Posted on 08/29/2026 9:45:13 AM PDT by Republican Wildcat
A Nashville pastor is facing scrutiny after teaching that God once had a wife named Asherah who was later written out of the Bible. Zach Helton, co-pastor of Glendale Baptist Church, a congregation associated with the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship and the Alliance of Baptists, made the claims during a recent sermon. Helton told his congregation that Asherah was the "female divine presence who was worshipped alongside Adonai" and the ancient consort of God before biblical authors concealed her identity.
Helton's church bio states he is "deeply shaped by the teachings of Jesus, Buddhist practice, mysticism, and perennial wisdom over any particular religious expression." He condemned King Josiah for destroying idols and Asherah poles during his reign, lamenting the impact it would have on young Israelite girls who needed a feminine deity to look up to. Helton argued that Josiah's reforms were motivated by a desire to consolidate political power, not theological purity.
The pastor claimed that ancient Israel worshipped not only Yahweh but Yahweh and Asherah together, and that the prophetic literature shows nobody had a problem with that. He asserted that scriptures were modified and history rewritten to eliminate the divine feminine, blaming "fragile male egos" for the change. "Can you imagine for a minute being a woman in seventh-century BCE Israel?" Helton asked his congregation.
Critics have pointed out that nowhere in the Bible is God said to have a wife, and that Asherah is consistently presented as a false idol. One response noted, "Asherah is not Eve, nor is she the wife of God for God does not have a wife." The theory Helton presented, while discussed in some academic circles, remains highly controversial and is rejected by orthodox Christian theology
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John 1:12, Romans 8:14-17, 1 John 3:1-2, Galatians 4:6-7, and some other verses are what are foundational to that belief.
Yeah, that's how you know most people in the Hebrew world were involved in the practice. No point in telling people to not do something they are already not doing. My point is that people with a religious axe to grind often deliberately misrepresent what most Hebrew people were doing at the time.
What the pastor is saying is accurate.
Stating that God was married to another deity named Asherah and condemning King Josiah for tearing down the Asherah poles, etc. is not accurate Christian doctrine.
Oh they have Scripture. But there are more passages supporting “whosoever” than elect. I dug out my Bible from Seminary days, and it brought back memories of student discussions and Theology classes. Our Theology professors were 50/50 on the subject.
When other college kids in the ‘60s and ‘70s were sitting around dorms discussing Vietnam, we were doing the same except our topics were situational ethics and Calvinism.
Our ladies Book Club at church is reading “Humble Calvinism”, which is both interesting and humorous. The Calvinists in the group seem to worship Calvin and the Reformed movement more than God; they’re obsessed. It’s their foundation, and they’re a little uppity about it. Weird..
I asked the group whether you’re TULIP, four points, or three points, would that change how you feel about witnessing to EVERYONE, or praying for the salvation of EVERYONE?
It’s an interesting topic, but basically navel gazing. How you feel about Calvin doesn’t change your salvation status.
Back to this article...since the pastor of this church condemns “removing” Asherah and condemns King Josiah for tearing down the Asherah polls, is his church now going to hold services to “Asherah”? If not, why not? If he believes this deity does exist and should be worshipped as this sermon implies...
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