My Jewish parents used to tell me that the one thing “they” couldn’t take from me was an education. As I grew older, I learned that the “they” to whom my mom and dad referred were the various Gentile groups who’d persecuted the Jewish people for millennia. Though they were in no way academics, my hard-working parents did teach me that there was immeasurable value, if not virtue, in the act of learning.
I was a bookish kid, and after I came to faith in Jesus in my mid-teens, I brought my hunger for learning to my newfound faith. I devoured pop Christian titles and theology books alike. As I moved into adulthood, I discovered there wasn’t a ready spot for women who liked to read theology and ask questions in the conservative non-denominational and Charismatic congregations my husband and I attended. The other women at church seemed content with teas and pre-packaged Bible studies. If I wanted to have friends, I thought I needed to stifle my mind a bit so I could find friends.
I went to teas, filled in the blanks of the Bible study guides, made casseroles, and ran VBS programs.[Read more]
