The Women’s Lectionaryat Plymouth ChurchBy Rev. Remi Shores (they/them)Since the beginning of the year, we’vebeen preaching mostly from the Women’sLectionary, specifically from “A Women’sLectionary for the Whole Church” by Dr.Wil Gafney. As we shared in the winterissue of Plymouth Church Magazine,women are underrepresented in scripturesand Dr. Gafney wants to correct that.I thought it might be helpful to make a fewobservations about Gafney’s translationsand biblical translations in general.Have you ever seen the word “LORD”in your Bible and wondered why it’sin all caps?In the Hebrew Bible, God is oftensaid to have “compassion” for God’speople.That means that the Hebrew text hadthe sacred name of God: YHWH (inEnglish letters). This name has no vowelsand is thus unpronounceable – in face,according to Hebrew custom, we shouldnot pronounce it. You may have seenspelled out versions of this name withvowels added in Christian contexts. Thisis considered disrespectful to God bymany of the Jewish faith, thus Gafneyavoids such spellings and pronunciations,and I follow her example.But that English word doesn’t reallyhave the same connotation as it does inHebrew. In Hebrew, the word for thatkind of emotion has the same root as theroot for the word “uterus” or “womb.” So,what is translated as “compassion” reallymeans something like “mother love.” Avisceral love that God feels for us, not justas a parent, but as one who has physicallyborne us as a part of Her own body. Sonext time you see the word “compassion”in your Bible, you’ll know what it reallymeans. And next time you see a metaphorof God as Father, you’ll know that theBible has many, many more instances ofGod as Mother – they are just hidden intranslation.Because the name cannot be read, theGreek translators of the Bible glossedit to “The LORD,” with the all-capssymbolizing that this is a gloss of theHoly Name. But there is a long traditionof choosing a name for God based on thecontext of the passage.Got more questions?What questions do you have aboutGafney or the Women’s Lectionary?What have you noticed in ourreadings and sermons? Reach out!I’d love to talk more.Gafney will often use “HOLY ONE,” or“THE ONE,” or more context-specificnames such as “MOTHER OF THEMOUNTAINS,” which appeared inour Ash Wednesday reading. Gafneyincludes an index of her names forGod on page 315. So, when you seeLORD in your Bible, know that it is asubstitute for the Divine Name – andfeel empowered to insert your own namefor God in that spot!L: Rev. Dr. Wilda C. Gafney.R: “A Women’s Lectionary for theWhole Church” Year B cover.Contact Rev. Remi Shores(rshores@plymouthchurch.com)Plymouth Magazine 3
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