Grounded in rereading 1 Timothy (I permit no woman to preach or teach) and the Garden of Eden narrative to discuss the history of misogyny that pervades Christianity (and our culture) and that serves as a context for understanding abortion legislation, it focuses on hermeneutics and invites people to engage in reimagining how we might interpret the garden story in ways that encourage us to trust women as moral agents who reflect the imago Dei.

Centering Micah 6:8 and the Sermon on the Mount to prompt us to think about the radicality of Jesus’ message that upends cultural expectations, linking that to the findings of my current research in the Abortion & Religion project which also upends cultural expectations about women who have abortions by showing that these women are thoughtful, compassionate, and caring people who make decisions to end pregnancies out of hesed (loving kindness). I end by offering that if Jesus were preaching the sermon on the mount today, he might offer a new beatitude: “Blessed are those who end pregnancies, for they will be known for their loving kindness.”

Focuses on challenging and transforming the three imaginaries that shape the conversation about abortion in our culture today – that the Bible says abortion is a sin; that people of faith are against abortion; and that women who have abortions are bad. I reclaims Ps 139 as a positive vision in support of reproductive justice and invite the congregation to embrace theologies of reproductive dignity, justice, and love.