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Preface                                                    xv

             potency to fulf il Śrīla Prabhupāda’s mission of spreading Kṛṣṇa
             consciousness all over the world.*

           In On Speaking Strongly in Śrīla Prabhupāda’s Service, I wrote:

             According to the principle of unity and diversity that Śrīla
             Prabhupāda often stressed, the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement
             can and should accommodate a variety of approaches toward
             the practice and propagation of devotional service. Yet in many
             cases the dif ference is not simply of approach, but a fundamental
             divergence in understanding what Kṛṣṇa consciousness entails
             and of the very purpose of the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. †

           I respectfully submit that it is unrealistic to cite “unity in
           diversity” without conceding that a fundamental divergence
           exists within ISKCON over the issue of gender roles.

           That there is a fundamental divergence is upheld by outside
           scholars:

             The issue of women in [ISKCON] has been troublesome for many
             years, both within its own boundaries and in the depictions of
             those outside it. For large numbers of devotees, predominately
             women but some men, it has been a deeply painful matter, and
             has been perhaps second only to the issue of the status and role
             of the guru in threatening the future of the movement. 1

             The debate about the position of women in  ISKCON is so
             contentious that some would question the need to air the
             subject in this journal at all, while others would object if we
             did not. It is difficult to ignore the subject since approximately

           * Lecture: How to Glorify Śrīla Prabhupāda <www.bvks.com/2180>
           † Lecture: Limitations of Unity in Diversity <www.bvks.com/20062>

           1. “The Debate About Women In The Hare Kṛṣṇa Movement,” by Kim
           Knott. ISKCON Communications Journal #3.2, Jul/Dec 1995. [Also featured
           in Bhaktivedanta Vedabase]
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