Eunuchs on My Mind

We’ve all heard it said that God works in mysterious ways. Humorously, two apparently unrelated events recently found synchronicity around the word “eunuch.”

I recently had cause to investigate the definition of “eunuch” as it may pertain to homosexuals, priests and the castrati. I blogged on this subject earlier (see “Pastoral Counseling and the Old Testament”) and so will not go into the details here. That investigation had to do with the character Joseph in the Book of Genesis. I also recently had cause to address the subject of feminist theology and the role women played in the Hebrew Bible.

Here’s the coincidence: While attending the AAPC Central Region Conference at Garrett Theological Seminary I stepped into the library and looked into the box of books available for exchange. Right at the top of the stack was a book by Uta Ranke-Heinemann titled Eunuchs for the Kingdom of Heaven: Women, Sexuality, and the Catholic Church.

This rather ardent text examines a variety of subjects surrounding sex, but especially the role of women and gay men as eunuchs throughout Judeo-Christian history. (It also discusses onanism if anyone is interested.) Although ostensibly focused on the Catholic Church, it extensively examines gender issues in the Hebrew Bible and links to ancient religions from nearby nations.

Just as ancient contributors to the Hebrew Bible appear to have had few reservations about altering history to advance a particular narrative – the Deuteronomist comes to mind – I believe we have license to look back and interpret the stories in ways that have relevance to our lives today. This is partially what Eunuchs for the Kingdom of Heaven does.