My assignment is to talk with you about sex and gender in the context of our larger reflection

on Christianity and liberalism. I won't pay a lot of attention to liberal political philosophy

or to political liberalism. John Stuart Mill's social philosophy will provide the background,

backbone of the kind of liberalism I'll discuss.

I will be ecumenical about Christianity.

We're in the United States.

The United States was founded as a multi-confessional nation.

In this sense, the no establishment clause of our Constitution touches on some of our deepest roots as a nation.

Personally, I've spent much of my life thinking that the incarnation was unimaginably important,

the love and grace of God incomprehensible, and the possibility of salvation miraculous and wonderful.

I have never been able to quite shake the sense that it would be odd if a single sort of

system of human institutions with its homely fragmentation and strife over doctrine, its predictable divisions over mundane matters,

its occasionally corrupt institutions and its spotty history had sole and absolute authority over these aspects of God's relation with humankind.

Beyond this, I do not think that long histories of war and religious persecution

initiated or perpetuated by one or another Christian institution,

part of the history behind the no establishment clause in the U.S. Constitution,

are to anyone's credit.

I take it that the strong central threading Christianity is the conviction that Jesus died for each of us and through his sacrifice

made possible the forgiveness of sin and by grace life with God. Accordingly, I will allow that self-proclaimed Christians are Christian,

and assume that making determinations beyond this is God's work, not mine.

And then there's thought about sex and gender.

I'll spend most of my time on that.

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