I love the women in my neighborhood book club. We have been together over 15 years and have quite a catalog of read-books between us. Every one of us leads a busy life but for one night a month we drop the mundane and come together to chat about a book we may or may not have had time to read. 

While we are mostly made up of serious readers, we are a pretty laid back group. We typically do not spend tons of time discussing the book, often giving it a cursory "yay" or "nay" and then moving on to discuss what is going on in our lives. While I consider myself one of the more dedicated readers, it is the life stories that I love hearing the most. 

For some reason, women in the context of a neighbor’s home will share some pretty intimate things. Ok, wine is usually served and it may or may not play a part in the confessions. But even those who don’t imbibe tend to share their hearts to these other women.

image from freefoto.com

I am currently reading a book called Permission to Speak Freely by Anne Jackson. Her intro begins with, “In May 2008, I asked a question on my blog, FlowerDust.net What is the one thing you feel you can’t say in the church?” She apparently received hundreds of responses, both inside and outside the Christian faith. Her book seems (I am just getting started) to ask the question “why don’t we feel “safe” in church.

I will report some of her answers in upcoming blogs. For now I ask myself what I cannot say in church. How about you, reader, do feel permission to speak freely in all settings?