Shifts of Gender and Sexuality in Conservative Christian Communities Sarah Stewart Burgess Pomona College
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Claremont Colleges Scholarship @ Claremont Pomona Senior Theses Pomona Student Scholarship 2009 Divine Fluidity: Shifts of Gender and Sexuality in Conservative Christian Communities Sarah Stewart Burgess Pomona College Recommended Citation Burgess, Sarah Stewart, "Divine Fluidity: Shifts of Gender and Sexuality in Conservative Christian Communities" (2009). Pomona Senior Theses. Paper 30. http://scholarship.claremont.edu/pomona_theses/30 This Open Access Senior Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Pomona Student Scholarship at Scholarship @ Claremont. It has been accepted for inclusion in Pomona Senior Theses by an authorized administrator of Scholarship @ Claremont. For more information, please contact [email protected]. DIVINE FLUIDITY Shifts of Gender and Sexuality in Conservative Christian Communities Sarah Stewart Burgess Thesis Submitted to the Department of Religious Studies, Pomona College in partial fulfillment for the degree of Bachelor of Arts Submitted on April 24th, 2008 Readers: Professor Katrina Van Heest Professor Pardis Mahdavi © 2009 Sarah Stewart Burgess For JLB Abstract This thesis draws on ethnographic research from three communities of conservative Christian women who find empowerment and agency through their religious traditions. Two communities are politically active, outspoken women who also believe strongly in “traditional” roles for women, and one community idealizes conservative standards of sexuality while accepting women who work as sex workers. These women did not view their positions as contradictory, rather, they used religious beliefs and religious practices to enact, embody or explain their complex genders and sexualities. This thesis draws on ethnographic, feminist and queer theories while showcasing the diversity within a movement largely believed to be monolithic. The researcher aims to encourage more dialogue between liberal feminists and conservative Christians. Acknowledgements Writing is always a collaborative process, and in particular, ethnography relies on the participation and generosity of others. First and foremost, this thesis could not have been written without the women who were kind and open enough to share their stories with me. I am grateful to have met and learned from them, and I thank them for trusting me and welcoming me into their communities. Though they may not agree with all the analysis in this paper, I hope they can see that I have respect for each one of them, and I wish them well on whatever paths they may take in life. In addition, I could not have conducted this project without the help of several supportive professors. Prof. Erin Runions initially stimulated my interest in conservative Christianity in her class The Celluloid Bible. She led me through an independent reading course on conservative politics and Christianity in the summer of 2007, helped me craft the original proposal for this research, and advised me as I began this project in the summer of 2008. Even though she was on sabbatical as I started the writing process, she continued to be responsive to my questions, even while busy with her own work. Professor Pardis Mahdavi has also continually advised me throughout the research for this project, and offered numerous critiques, ideas and book suggestions. I am deeply grateful to her for encouragement, and for the endless insights she has offered me in her classroom, during her office hours, and over hundreds of e- mails. Prof. Katrina Van Heest generously agreed to be my reader without ever having met me before. She offered expansive critiques and suggestions on multiple drafts. I always looked forward to meeting with her, and appreciated her sense of humor and her passion for issues of gender and religion. Finally, Prof. Zayn Kassam has been a sympathetic, supportive, compassionate advisor throughout my time at Pomona. She offered some of the first criticisms and ideas for this thesis. Prof. Jerry Irish, Prof. Darryl Smith, Prof. Lara Deeb and Prof. Kyla Tompkins also offered their critiques and ideas throughout the process. Prof. Tanya Erzen gave me essential (and much needed) advice about approaching interviewees and participating with conservative Christians when I first began to research. Throughout the summer of 2008, I counted on Prof. Shawn Maloney to be at Politics and Prose to tell me a joke, encourage me, and forward me long lists of anthropological books to read. Finally, I am so happy to have spent my senior year within walking distance of the Prof. Oona Eisenstadt, who has consistently offered both encouragement and good cheer. I am also most grateful for the various financial support that made this research possible. The initial research for this project was funded through a Pomona College Summer Undergraduate Research Grant. The Pomona College Religious Studies Department, Dean Miriam Feldblum and Dean Cynthia Selassie provided additional funding so I could continue to conduct research in the Southwestern United States. Finally, the anthropology department lent me expensive recording equipment for nearly a year. In addition, I am so thankful to be a member a community of peers who challenge me to rethink my own ideas and inspire me with their humor and tenacity. Numerous friends and students—Alix Coupet, Julianne Bukey, Anoush Suni, Josh Harris, Katie Jones, Chloe Wardropper and Andrew Kushner have read drafts or offered me feedback and ideas. Throughout the Religious Studies senior seminar, all fellow majors asked questions that helped me frame and shape this thesis. Furthermore, I am so lucky to have a family who has supported me and loved me throughout my exploration of random interests, and given me the best education, ever. My father John, my mother Karen and my sister Katharine all read early drafts and sent back questions and comments which probed me to expand on essential ideas and themes. This thesis is dedicated to the strongest woman that I know—Jeanette L. Buck. Though I have only recently officially discovered the joys of ethnography, she gave me the original skill set that I drew on throughout this process. She has taught me to always ask questions, say hello to strangers, talk back, and keep my chin up. I am inexpressibly grateful and overjoyed to have her as a mentor, counselor, family member and friend. Table of Contents Preface...........................................................................................................................1 I. Introduction: Evolutions in Faith, Identity and Ethnography...........12 Shifts of Faith.................................................................................................13 Definitions of Power, Gender and Sexuality...............................................23 Previous Studies of Conservative Christian Women...................................29 Methodology for this Project..........................................................................34 II. Power Offices and Protean Selves...............................................................44 Lifton’s Theory of Shifting Identity..............................................................46 Lives in Betwixt and Between.......................................................................49 Individualism and Personal Rises to Authority...........................................60 Abortion and Action........................................................................................63 Balancing Roles in the Contemporary US Economy...................................66 Multiple Layers and God’s Unique Plan for You.......................................68 Protean Articulations of Gender....................................................................71 Conclusions.......................................................................................................76 III. Fluid Surrender, Flexible Sexualities.......................................................78 Theories on Submission and Agency.............................................................81 “Bad Girls” of the Bible.................................................................................90 Submission and Empowerment in Day-to-Day Life..................................96 Gender Roles and Submission to Spouses...................................................101 Submission to God and Standards of Sexuality........................................106 Flexible Sexualities.......................................................................................108 (Sub)Missions and Strip Clubs....................................................................114 Finding Acceptance and Support.................................................................118 (Sub)Mission Accomplished?........................................................................121 Conclusions.....................................................................................................127 IV. Transcendence, Public Action and Passionate Prayer......................129 Concepts of Queerness....................................................................................134 Gendered Life at the Prayer House for Christ...........................................141 Transcending with Tongues and Passionate Prayer................................144 Protests or Prayer?.......................................................................................149 Questioning the Capitalist Paradigm?.......................................................157 Subversive Gender Expressions...................................................................163