The Gender-Neutral Bible Controversy

Links updated May 2010

General Articles on Gender-Neutral Bibles

• The Gender-Neutral Language Controversy. By Michael D. Marlowe. A history of the gender-neutral movement from the 70's to the present day.
• What's Wrong with Gender-Neutral Bible Translations? By Wayne Grudem, at the Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood.
• The Inclusive Language Debate: How Should The Bible Be Translated Today? By Mark L. Strauss & David Wegener (representing different views), at the Christian Research Institute. Also here.
• Gender in Bible Translation. By Vern Poythress, Professor of New Testament interpretation at Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia.
• Biblical Revelation and Inclusive Language. A lengthy report of the Lutheran Church--Missouri Synod's Commission on Theology and Church Relations. Also here.
• The Bible and Gender-Inclusive Language. By E. Calvin Beisner.
• The Language of Canaan and the Grammar of Feminism. By Dr. Vernard Eller, Professor of Religion at LaVerne College. This is an online version of Eller's book of that title, published by Eerdmans in 1982.
• Do Inclusive-Language Bibles Distort Scripture? By Wayne Grudem and Grant Osborne (Christianity Today, October 27, 1997). Grudem argues "yes" and Osborne argues "no."
• Searching Instead for an Agenda-Neutral Bible. By Vern Poythress, published in World 13/45 (November 21, 1998). A critical review of D. A. Carson's book, The Inclusive Language Debate: A Plea for Realism (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1998) and Mark L. Strauss' Distorting Scripture? The Challenge of Bible Translation and Gender Accuracy (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 1998).
• Gender in Bible Translation: Exploring a Connection with Male Representatives. By Vern S. Poythress, published in Westminster Theological Journal 60/2 (1998). A wide-ranging discussion of theoretical and practical issues in the translation of gender-oriented language of the New Testament.

The British NIV Inclusive Language Edition of 1996.

• Femme Fatale. By Susan Olasky, at World Magazine. Olasky exposes the International Bible Society's secret plans to publish a "politically correct" revision of the NIV. Use this site's archive search to find many related articles.
• United Reformed News Service Press Releases: Three Denominations Oppose Zondervan/International Bible Society Inclusive Language Proposal; Zondervan, International Bible Society Win First Round in Ethics Charges Against World Magazine Over Inclusive Language Bible; Evangelical Press Association Apologizes for Initial Ethics Committee Report on World Magazine.
• The NIV controversy. An issue of The Journal For Biblical Manhood and Womanhood devoted to the controversy surrounding the proposed gender-neutral revision of the NIV. Includes "Guidelines for Translation of Gender-Related Language" (Colorado Springs Statement), "The Neutering of Man in the NIVI," and "A Comparison of the NIV and the NIVI."
• The Inclusive Language NIV: A timeline and explanation of the controversy. From the Council for Biblical Manhood and Womanhood. This page provides links to several key articles that appeared in WORLD magazine and responses to them from Zondervan and others.
• The New International Version: Inclusive Language Edition. A review by G. W. and D. E. Anderson, at the Trinitarian Bible Society.
• Baptist Press News Stories: Concerns by Baptists remain over gender revision of NIV. By Tammi Ledbetter. (May 15, 1997); CBT chair: 'Patriarchal' culture calls for gender-neutral Bible. By James A. Smith Sr. (May 16, 1997); Sunday School Board officials meet with NIV-related reps. By Art Toalston. (May 20, 1997); Bible society ends NIV revision; Baptist leaders laud about-face. By Art Toalston. (May 27, 1997); 12 evangelical leaders voice Bible translation consensus. By Art Toalston. (June 4, 1997); NIV publisher alleges magazine violated evangelical press code. By Art Toalston. (Jun 5, 1997); Bible society reiterates commitment to original NIV gender-specific style. By Art Toalston. (Nov 25, 1998).
• Review of D.A. Carson's The Inclusive Language Debate: A Plea for Realism. By Edward Donnelly, in the Banner of Truth magazine.
• An astounding example of academic arrogance from Craig L. Blomberg in Denver Journal 1 (1998). Blomberg rips into the "non-academics" who in their "overwhelming ignorance" do not want gender-neutral Bibles. Blomberg claims to be a "complementarian" in this article, but elsewhere he has stated his opinion that the apostle Paul "envisioned women not only as apostles, prophets, and teachers but ... ministering as evangelists, and pastors/shepherds." In connection with this, he declares that Galatians 3:28 is "programmatic, declaring that in Christ, there is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female," and he concludes that "the scriptural evidence is sufficiently ambiguous that room must be given for both complementarian and egalitarian perspectives." These are not the words of a complementarian.

Today's New International Version (2002):

• JBMW Responds to the TNIV. A thematic issue of the Journal for Biblical Manhood and Womanhood (10/2, Fall 2005) devoted to criticism of the TNIV. Includes articles by Peter R. Schemm, Russell D. Moore, John Mark Reynolds, Justin Taylor, Wayne Grudem, Vern S. Poythress, Robert L. Cole, Michael E. Travers, and Russell T. Fuller.
• TNIV's Altered Meanings: An Evaluation of the TNIV. By Vern S. Poythress (February 2005).
• A Look at Today's New International Version of the Bible. By Jack P. Lewis, published in Gospel Advocate, June 2002.
• The TNIV: Gender Accurate or Ideologically Egalitarian? By Dr. Peter Jones of Westminster Seminary in California. An article from the Journal for Biblical Manhood and Womanhood 7/2 (Fall 2002). "In eliminating all generic male references, the TNIV, like the evangelical egalitarian movement in general, appears, at this crucial point, to side with modern culture in its rejection of the very notion of male representation."
• Review of Today's New International Version by Michael Marlowe.
• Signers of the Colorado Springs Guidelines call upon the representatives from the International Bible Society who also signed this document to honor their word. (February 7, 2002)
• 110 evangelical leaders issue statement against the TNIV. (May 28, 2002)
• Southern Baptist Convention rejects the TNIV. (June 11, 2002)
• Presbyterian Church in America rejects the TNIV. (June 20, 2002)
• Forum of Bible Agencies refuses to endorse TNIV. (June 24, 2002)
• Collection of NIV/TNIV Controversy Articles. A series of highly detailed and hard-hitting reports by Art Toalston at Baptist Press (Jan 28, Jan 30, Jan 31, Feb 1, Feb 6, Feb 11, etc.)
• Word games: Why we cannot abide tinkering with the Word. By Joel Belz, at World Magazine.
• Sad day: More who once were trusted now are not. By Marvin Olasky, at World magazine.
• Five days early, Five years late. By Susan Olasky, in World, vol. 17, No. 7 (Feb. 23, 2002). "The upcoming publication of a politically correct revision of the popular New International Version Bible seems like a scene from Groundhog Day."
• The TNIV: A Review. By Jim Snapp II, at the Curtisville Christian Church in Elwood, Indiana.
• Dennis Rainey from Family Life Ministries denounces the TNIV revisers. "leaders of the TNIV signed a covenant in 1997 assuring us that gender inclusive translation would not be pursued. They gave us their word."
• Heretical Bibles. By S. M. Hutchens, in Touchstone Journal 15/3 (April 2002). "We reject the New Revised Standard Version and the reworked New International Version on the same grounds we reject the Bible used by the Jehovah's Witnesses."
• Unmanning the Bible. By S. M. Hutchens, in Touchstone Journal 15/5 (June 2002). "The goal of the translator must be to transform or reform, not submit to, a conceptually or grammatically deficient receptor language."
• An Evaluation of the 'Colorado Springs Guidelines'. By Ellis W. Deibler. Deibler, a Bible Translation Consultant with the Wycliffe Bible Translators, criticizes the Colorado Springs Guidelines from the standpoint of "dynamic eqivalence" translation theory. Also here in PDF format.
• Political Correctness and Bible Translation: A Preliminary Response to Ellis W. Deibler and A Response to Dr. Deibler on the Colorado Springs Guidelines, by Vern S. Poythress. Poythress, Professor of New Testament at Westminster Theological Seminary, defends the Colorado Springs Guidelines and criticizes Deibler's facile appeal to "dynamic equivalence."
• The International Bible Society's promotional site for the revision has the complete version online.

The New Revised Standard Version

• Sixty-Four Shadows of Man in the NRSV. By Thaddeus W. Pruss, in Catholic Insight, October 1995. "When the translation committee, in its inclusivist missionary zeal to eradicate alleged androcentrism, change the generic man in one biblical assertion to nature, in another to enemy, in the next one to human commission, in one more to human society and in the last to world, then all five assertions no longer teach us about man qua man but about five ontologically and semantically different subjects. In fact, however, the NRSV uses not five but 64 different substitute terms for man or son of man..." Also here.
• The NSRV and The REB: A New Testament Critique. By Burton H. Throckmorton (Theology Today - Vol 47, No. 3 - October 1990). A detailed and favorable review, though Throckmorton criticicizes the versions for not carrying the gender-neutral language further.
• The NRSV and The REB: A Feminist Critique. By Carole R. Fontaine (Theology Today - Vol 47, No. 3 - October 1990). Fontaine criticizes the versions for not pushing the gender-neutral language further.
• The New RSV: The Best Translation, Halfway There. by Walter Wink (in Christian Century, September 19-26, 1990 pp. 829-833). Wink gives a detailed review of the NRSV here, from a liberal point of view.
• The New Revised Standard Version: A Review. By Arthur L. Farstad, in the Journal of the Grace Evangelical Society. Farstad was the chief editor of the New King James Version.

Miscellaneous Gender-Neutral Language
and Political Correctness

PC education

• Review of F. Danker's recent revision of the BAGD Greek lexicon, by Abraham J. Malherbe of Yale University Divinity School. (Review of Biblical Literature 10/2002). Interesting discussion of some of the ways in which Danker's revison of this standard reference book (third edition, 2000) shows a "desire not to give offense to some persons in academic circles" who are interested in "inclusiveness," as Malherbe delicately puts it.
• How Have Inclusiveness and Tolerance Affected the Bauer-Danker Greek Lexicon of the New Testament (BDAG)? By Vern S. Poythress. An article from the Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society 46/4 (Dec. 2003), pp. 577-88. Detailed criticism of Danker's revised edition.
• PC and the Crisis of Liberalism. By James Kalb. From the online essays at the Canadian Conservative Forum. "Political correctness spreads, and once it arrives it stays; few like it, but no-one can do anything about it. In America most thought it was a hobbyhorse for a few cranks, while Europeans shrugged it off as an outlandish fad. We have all discovered our mistake."
• Political Correctness in Secular Education. "The politically correct of our own day seek to bring about a moral revolution by changing the way we speak and write about the world: a change of heart instigated and embodied by a change of language." (Roger Kimball)
• Psalms and Hymns and Spiritual Songs. By Dr. Barry Spurr, Senior Lecturer in English Literature in the University of Sydney, New South Wales. An article (from The Machray Review: An Online Anglican Journal) that laments the replacement of traditional liturgy and beloved hymns with "inclusive" language and inane "happy-clappy" choruses.
• The Priests for Equality Charter. "Language, seemingly innocuous and inconsequential, is in reality an area which reveals unconscious attitudes, prejudices, stereotypes and patterns of discriminatory thinking. Conversely, care in language is a first and necessary step in raising consciousness. In itself, it can help to educate us toward equality."
• The Principles of Newspeak. By George Orwell, from his book Nineteen Eighty-four. Orwell's fiction becomes more real every day. Also here.
• Femspeak. By Michael Miller, at Quackgrass press. The feminist assault on standard English becomes official thought control. In November 1994 the Calgary Board of Education imposed Policy 1028 "gender inclusive communications" on teachers, because "Language shapes and represents the way in which people think and act." The article is also available here and here.
• Feminist scholarship: a classic oxymoron? By Antonia Feitz. "The alleged 'exclusiveness' of Standard English is a cultivated sentiment of an elite minority of privileged women." Revision has "been decreed from on high, by a privileged elite which absurdly claims to be oppressed."
• A Non-Sexist Style Guide. By John M. Mulder (Theology Today - Vol 34, No. 4 - January 1978). The academic style guidelines proposed here (1978) will give the reader an idea of the academic context in which gender-neutral language translations later emerged.
• The Abolition of Man. By Sam Torode and Peggy Jackson , in WORLD magazine (July 7/13, 2002). Reports on the cult of political correctness at reputedly "evangelical" publishing houses: InterVarsity, Eerdmans, Bethany House, and Baker all expect authors to use "inclusive language."
• InterVarsity Press Style Guide (2001). A shocking example of political correctness in the so-called "evangelical" publishing industry. Even goes so far as to advise the use of the gender-neutral NRSV in biblical quotations.
• Translators and The Gender Gap. By Herbert G. Grether (Theology Today - Vol 47, No. 3 - October 1990). Grether was a member of the translation team that prepared the Old Testament portion of the Good News Bible. In this article he presents statistics for gender-neutral language in several recent versions.
• Why the Inclusive Language Lectionary? By Burton H. Throckmorton, one of the authors of the lectionary.
• "Inclusive Language": Is It Necessary? By Kenneth D. Whitehead (New Oxford Review, March 1997). Whitehead responds to arguments for gender-neutral language in the Roman Catholic Church.
• Thin Gruel: How the Language Police Drain the Life and Content from Our Texts. By Diane Ravitch, American Educator, Summer 2003. See also the related articles: Banned Words, Images, and Topics and Excised by the Language Police.
• Sensitivity Training: History and literature, Heavily Edited. By Nathan Glazer, Education Next, Fall 2003. (Review of The Language Police by Diane Ravitch.) "nothing written before the 1970s will be approved under current guidelines." Also here.
• Politically Correct Education. By Don Closson.
• Adoremus Bulletin on Biblical and Liturgical Translation. A large collection of articles on the "inclusive language" controversy in the Roman Catholic church, provided by the Society for the Renewal of the Sacred Liturgy.
• Liturgiam Authenticam. On the Use of Vernacular Languages in the Publication of the Books of the Roman Liturgy. A very interesting document issued in March 2001 by the Vatican's advisory agency for liturgical matters (the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments) that gives guidelines for the translation of the mass and of the Scriptures. The guidelines specifically disapprove of "inclusive language" translations. Also here. For a good explanation of the document see the article by Fr. Stephen Somerville in Catholic Insight, November 2001 (also here).
• Hopelessly Patriarchal. By Steve M. Schlissel, in the Chalcedon Report (Feb 1998). Briefly describes the patriarchal orientation of the Bible.
• A Shot at Inclusive Language. By Rev. William P. Terjesen.
• Against the Theory of "Sexist Language". By Dr. Kelley L. Ross, Department of Philosophy, Los Angeles Valley College. Also available here.
• Verbal Plunder: Combating the Feminist Encroachment on the Language of Theology and Ethics. Dr. Michael Bauman, Professor of Theology and Culture and Director of Christian Studies at Hillsdale College. This is an essay from Bauman's book Pilgrim Theology: Taking the Path of Theological Discovery (Zondervan, 1992).
• Political Correctness. A directory of articles on the subject from the DMOZ Open Directory Project.
• Oxford's New Pro-Homosexual Bible a Hit with 'Gay' Activists. By Al Dobras in the Culture & Family Report of Concerned Women for America, September 12, 2002. Also here. The new third edition of the New Oxford Annotated Bible perverts biblical teaching on homosexuality. "Christian" homosexual leader Troy Perry celebrates.
• The Bible as 'hate literature'? By Art Moore at World Net Daily, October 21, 2002. Canadians are about to make quoting the Bible on homosexuality a criminal offense.
• The Necessary Failure of Inclusive-Language Translations: A Linguistic Elucidation. By Paul Mankowski, S.J., professor of Hebrew at the Pontifical Biblical Institute in Rome. An article from The Thomist, No. 62, July 3, 1998. A lucid discussion of the general linguistic phenomona (eg. semantic markedness, productive morphemes, lingusitic etiquette) relevent to the 'inclusive language' debate. Also here and here.
• God and Gender in Judaism. By Matthew Berke, First Things 64 (June/July 1996): 33-38. Describes the new "gender-sensitive" High Holy Day prayerbook of Reform Judaism, with an interesting discussion of the connection of the "Mother God" concept with pantheism. Also here.
• Bibliographies on Language and Gender. Compiled by Harold F. Schiffman at the University of Pennsylvania.

The Feminization of the Church

• Sentimental Religion: The Feminization of American Christianity. By Harold Vaughan. Is Christianity only for women? Men might be forgiven for thinking so, even without the "inclusive language" Bibles. Amidst all the gushy praise-songs and therapeutic sermons, we ought to be wondering how we can begin to include the men again.
• A Sentimental Journey. By Shane Rosenthal. Describes the effeminate "precious moments" version of Christianity that is overwhelming the evangelical churches. Also here.
• The Truth About Men. By Robbie Low, Vicar of St Peter's Church, Bushy Heath UK. "if a father does not go to church, no matter how faithful his wife's devotions, only one child in 50 will become a regular worshipper. If a father does go regularly, regardless of the practice of the mother, between two-thirds and three-quarters of their children will become churchgoers."
• Is Christianity Just for Women and Sissies? By Mike Dodaro. A review of The Church Impotent: The Feminization of Christianity, by Leon J. Podles.
• The Church Impotent. By Leon J. Podles. "Despite constant feminist complaints about the patriarchal tendencies of Christianity, men are largely absent from the Christian churches of the modern Western world."
• Ecclesiastical Matriarchy. By P Andrew Sandlin, in Chalcedon Report.
• Missing Fathers of the Church: The Feminization of the Church & the Need for Christian Fatherhood. By Leon J. Podles, in Touchstone magazine. "Western Christianity has become part of the feminine world from which men feel they must distance themselves to attain masculinity." Also here.
• Revivalism and Christian Music. By Michael S. Horton. "There has been a systematic and often unwitting attempt to rid the church's praise of masculine, angular, weighty pieces that can be demanding in both style and content ... The music is soft, feminine, repetitive, shallow and romantic. That's why we don't like it."
• Worship and Inclusive Language. By Richard C. Leonard. "Feminizing the language of worship virtually guarantees that men will fall by the wayside."

Feminism in General

• The Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood. This oganization promotes the acceptance of traditional sex roles as taught in the Bible, and opposes the feminist agenda in evangelical circles. The site has many online resources, including an excellent Journal and the full text of several books: The Gender Neutral Bible Controversy, by Vern Poythress and Wayne Grudem; Recovering Biblical Manhood and Womanhood, edited by Wayne Grudem and John Piper; Man and Woman in Christ, by Stephen B. Clark; The Feminist Gospel, by Mary Kassian; Women, Creation and the Fall, by Mary Kassian; and Headship, Submission, and the Bible, by Jack Cottrell.
• The Woman's Bible. By Elizabeth Cady Stanton (1895). The famous 19th-century suffragette openly reviled the Bible as "degrading to women."
• Christians for Biblical Equality. This website is maintained by a group of feminists who consider themselves to be evangelical, and attempt to interact with the Bible in a respectful manner. They have played a leading role in the NIV inclusive language edition debate. CBE was formed in 1987 by women who had withdrawn from the Evangelical Women's Caucus (now called the Evangelical & Ecumenical Women's Caucus - see the link below) over disagreement with the apparent endorsement of lesbianism.
• Evangelical & Ecumenical Women's Caucus. "An international organization of women and men who believe that the Bible supports the equality of the sexes." Like the Christians for Biblical Equality, this organization started out pretending to be "evangelical" (Nancy Hardesty was one of the founders) and still retains the word in its name. The recent newsletters reveal how meaningless the word has become.
• The Debate Over Feminist Theology. Which View is Biblical? By Ron Rhodes, in the Christian Research Journal. Refutes the "evangelical feminist" position. Also available here.
• The Hermeneutics of Evangelical Feminism. By Paul W. Felix, in the Master's Seminary Journal 5, no. 2 (1994).
• Paul, Women, and Contemporary Evangelical Feminism. By H. Wayne House, Professor of Biblical Studies and Apologetics at Faith Seminary, Tacoma, WA. An article from Bibliotheca Sacra, Vol. 136, No. 541 (Jan 1979), p. 41. Criticizes the low view of Scripture taken by "evangelical" feminists.
• A Woman's Place: The Evangelical Debate Over the Role of Women in the Church. By Roland Cap Ehlke. Also here.
• Feminism. By Dr. Kelley L. Ross, Department of Philosophy, Los Angeles Valley College.
• Anti-Feminist Page. By Jim Kalb.
• The Absurdity of Feminism. By Jacob van Flossen. "Americans are bombarded with pleas for an egalitarian ethic. But there is no equality in nature."
• The Politics of Sex: Radical Feminism's Assault on American Culture. By Robert H. Bork. This is chapter 11 from Bork's book Slouching Towards Gomorrah: Modern Liberalism and American Decline (1996).
• The Feminist Flaw. By J. Daryl Charles, Lecturer in New Testament at Chesapeake Theological Seminary. Also here.
• The Role of Women in Worship in the Old Testament. By Dr. Bruce Waltke. A broad survey of the role of women in the Bible, with particular emphasis on the Old Testament. Adapted from a lecture given in Regent Summer School, 1992. Also here.
• Recovering Biblical Manhood and Womanhood: A Response to Evangelical Feminism. By John Piper and Wayne Grudem. (The complete book online.)
• The Role of Women in the Church. By D. Massimiliano Lorenzini. Nicely summarizes the arguments on both sides.
• Gender Passages in the NT: Hermeneutical Fallacies Critiqued. By Andreas J. Köstenberger, Westminster Theological Journal 56 (1994).
• An Open Letter to Egalitarians. Six Questions that Have Never Been Answered. By Wayne Grudem. Challenges egalitarians to provide arguments for various implausible interpretations that they commonly offer. The interpretions are shown to be nothing but exegetical chicanery.
• God's Plan for Younger Women - part 1 and Part 2. Two sermons by John MacArthur.
• God's Pattern for Wives - part 1 and Part 2. Two sermons on Ephesians 5:22-24 by John MacArthur.
• Can Civilization Survive Feminism? By Dr. Balint Vazsonyi (Family Voice, January 1999), at the website of Concerned Women for America. Also here.
• How civilizations fall. By Kenneth Minogue, in New Criterion.
• Family Issues. A collection of articles by various authors at the Heritage Foundation, documenting the bad effects on families and on our society in general of public policies shaped by the feminist agenda. Also here.
• Feminism in Family, Church and Culture. Thematic issue of Chalcedon Report, February 1998.
• Links for Christian Women. Articles that encourage Christian women to resist modern anti-biblical attitudes.

Recommended Books

• Wayne A. Grudem, Evangelical Feminism and Biblical Truth: An Analysis of More than 100 Disputed Questions (Sisters, Oregon: Multnomah, 2004). A comprehensive treatment of "evangelical" feminist interpretations. The complete book (over 800 pages) can be downloaded in PDF files here.
• Vern S. Poythress and Wayne A. Grudem, The Gender-Neutral Bible Controversy: Muting the Masculinity of God's Words. Explains very thoroughly what is wrong with tampering with gender language and other linguistic details of the Bible. Read chapter 4 of this book here.
• Mary A. Kassian, The Feminist Gospel: the Movement to Unite Feminism with the Church (Crossway Books, 1992). Kassian presents a well-documented survey of the history of "christian feminism." The facts are truly disturbing and raise serious doubts about the compatibility of feminism and Christianity.
• James E. Bordwine, The Pauline Doctrine of Male Headship: The Apostle Versus Biblical Feminists (Greenville, SC: Greenville Seminary Press, 1996). A careful study of Biblical passages that interacts with recent feminist attempts to explain them away.
• Andreas J. Köstenberger, Thomas R. Schreiner & H. Scott Baldwin, eds., Women in the Church: A Fresh Analysis of 1 Timothy 2:9-15 (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1995). ISBN: 0801020204.