Friday, September 25, 2020, we lost a much beloved founding member of EEWC-Christian Feminism Today. Virginia Ramey Mollenkott was a giant in the world of Christian feminism.
Virginia’s prescient biblical scholarship will remain relevant for decades to come.
We’ll never know the number of LGBTQ Christian lives saved by the groundbreaking book, Is the Homosexual My Neighbor? which was coauthored with Letha Dawson Scanzoni in 1978 (and revised in 1994). In 2001, Virginia’s Lambda Literary award-winning book, Omnigender, broke open the binary gender construct as few books had done before.
Virginia received the New Jersey Lesbian and Gay Achievement Award, a Lifetime Achievement award from SAGE, Senior Action in a Gay Environment, and the inaugural Mother Eagle Award from the Q Christian Fellowship and Christian Feminism Today in 2017.
Educational achievement includes a BA from Bob Jones University, an MA from Temple University, PhD from New York University, and an honorary DMin from Samaritan College .
Virginia authored or coauthored 13 books, edited two, and contributed to a few others.
Resources:
Virginia’s Official Website
Includes a bio, book purchase information, special articles and reviews, links to work and media posted online, links to online memorials, and memorial comments posted by users.
Share Memories of Virginia
A place on Virginia’s website to share your own memories.
Virginia’s Facebook Page
Oral History Transcript on the LGBTQ Religious Archives Network
Virginia’s Wikipedia Page
Virginia’s Archives at the Graduate Theological Union
Archive of Virginia’s Articles and Posts on Christian Feminism Today
Quotes:
“If you’ve ever read anything about ‘what the Bible says about homosexuality,’ you can trace it back to her.” — Queer Theology (via Facebook), September 27, 2020
“Virginia Mollenkott was a courageous and generous soul. … Honestly, I was a fan of their work long before they even knew I existed. Another fighter for justice has joined the ancestors. Amen.” — Rev. Dr. Pamela Lightsey (via Facebook), September 26, 2020
“A great soul, who used her own pain and struggles to enlighten, educate and empower.” — Rev. Dr. Nancy Wilson, September 26, 2020
“She was also a wonderfully supportive mentor and friend to countless people. Stories abound of how her care and friendship saved people from the throes of despair, the brink of self-destruction. Such a learned companion in struggle is a great blessing.” — Mary E. Hunt, PhD, on the WATER website.
“FaithTrust Institute shares the sorrow of Virginia Ramey Mollenkott’s friends and family at her passing. She was a great supporter of FaithTrust Institute’s work. Virginia was a powerful scholar who pushed forward feminist studies of religion and was an advocate for justice and equality.” — FaithTrust Institute
“Professor Mollenkott, you have earned your rest. We will continue the fight for you.” — Camille K. Lewis, PhD, on the What In the World Tumblr
“Scholar, sage, wise woman. Theologian. Brave heart. Honest. Full of integrity. Aware of her own failings. Generous in her encouragement and affirming of all: gay, straight, transgender, queer. She was ahead of her time, and yet, prophetically, was just in time.” — Rev. Deb Vaughn (via Facebook), September 27, 2020
“I loved this Great Woman…and she loved me. We had many deep authentic conversations about reconciling faith, gender and sexuality…and about our Many Breasted God. Rest well my Dear True Friend. Help us from where you are.” — Bishop Yvette Flunder (via Facebook), September 27, 2020
“I particularly appreciated her interpretation of Scripture based on sound scholarship regarding sexuality that revealed to me how wrong I had been in this regard. She has been a saint in my life. Now she joins that great cloud of witnesses of which the New Testament book of Hebrews speaks. Thank you Virginia for your faithful witness. You made a difference in my life and in the lives of countless other LGBTQ Christians.” — Rev. Curt Allison (via Facebook), September 26, 2020
“S/he opened so many doors for so many people. Virginia’s life started with great pain but s/he fought her way to joy. I am grateful that I got to be a part of her work and that s/he got to be a part of mine.” — Chris Paige, TransFaith (via Facebook), September 27, 2020
“Like a mother eagle, you brought us to great heights so we could see more clearly the landscape before us. Your laughter reflected the beauty. Your wit exposed the hypocrisy. Your scars revealed the dangers. You encouraged us to sing, and dance and love our bodies. ” — Deborah L Hughes (via Facebook), September 27, 2020
“I am especially indebted to Virginia’s groundbreaking work on the Divine Feminine. From her book The Divine Feminine: The Biblical Imagery of God as Female, I learned that female names and images of God are in the Bible. — Rev. Dr. Jann Aldredge-Clanton, on the Memories page on Virginia’s website
“She was a great soul who used her own struggles with gender nonconformity and sexual orientation to educate and empower others. A giant of the 20th century, she was way ahead of her time yet down-to-earth, writing about the Bible in a style that was scholarly yet accessible.” — Kittredge Cherry, on the QSpirit.net website
Thank you for this beautiful collection of tributes to Virginia as well as other resources.
Excellent tribute to a person who opened hearts and minds and paved the path for many.