Church in the Round: Feminist Interpretation of the Church [Paperback]

Letty M. Russell (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 1993

Ideas of the Christian church are changing, and Letty Russell envisions its future as partnership and sharing for all members around a common table of hospitality. Russell draws on her pastorate in Harlem, her classes in theology, and many ecumenical conversations to help the newly emerging church face the challenges of liberation for all people.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Russell, a Presbyterian clergyman and professor of theology at Yale Divinity School, uses the metaphor of three tables--the Round Table of connection, the Kitchen Table of solidarity, and the Welcome Table of partnership--to set forth her vision of a church that is not alienating to women, nonwhites, or the laity. She envisions a church in which all work for justice and freedom and in which church leaders "make all persons welcome as they gather around God's table of New Creation." She especially criticizes the way "right" administration of sacraments "has fenced the table by requiring that only those ordained and authorized in a particular pattern officiate," and she calls for a spirituality that unites all individuals. Highly recommended for all seminary libraries and for academic and public libraries as well.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Purvis' engaging and informative study of two Atlanta churches, one Episcopal and one Presbyterian, whose senior pastors are women, is not only an excellent contribution to the study of congregational life and leadership, but also a model of ethnographic writing. The author is a good storyteller who lets the stories of these communities and their leaders unfold; there is as much to be learned from the style as from the content of the book. That is not to diminish the content, though. Two congregations is a small sample, but here it is an impressively deep one. Purvis' suggestion that "the combination of conventional roles in unconventional ways" helps "regender those roles and widen the range of possible social constructs for the process of gendering itself" is offered with appropriate caution, but it is thoroughly grounded and should prove fruitful for other researchers. Don't let the title restrict the audience; this is a gem, of interest to anyone who seeks a better understanding of communities, organizational change, or leadership. Steve Schroeder

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Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Westminster John Knox Press; 1st edition (January 1, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 066425070X
• ISBN-13: 978-0664250706
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.1 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #737,880 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

31 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Hospitality, equality, and leadership for all, January 22, 1999

By 

[e-mail] (Spartanburg, South Carolina) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Church in the Round: Feminist Interpretation of the Church (Paperback)

The Church in the Round by Letty M. Russell is an inspiring and thought provoking book. It also addresses the mundane problems that confront most parishes. It is both practical and applicable to what most local pastors must deal with and confront. However, she also has the added perspective of a female pastor serving in a male dominated institution. But, her ecclesial goals and mine (a male pastor) are the same. She desires a congregation in the round where persons are greeted and accepted with hospitality, where growth and nurture are shared, and where parishioners and clergy gather about a round table of equality, with no head nor foot. I applaud her stance for a congregational structure based on talent, abilities and shared responsibilities. Patriarchal, hierachial and pyramid organizations are counterproductive to a sense of community. This is true in both the ecclesial and secular worlds. Domination and subordination have no place anywhere, but especially in the Church. Russell even proposes the possible elimination of the ordained clergy. I do not know if I am ready to eliminate the ordained clergy, but she has certainly identified the problem. The elimination of clergy could solve the problems she states, but I think that it would create different ones. I think that it would lead to a greater privatization of faith and create parishes of like minded individuals unable to see their own prejudices. This could result in the marginalized being pushed under or completely away from the table. Someone has to have a historic and theological perspective from which to proclaim the prophetic word on behalf of the marginalized. Someone has to be an enabler of the marginalized. I agree that clergy should not dominate nor dictate, but there is a legitimate role of prophet, enabler, teacher and companion for our journey through this valley of tears. Russell's views are shaped by her community of educated, intellectual, and progressive thinkers, many of whom are seminarians, denominational leaders, and social activists. This community is blessed with an abundance of knowledgeable, skilled, and motivated persons willing to be involved in ministry. This is not the case in many blue collar parishes. There parishioners have either bought into the domination system or have been handicapped by it. Many of these victimized parishioners are unwilling or unable to be a part of a participatory democracy and shared ministry. This is especially true of mill village parishes. Yet, on the other hand, they may engage in total rebellion because the clergy are the only authority figures safe to attack. The round table approach and the circular web type organization, like the YWCA's which she wrote about, is my style of ministry. It has been received with varying degrees of acceptance, but no overwhelming success. Yet, the goal of a Church in the round is a worthy endeavor. Another important issue addressed was the doctrine of election. Russell recognized that many Christians see their religion as a grantor of privilege where the believers are blessed and the rest damned. The saved are the insiders and the others are the outsiders. Russell reminds us that Christians are called to serve, not to be served. We are not given privilege but a mission. She writes that Karl Barth reminds us, "that God's election is focused not on a particular people but on the one who represents the chosen people, Jesus Christ. Jesus himself is both the elected one and the one who in suffering, death and resurrection elects us all to faith and service" (page 171).

8 of 64 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Trash leftist feminism under the guise of Christian theology, April 7, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Church in the Round: Feminist Interpretation of the Church (Paperback)

Lesbianism and witchcraft are legitimate alternatives to Christianity because of the oppressive male patriarchy found in the Church? A priestess who doesn't feel she belongs to her church, but will not return her ordination because of her stance to further women's rights? This is the pablum of the 1990's, meaningless pandering in the name of charity and goodwill. This book is an excellent summation of where left wing theology has gone. The biggest disgrace is that this book is required reading in some of the nation's Seminaries.