What’s In A Name
By Phil Reiman

Growing up in the Church of the Brethren, having been steeped in its rich tradition, when I first heard serious talk about changing the name of our denomination because an increasing number of sisters felt excluded and oppressed by the male name "Brethren," it made perfect sense to me. I learned that it had been changed from German Baptist Brethren for reasons of inclusivity. Those who weren't German by ancestry might not feel included, and those from the wider culture who otherwise identified with the ethos of our denomination might be deterred by the ethnic exclusivity the word German engendered; thus the change.

So why not reconsider an attempt to be more inclusive now? I am alternately amazed and annoyed by the inability of some brothers and sisters in the denomination who hold to "tradition" so tightly they cannot embrace the sensitivity, liberation and empowerment which seems inherent in a more inclusive name.

I remember the irony some years ago when I attended a Standing Committee meeting where this was a hot button topic. Some people from the right and left actually came together. Some conservative people were concerned that we'd lose potential church members if we didn't change the name because it is archaic and it sounds like we are a cult, or a church of only gay men! More progressive folks felt we'd be locking out sisters (and brothers) who felt the oppression of the exclusive name.

During the ‘80s while in South Bend, Indiana, we met often in ecumenical circles. Once after a stimulating Catholic feminist theologian's presentation, we thanked her for her fine insights. She asked my wife, Louie, about her religious orientation and upon her saying she belonged to the Church of the Brethren, this theologian, looking Louie up and down said, "Well, you don't look like a Brethren to me!"

On more than one occasion while we were in Sudan, after we told a church or community leader that we were from the Church of the Brethren, they would later introduce us as people from the Church of Brothers and Sisters. We thought, "Ah, they understand."

While it is true that our theology informs our language, the converse is also true. Our language informs our theology. It's high time we get creative and improve our language when it comes to our denominational name. In ecumenical or inter-faith circles it's increasingly embarrassing and angering to have to explain this continuing oppression which really counters the strong commitment to justice and peace that so many of us feel is at the heart of our tradition -- at the heart of the Gospel!

Who knows how many potential denominational members we may have lost due to this anachronistic nomenclature. I am convinced that the refusal to change our name does not serve us well and certainly does NOT capture the radically liberating nature/ethos/message of Jesus whom virtually all of us in our denominational family seek to follow.

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