Disbanded Brothers – Has a ‘Feminised’ Church Alienated Men in the UK?

CONTENTS
Preface ...………..……………………………………..……...2
List of Tables ………………………………………………….5
List of Figures ………………………………………………...5
1. Introduction .......................................................................6
2. Literature Review .……………………………………………7
3. The Gender Gap Measured (and Explained?) .….….…10
3.1 Measuring the Gender Gap .………………..………….10
3.1.1 Church Censuses …………………...…………...10
3.1.2 General Population Surveys ……...…………….11
3.1.3 Local Case Studies ….……………..……………11
3.1.4 Summary …………………………………………11
3.2 Key Variations …………..…………...………………….12
3.2.1 Variations by Region .……………..…………….12
3.2.2 Variations by Age ………………………………..12
3.2.3 Variations by Denomination .…………..……….13
3.2.4 Variations by Churchmanship ………………….13
3.3 Conventional Explanations of the Gender Gap ………14
3.3.1 Demographic Factors .………………..…………14
3.3.2 Social and Cultural Factors .…………..……..…15
3.3.3 The ‘Nature of Men’ ……………………..………17
4. Feminisation Alleged and Defined ...............................18
4.1 Allegations of Feminisation .……………………………18
4.2 A Derived Definition of Feminisation ….………………19
4.3 Aspects of Feminisation ...…………………………..….19
4.3.1 Church Worship ……………………………….…20
4.3.2 Church Activities …………………..…….………22
4.3.3 Church Preaching .………………..……..………23
4.3.4 Language and Symbols .………..………………23
4.3.5 Leadership ….…………………..………..………24
4.3.6 Emasculation of Jesus .………..………..………25
4.3.7 Spirituality .……………………..…………………26
4.4 Some Survey Indicators of Feminisation ………......…27
5. Androgyny – A Further Explanation? ...........................29
5.1 Denial of Genderal Differences .…………….…….……29
5.2 Some Survey Indicators of Genderal Differences ...…31
5.3 Consequences of Denying Genderal Differences .......33
5.4 Concluding Remarks …………………………….……...34
6. Conclusion ……………………………………….…….……35
Bibliography ...................................................................36
Appendix 1: Survey Aims and Methodology ….......…..43
Appendix 2: Attitudes to Church – 2007 Survey ..........44
Appendix 3: Survey Results ……………………..………47
Appendix 4: Some Reflections on Male Spirituality ….53
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