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Scripture, rather than literature, is best resource for dealing with sexism in the Black church, keynoter says

Dr. Gladys Willis chats with seminarian Stephanie Collins at the conclusion of her seminary address.

PHILADELPHIA (March 16, 2004) – Scripture, the Word of God, is the best resource for helping believers reason together about the very real issue of sexism being applied against clergywomen in the Black church.

The Rev. Dr. Gladys Willis made the point that theological discernment gleaned from the study of scripture is a better reference point for dealing with issues like sexism in the church, than are works of literature, such as Alice Walker’s novel, The Color Purple. She described her outlook clearly to the group as a "minority response," and she noted that many use Alice Walker’s writings as a main frame of reference for reaching an understanding of sexism and abuse of women. Dr. Willis’s lecture was part of this year’s 22^nd edition of "Preaching with Power" an initiative sponsored by the Urban Theological Institute (UTI) of the seminary.

In describing her vantage point, Dr. Willis, dean of the School of Humanities and Graduate Studies at Lincoln University, said she "still recalls" classroom discussions from her seminary student days during which males and females "battled" over the role of Black women preachers in parts of the Black church. She received her M.Div. as a student of the UTI, and said in her classes "there was almost always at least one male holding a patriarchal view of the church." In such a view, she said, it is believed appropriate for a woman to "teach" but not "preach." She called for "us to reason together" about what is right, using scripture as the main point of reference. "All that we need to develop an appropriate theological view is there," she said.

Dr. Willis has taught at Lincoln since 1977. She’s also taught at Manhattan College, Rider College, Cheyney State College and Jackson State College in her native Mississippi. She has served as an education representative and investigator for the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission and currently serves as assistant pastor at First Redemption Evangelical Church in Philadelphia. Dr. Willis received her M.A. in English Literature from Michigan State University, where she was a Woodrow Wilson Fellow, and her Ph.D. in English Literature from Princeton University.

Her address, entitled "Alice Walker’s Womanist Idea and Womanist Theology: A Minority Response", is the basis for a book work that is currently in progress.