Here's the post:
____________________________________
I affirm women in all roles of ministry leadership on the following basis:
1. Women arguably play every such role in Scripture except one. That's the OT priestly role that Hebrews 7 says is definitively fulfilled in Christ (so doesn't apply to this conversation).
They are apostles (Junia), deacons (Phoebe), teachers (Priscilla), and arguably overseers and elders (Lydia, Priscilla, Nympha). They are supreme political and military leaders (Deborah) and the highest spiritual authority in the land (Huldah).
2. Theologically, women in ministry leadership reflects redemption from the Fall (a clear Christian and kingdom value) and is a natural consequence of the resurrection and Pentecost (Acts 2:17; Gal. 3:28). It also reflects the kingdom trajectory, where women are not "given" in marriage (Mark 12:25).
3. Counterarguments are either unbiblical or single-text prooftexts taken out of context. For example, the Bible never connects the question of husband headship to this question (thus those arguments are not biblical). 1 Corinthians 14 cannot be about ministry because it assumes 1 Corinthians 11 where women speak in prayer and prophetically speak in worship.
1 Timothy 2:12 is the only verse that even sounds like it would prohibit female leadership and 1) it is about the husband-wife relationship, 2) the verb authentein is strong and shouldn't apply to men or women in a marital relationship, 3) parts of the verse are unclear (women saved through childbearing), arguably cultural (birth order), and possibly situational (Artemis cult, false-teaching at Ephesus). In short, this verse is unclear and exceptional. You never base a theology on a single verse, especially when your interpretation would conflict with the whole tenor of biblical theology and practice.
1 Timothy 3 assumes that most overseers and deacons will be male (and they have been) but says nothing about precluding women as overseers or deacons.
4. Women have played leadership and ministry roles in the early centuries of the church (e.g., bishop as late as the 800s). The Wesleyan Methodist Church supported women's ordination as early as the 1850s.
5. It is the experience of thousands of women that they are called to ministry (which makes perfect sense). Be careful not to oppose God. Attributing to the devil what is the work of the Spirit is blaspheming the Holy Spirit.
______________________________________
2. Because the tweet/post went viral, I quickly wrote up the innards of the argument, one of course that I have been refining for the last twenty years. Here is the book that resulted (picture above).
3. I did finish the microcourse on women in ministry leadership. It should be public on Kingswood Learn tomorrow or Tuesday (I'll try to come back and insert link). I'm the tour guide, but it features JoAnne Lyon, Christy Lipscomb, Carla Working, Miranda Cruz, and Katie Lance.
4. I finished a course for Kingswood Learn and Campus toward ordination, Wesleyan Church History and Discipline, featuring Bud Bence and Mark Gorveatte. It should be up this week as well, I think. You will be able to take it for free. It will be a modest sum if you want it for ordination ($350 Canadian, I think). Then an upcharge of $550 from there to get academic credit. This is the kind of thing I think colleges/seminaries should be doing to influence, get name recognition, and attract students.
5. I had a chapter in an Oxford book come out this week, "Hebrews -- Contested Issues." This article was finished about a year ago and commissioned about five years ago. It's my latest scholarly work. It represents the state of Hebrews research circa 2023.
6. Finally, yesterday was the Crossroads District Conference. Mark Gorveatte ran an extremely tight ship. A model for District Conference. 3 hours with a break.
7. This week I hope to finish a Theology of Holiness course with Chris Bounds. Would love to publish my own version, previously started and mentioned here as well.
No comments:
Post a Comment