Praying at the DNC

I want to share part of a comment I just posted on Blue Pagans at the DNC in response to a post praising the interfaith service held Sunday night, but my stronger concern is really the language used to address deity in the "benediction" last night (Monday night). Here's part of what I wrote:

... We've taken such GREAT strides that an "interfaith" program that includes only 3 Abrahamic religions and Buddhism is considered fulfilling the term "interfaith"? And as much as I deeply appreciated Leah Daughtry's comment that the Creator could be a "he" or a "she" the fact that this is considered an unusual statement some 30 years after the spiritual feminist movement began speaks volumes about the persistance of patriarchal thinking--probably more so in religion than in other areas. To top it all off, we were treated Monday night to a "Benediction" by Don Miller, billed as an author and speaker on "Christian spirituality," who addressed deity as "Father God," a term rarely used. Usually "Father" or "God" or "Lord" is enough to get the idea across. But no, Miller had to be SURE that we understood that God is Father and NOT Mother.... I can only conclude that at this point the Democrats are more concerned with wooing evangelical and/or fundamentalist Christians than they are about excluding women of a variety of religious paths--including not only Pagan, but also, for example, Christian and Jewish, who have been working for decades to achieve degendered and/or inclusive "god" language.Seems the Democrats need some education on this topic. Maybe some of you are attending the Women's Caucus and could bring this up?

TAGS:news Democratic National Convention prayer spiritual feminism Leah Daughtry women and religion Don Miller