The Future of the Church and Gender Dynamics: With Dr. Joy Qualls"

<p>I talk with Dr. Joy Qualls, a Biola communications professor and author of God Forgive Us for Being Women, about what drew her into studying gender and the church and why the gap between what we claim theologically and what we practice creates hardship. We discuss Pentecostal history of women’s leadership, how movements often lose egalitarian practice when they institutionalize, and how seeking broader evangelical acceptance can weaken distinctive Pentecostal theology and hermeneutics. Dr. Qualls also shifts to “next generation” theology, arguing kids, youth, and young adults are the church now, not just the future, and that language shapes who is heard and seen as a leader. She critiques segregating children’s and youth ministry from the gathered church and warns the church is losing women by limiting their callings, urging intergenerational worship and space for Spirit-led voices.</p>