Women in the Church

One of the biggest struggles I've had with scripture is Paul's beliefs on the role of women in the church.

Upon doing some recent research on this, I've found that my own personal beliefs would be called "egalitarian." This means that I think women are equal when it comes to participation and leadership in the church. I believe that women are capable and entitled to serve in any role in the church that men do, be it in administration or leadership or any other aspect.

The other main view is complementarianism, which asserts that women are suited to serve in specific roles in the church and men in others. Many complementarians believe that the specific roles open to women do not include leadership, at least on a major scale. Many complementarians allow women to serve in some administrative roles, and even pastoral leadership of women and children, but most roles which have women leading or teaching men are out of the question.

The question of egalitarianism versus complementarianism is a tricky one, as it is largely based on perceptions of cultural relevance.

From 1 Timothy 5: "¹¹A woman should learn in quietness and full submission. ¹²I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man; she must be silent. ¹³For Adam was formed first, then Eve. ¹⁴And Adam was not the one deceived; it was the woman who was deceived and became a sinner. ¹⁵But women will be saved through childbearing—if they continue in faith, love and holiness with propriety."

Paul is upfront about his opinion on the role of women in the church. While he sometimes notes that he is giving his own personal opinion rather than God's word in his discussions about women and marriage, he does not do so here, which limits the argument for subjectivity in Paul's teachings. There is the point that he phrases the statement, "I do not permit..." and that he sites Eve's temptation as female weakness, even though Adam too was deceived in turn. Nitpicking such ambiguities isn't my personal goal - I prefer to look more objectively at the relevance in a drastically different time and place.

The question is, are Paul's beliefs relevant to the modern church? Women in his day were not usually well-educated, especially in matters of theology. The culture allowed them the roles he describes, centered around family life. And, considering the history of shrine prostitution in the idolatrous worship that enticed the Israelites before and during these times, it may seem that the safe way to keep sex out of worship was to set gender boundaries in leadership.

Modern women, however, at least in Western society, are just as educated as their male colleagues. This is true not only of academia, but of theology. Because of this access to education, women are also involved in careers outside the home. And while the Israelite community seemed more concerned with the moral capacity of adulterous women, our culture today is at least equal in this respect; the glorification of the "womanizer" in characters such as James Bond may even lend to the idea that men have the more compromised moral fabric nowadays.

I do believe, as Paul writes one book later in 2 Timothy 3:16, that "all Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness." However, there are clearly scriptural guidelines which are specific to certain situations. Acts 10:11-15 gives us a clear example: ¹¹He saw heaven opened and something like a large sheet being let down to earth by its four corners. ¹²It contained all kinds of four-footed animals, as well as reptiles of the earth and birds of the air. ¹³Then a voice told him, "Get up, Peter. Kill and eat." ¹⁴"Surely not, Lord!" Peter replied. "I have never eaten anything impure or unclean." ¹⁵The voice spoke to him a second time, "Do not call anything impure that God has made clean." Here, Peter is being shown a difference between the culture that received the restriction from eating such things, and between his current culture. On the issue of circumcision, Paul himself argued in favor of cultural relevance. Of course, a major difference here is that of the old and new covenants - the earlier one using the law to illustrate the fallen state of man, and the new to illustrate the Kingdom of God invading the culture through Jesus' sacrifice.

While we are still currently under the new covenant under which Paul gives guidelines for womens' roles in the church, I believe the difference in relevance applies. Paul's teachings at that time were meant to help the believers in that situation live in a way that would not jeapordize their faith or teachings; which would not lead them into temptation. And while having women who weren't taught to teach scripture in leadership positions doesn't suit that purpose, women today are so equipped.

Furthermore, it seems some women of Paul's day were so equipped, and served in various leadership roles as a result. Women such as Lydia, Phoebe, Priscilla (along with her husband, Aquilla), Mary, Tryphena and Tryphosa, and Persis are listed as being "women who work hard in the Lord." (Romans 16) I doubt very much that they received such mention for their hard work in bearing children, especially since it is mentioned that some hosted churches in their homes and risked their lives for believers such as Paul himself.

Based on these scriptures, I believe women should be anything but silent in the church. 1 Corinthians 12 states: ¹²The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ. ¹³For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink... ²⁷Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. ²⁸And in the church God has appointed first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then workers of miracles, also those having gifts of healing, those able to help others, those with gifts of administration, and those speaking in different kinds of tongues. ²⁹Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? ³⁰Do all have gifts of healing? Do all speak in tongues? Do all interpret? ³¹But eagerly desire the greater gifts." This verse describes the different giftings and roles given to followers of Christ, with an emphasis on equality (verse 13). I believe any woman who is a follower of Christ is included in these giftings and callings, and as a good steward of the Gospel which has been revealed to her, has a responsibility to put them to use in the church. I believe a woman who is a follower of Christ may be an apostle, a prophetess, a teacher, a worker of miracles, a healer, a speaker of tongues, an interpreter - and should eagerly desire the greater gifts.

What do you believe?