Discussions about gender continue in many Christian denominations. With good people and solid arguments on each side of the divide, there seems to be little hope for a synthesis or even constructive dialogue.

In Finally Feminist, John Stackhouse proposes a way forward by affirming both the patriarchal and the feminist (or complementarian and egalitarian) reading of Scripture. He argues that these emphases exist side by side in the Bible. He then provides biblical, theological, and practical arguments for his own understanding: Equality is the biblical ideal, but patriarchy is allowed and regulated by a God who has larger kingdom purposes in mind. Stackhouse then tests his understanding by exposing it to the objections of other theories and concludes with two appendixes that tease out some practical implications.

Thought provoking and distinctive in its clarity and honesty, Finally Feminist will be a useful text for college and seminary courses, for pastors and church leaders, and for anyone interested in deepening their understanding of the role of women in the church and in society.

This is a clear and engaging articulation of a fresh set of evangelical perspectives on gender. Full of intriguing theological and exegetical suggestions and written with disarming frankness, Stackhouse’s book seeks to stimulate good argument and counterargument, and it surely deserves to be debated long and hard.–John Webster, professor of systematic theology, University of Aberdeen

Despite its title, readers should not come to Finally Feminist with expectations of any final, watertight answer to the gender debate. A practical theologian, Stackhouse considers both complementarian and egalitarian views of women’s roles and comes up with a paradigm that is evenhanded, orthodox, contemporary, and temporary. That is, he uses historical and eschatological lenses to look to both the past and the future to form a realistic model for Christian men and women in the present.–Luci Shaw, writer in residence, Regent College; author of The Crime of Living Cautiously