Finding God in the Margins Quotes

“Jesus didn’t come to give us a kinder, gentler patriarchy or a new-and-improved version of any other social system known to humankind. In his own words, he came to bring a “kingdom that is not of this world” (John 18:36, emphasis added)—the kingdom we lost in the fall, a kingdom that is utterly foreign to us.”
― Carolyn Custis James, Finding God in the Margins: The Book of Ruth

“The mistake we so often make is to assume patriarchy – at least some softer version of it – is the Bible’s message for us. But patriarchy is not the Bible’s message. Rather, it is the cultural backdrop against which the gospel message of Jesus stands out in the sharpest relief.”
― Carolyn Custis James, Finding God in the Margins: The Book of Ruth

“The book of Ruth proves the point. “It is not good for the man to be alone” (Gen 2:18). The point being that men actually need their sisters to step up and answer God’s call on their lives.”
― Carolyn Custis James, Finding God in the Margins: The Book of Ruth

“Sometimes walking with God means learning truth requires means rethinking your entire life.”
― Carolyn Custis James, Finding God in the Margins: The Book of Ruth

“God blessed the relationship between male and female—not only in marriage but in every male/female collaboration. The Creator underscores the strategic importance of strong relationships between men and women when he says, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make an ezer kenegdo for him.” Ezer is a Hebrew noun that in the Bible always appears in a military context and is recognized as a military term.6 Considering the challenges the first man and woman faced and that a deadly Enemy was plotting an attack, it shouldn’t surprise us that YHWH would use a military word to describe the female.7 Kenegdo is another important Hebrew word that indicates the woman is the man’s full partner. She is not his inferior or his superior. She is his match.8”
― Carolyn Custis James, Finding God in the Margins: The Book of Ruth