I have landed in this camp (so far I may be the only one here) because it is the only way I can make sense of Scripture, history, and my experience in the real world. I understand the implications of 1 Timothy 2, but I have to balance that with other passages where women were not only not silent, but preached, led and held positions of authority over men. From Miriam to Deborah to Huldah to Priscilla to Phoebe to the daughters of Philip (Acts 21:9), some women in some contexts prophesy (preach), teach, hold office and lead. I can’t accept an argument that says women are forbidden to hold certain offices, have authority over men, or preach when there are clear examples in the Bible of women doing all of the above, seemingly with God’s full blessing.
I also recognize that in some cultures and some contexts the fact that a woman is leading could overshadow the presentation of the Gospel. We have to remember that at the end of the day, the Gospel trumps all other concerns. That is why Jesus did not stand up to the horrible abuses of the Roman government and Paul did not advocate for the end of slavery. They were both focused on the main thing, the hope of the Gospel.
Paul said he became all things to all people so that by all means he might save some. His primary concern was “Christ in you, the hope of glory.” I suspect in ancient Greek, Roman and Jewish culture, the most effective messenger for the Gospel was often a man because of the patriarchal bent of society. I do not think that is always the case in every context and culture. Neither, it seems, did Paul.
I have been watching from the sidelines as Southern Baptists tear each other apart over this issue. There was a huge uproar when Beth Moore preached at a church on a Sunday morning, and subsequently left the Southern Baptist denomination over the fallout. The roar got even louder when Pastor Rick Warren announced Saddleback Church ordained three women as pastors. Seminary president and Southern Baptist Convention President candidate Albert Mohler has led the charge against women preaching or leading in SBC churches (except in narrowly defined roles), recently saying,
“If you look at the denominations where women do the preaching, they are also the denominations where people do the leaving.”
The irony of this statement is overwhelming when you realize that over the past 15 years, SBC has lost 2.3 million members, 14% of its total membership, while adhering to a strict complementarian standard. At the same time, what is being called “Spirit-empowered Christianity” (aka Pentecostal and Charismatic), which is almost entirely egalitarian in practice, has exploded in growth all over the world.
The current SBC President, J.D. Greear, along with all of the other candidates to succeed him, agree with Albert Mohler that women preaching and leading above certain levels in the church is a line in the sand they will not cross. While the SBC has to determine the future of the SBC, it seems from the outside that this issue is overshadowing the mission to bring the hope of Jesus to a lost and dying world. The message I fear is being unintentionally amplified is that men simply want to maintain authority over women.
That is why I am now a complegalitarian. I believe God created men and women with different gifts and abilities. I think some women are gifted by their creator to lead in some circumstances, and some men are gifted by their creator to lead in other circumstances. I think in some contexts the practice of women leading men can so overshadow the message of the Gospel that it can be destructive to mission of the church, and I believe in other contexts the practice of barring women from certain levels of leadership and preaching can also be destructive the mission of the church. I think this is why Paul gives Timothy instructions that limit women’s roles in the church and in Romans commends women for filling those very roles. I think Paul may have been the first complegalitarian.
‘So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. Do not cause anyone to stumble, whether Jews, Greeks or the church of God — even as I try to please everyone in every way. For I am not seeking my own good but the good of many, so that they may be saved.’ 1 CORINTHIANS 10:31-33 (NIV)
This article originally appeared here.
