We live in a culture where “men” means “male” everywhere but in church.
I’m not suggesting we get ourselves caught up in some PC language pretzel by neutralizing bible verses or changing historical quotes like “all men are created equal.” But when we’re speaking with our own voice, let’s use the same recognizable language patterns in church that we use everywhere else.
Here are eight reasons we need to stop using “men” when we mean “people”:
Author
-
Karl produces resources for Helping Small Churches Thrive at KarlVaters.com.
He's the author of four books on church leadership. His fifth book, De-Sizing the Church: How Church Growth Became a Science, Then an Obsession, and What's Next, releases on April 2, 2024.
He also hosts a bi-weekly podcast,The Church Lobby: Conversations on Faith & Ministry. Episodes feature in-depth interviews about the topics that concern pastors, especially those who minister in a small church context.
Karl has served in small-church ministry for over 40 years, so he speaks and writes from decades of hands-on pastoral experience. He and his wife, Shelley have three children and two grandkids.