bad or better … it’s just what is. I read both and enjoy both.”
~Sonja (but read Sue’s valid response) [Sonja's blog]
- The definition of “academic biblical studies” feels too narrow (this is connected to the previous category, and is a part of the second line of thought mentioned in my intro).
“I think the definition of ‘theology blogging…academic biblical blogging’ is too narrowly defined and thus many, not just women but probably a disproportionate amount of women get missed. I feel like my blog is deeply theological it’s just not traditionally written. I write about my real life encounters through the lens of my faith. I work in social services as a professional counselor and I believe my work is deeply theological and missional so when I write about how my faith and work intersect I believe it has deep theological impact…at least it does on me. But I would never be classified as a theological/academic blogger even though I received my masters in counseling from a seminary and took the same theology classes as the M.Div students…and got all A’s if I might add
. . . . I think when people are looking for ‘thinkers’ in theology they get stuck on exegesis and academic and thus miss a lot of good writers and theologians out there.”
- Not enough time to dedicate to it.
“I have 2 little kids and 2 jobs. And my husband is a pastor. If I want to write a thoughtful blog that involves good exegetical work, it’s going to take me a while. And I’m not going to publish bad biblical work. I may write and publish a blog on some political thing or social issue while my children yell during rest time or late at night when I’m tired (and The Daily Show sparks something
, but I won’t do that with biblical work. It’s too important. So, I’m kind of on hold a few years until I have that kind of time again. And I can’t tell you how much I look forward to being back in that world.”
- The discrepancy in the ratio of male versus female bibliobloggers is due to social expectations and gender roles within the church (the Biblioblog Top 50 explanation).
“Where are the little girls and young women who have been encouraged to pursue theological education so they can later blog about it? Oh, that’s right, we still have a ratio of 270 to 20 of church leaders who don’t encourage girls/ women into the field.”
“I have felt as though there is a narrowing margin of tolerance in the church for the intellectual – which seems to be much narrower for women. . . . It seems there are many outlets for women to feel at church, but not to think.”
“[W]omen have not always been welcome in Evangelical academia, as either students or as faculty. . . . Why would women want to spend their time engaging men who don’t think that they (the women) have a right to do so?”
- Feeling the need for an institution to legitimize my voice.
“I have a blog and an MA in Exegetical Theology (aka studying the Bible in Greek and Hebrew). Originally my blog was going to be biblio-ish or at least about theology, but I got self-conscious and I didn’t get into a PhD program like I expected and now the things I blog about are very rarely about theology. I didn’t directing my blog vision very well and got caught up in the crafty parts of my life. And I don’t feel like I have the weight of an institution behind me to give my voice credibility. Maybe if I had started it when I was still getting my degree things would have been different. Maybe if I refocus things will be. But I really miss the voices of women in the biblioblogosphere. It makes me grateful for Emerging Women.”
- I’m not taken seriously by male bloggers (this is connected, I think, to the previous category/comment regarding institutional legitimacy).
Because too often they’re not taken as seriously as a man who blogged on the same topic would be taken. And not only by men – I’ve seen women have the same reaction.
I think there are a few misconceptions here. For instance, Lainie speaks in her comment about women not being accepted in conservative Evangelical academic circles, but being conservative or Evangelical are by no means necessary for joining the biblioblogging community. We’ve got conservatives and liberals alike, as well as many who would not care for either label. I admire someone who doesn’t want to blog about biblical studies because she feels it is too important to do half-heartedly–but those biblioblogs that are written by men are by no means characterized by “carefully studied out interpretation” or even “good exegetical work,” let alone whether they are “focused.”
I have a feeling that many women may be writing what could be considered a biblioblog and do not even realize it. Maybe they wouldn’t care to connect with our blogging community, and that’s fine, but it’s worth a look.
