{"id":20283,"date":"2024-01-10T13:18:48","date_gmt":"2024-01-10T18:18:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/news\/?p=20283"},"modified":"2024-01-10T13:18:48","modified_gmt":"2024-01-10T18:18:48","slug":"uk-based-methodist-churchs-inclusive-language-guide-suggests-getting-rid-of-husband-and-wife","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/news\/2024\/01\/uk-based-methodist-churchs-inclusive-language-guide-suggests-getting-rid-of-husband-and-wife","title":{"rendered":"UK Based Methodist Church\u2019s Inclusive Language Guide Suggests Getting Rid of \u201cHusband\u201d and \u201cWife\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The Methodist Church of Great Britain has released an \u201cInclusive Language Guide<\/a>\u201d with a long list of potentially offensive terms Christians ought to reconsider using. \u201cAs Christians, we need to have the courage for conversations that can sometimes be difficult, to recognise that we sometimes exclude people, to listen with humility, to repent of any hurtful language and to take care with how we listen and what we say or write, in the Spirit of Christ,\u201d the guide begins. It stated that using inclusive language was a way of being \u201cmore aware.\u201d \u201cThis guide signposts organisations with specific knowledge and experience of including particular groups of people who have been, or still sometimes find themselves, marginalised or left out of mainstream language,\u201d it added.<\/p>\n

The list is divided into sections, beginning with a general section that suggests avoiding terms like \u201chusband\u201d or \u201cwife.\u201d \u201cTerminology such as \u2018husband\u2019 and \u2018wife\u2019 may sound inoffensive but it makes assumptions about a family or personal life that is not the reality for many people,\u201d it stated. Other sections deal with more specific areas, such as ageism, \u201canti-racist\u201d language, language for dealing with disabled and neuro-diverse people, gendered language and language on sexuality, mental health, and trauma. For gender neutral language, it recommends avoiding terms that may favor one gender over another, such as terms like \u201cguys\u201d and recommends words like \u201cteammates,\u201d \u201cpeople,\u201d or \u201ccolleagues.\u201d It also recommends avoiding certain gendered phrasing such as \u201cmanning the front desk,\u201d which it says can make some people feel excluded. The guide suggests asking for the preferred pronouns of acquaintances and that pastors should give their preferred pronouns. In further sections, it recommends referring to someone as an \u201censlaved person\u201d rather than a \u201cslave\u201d because \u201cBeing a slave is not the essence of a person\u2019s being; they were enslaved by others.\u201d In referencing God, it recommends avoiding words like \u201cencircled\u201d or \u201cembraced\u201d by God\u2019s love as it \u201cmay be triggering to people who have experienced intimate abuse.\u201d<\/p>\n

The denomination voted to allow same-sex marriage in 2021, becoming the largest denomination in Great Britain to do so. A denomination spokesperson told The Christian Post<\/em><\/a> that the guide is meant to foster relationships within the church. \u201c<\/em>We are proud of our Inclusive Language Guide. It helps the Church hold conversations without making assumptions or inadvertently causing upset,\u201d the spokesperson said. The spokesperson also said that couples married in the church would tell pastors how they would like to be referred to. However, Tory MP Nigel Mills, mocked<\/a> the guidelines. \u201cAll these phrases are perfectly normal, and I can\u2019t see how anyone would be offended by their use.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Methodist Church of Great Britain has released an \u201cInclusive Language Guide\u201d with a long list of potentially offensive terms Christians ought to reconsider using. \u201cAs Christians, we need to have the courage for conversations that can sometimes be difficult, to recognise that we sometimes exclude people, to listen with humility, to repent of any…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":664,"featured_media":20286,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fbia_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-20283","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nUK Based Methodist Church\u2019s Inclusive Language Guide Suggests Getting Rid of \u201cHusband\u201d and \u201cWife\u201d<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The Methodist Church of Great Britain has released an \u201cInclusive Language 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