A WOMAN'S PLACE
by Richard Burkard
As of early 2012 when I'm writing this, the United States has no elected female Presidents. Female Vice Presidential candidates from the major parties are 0-for-2. And plenty of members in Sabbath-keeping Church of God groups probably prefer it that way.
How well I remember the local church leader (an Ambassador College graduate, soon to become a deacon) who told me three decades earlier if a woman became President, it probably "would be time to leave the country." Yet he said that during the era when Margaret Thatcher was British Prime Minister - an "Iron Lady" Conservative, not a "bleeding-heart" Labor Party liberal.
The old Worldwide Church of God was quite the conservative place, when it came to women. It fought the "women's rights" movement, even though it tried to encroach at times. Herbert Armstrong went back and forth about whether WCG should have a female version of Spokesman Club, much less letting women wear makeup like "painted hussies." (Yes, he actually used that phrase in a sermon. My notes from a 1983 message sent to all WCG congregations have those words in quotes, with all the letters capitalized.)
But those barriers eroded as WCG became GCI (Grace Communion International) - especially after Joseph Tkach Jr. took charge in 1995. One unconfirmed story claims when Joseph Tkach Sr. died, daughter-in-law Tammy prayed aloud for the church mindset about women to change. And indeed, it has. Now GCI ordains female elders who give sermons -- something practically all WCG spinoff groups have resisted.
Yet the level of resistance varies from group to group. United Church of God has lowered its guard to allow "soundbites" by female members during recorded presentations played during worship services and the Feast of Tabernacles. Others allow women to comment openly during Bible studies, or read Scriptures selected by male leaders. And women in many groups now bring up prayer requests in the middle of services, even if they're not allowed to give sermonettes or sermons.
What's going on here? Has the world intruded so much that it's winning, even in Sabbath-keeping law-abiding Church of God groups? Have certain key verses about women which were cited often in the 20th century been thrown aside? Have they been "reinterpreted" -- or are critics right in contending they've been twisted and misunderstood?
I brought up this issue in one group Bible study. One week later, group leaders (at least two of them ordained ministers) came loaded with Scriptures relating to what women can and cannot do in the church. Let's look at those vital verses with an open mind and Bible, to see if times really have changed - and whether or not they've changed to draw closer to God's will.
Will You Stifle Yourself!?!?
When the issue of a woman's role in church came up, the group was discussing I Corinthians 14. The apostle Paul's instructions seem straightforward and clear, and many COG's still apply them that way when it comes to preaching during a service:
"Let your women keep silence in the churches: for it is not permitted unto them to speak; but they are commanded to be under obedience, as also saith the law. And if they will learn anything, let them ask their husbands at home: for it is a shame for women to speak in the church" (I Corinthians 14:34-35, KJV).
Was this Paul's command, as "apostle in charge?" Well, hold on - my King James Bible (which we'll use predominantly, to avoid arguments over translational bias) shows "they are commanded" is in italics. That means the translators added those words for clarity, and they were not in the original Greek. But other translations agree with that intent; the New International Version has "they are not allowed to speak" - and even the Contemporary English Version says "they must keep quiet and listen...."
From the Top
So what "law" is Paul talking about? Most reference Bibles tie verse 34 to Genesis 3 - where the topic is not really silence, but what the Moffatt translation calls "a subordinate place." In Genesis 3:16 God tells the woman Eve, "....your desire shall be to your husband, and he shall rule over you."
The traditional Armstrong-ite teaching put it another way: "There's top-down government in God's Church." From Father to Son (Jesus) to apostles and other ranks (Ephesians 4:11) -- and by extension in the family. We read later in Ephesians: "For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything" (Ephesians 5:23-24).
This line of reasoning is probably what my church friend had on his mind 30 years ago -- along with Isaiah 3:12: "As for my people, children are their oppressors, and women rule over them. O my people, they which lead you cause you to err, and destroy the way of your paths."
Yet when it comes to world politics, several of the best-known female leaders of our time have been on the conservative side which COG's tend to support. Beyond Margaret Thatcher, groundbreaking German Chancellor Angela Merkel is a Christian Democrat - the daughter of an Evangelical (Protestant) pastor. (Isn't the Catholic Church supposed to be a prophetic "fallen woman" of Revelation 17?) And for a few months, the first female Prime Minister in Canada's history was "Progressive Conservative" Kim Campbell.
These female national leaders should have challenged the mindset of traditional male-dominated COG's. But where does this leave women in the church, in light of Paul's instructions in I Corinthians 14?
"Your Daughters Shall Prophesy"
At the Bible discussion I attended, one minister noted Paul also wrote I Corinthians 11. He emphasized verses 5 and 10: "And every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head - it is just as though her head were shaved.... For this reason, and because of the angels, the woman ought to have a sign of authority on her head."
This indicates women can "prophesy" - and in fact, Acts 2:17 declares they "shall prophesy" in the "last days." Strong's Exhaustive Concordance indicates that word can mean "to foretell events, divine, speak under inspiration, exercise the prophetic office." (We have a separate article on this website about what prophets do.) But the minister left out I Corinthians 11:3, where Paul reinforces an "order of things" in society. "But I would have you know that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is the man, and the head of Christ is God."
So whether some women like it or not, the Bible shows men are supposed to be "the head" of women. And whether it comes to marriage, church affairs or the human anatomy, concordances show "head" has the same straightforward meaning -- the top or primary place.
But Paul's advice in I Corinthians leaves us in a quandary. How can women "prophesy" in chapter 11, when they're told in chapter 14 it's "disgraceful" (to use NIV and CEV wording) for them to speak in church? Strong's notes the Greek word for "speak" here can mean not only preach, but also "say, speak, talk, tell, utter" - indicating any kind of verbal comment. And Paul's instructions were written long before someone like Joyce Meyer or Paula White (much less Adventist standard-bearer Ellen White) could host daily national broadcasts.
One man in my Bible discussion noted the time of Paul was one of house churches. He speculated women probably talked much more at meetings they hosted in the first century. This could explain how both Priscilla and husband Aquila could have "expounded.... the way of God more perfectly" to visiting zealous preachers (Acts 18:24-26). It might also explain the four daughters of Philip the evangelist "which did prophesy" in Acts 21-8-9.
But is a better balance found in church groups which hold activities especially for women, outside formal worship services or Sabbath meetings? GCI took this approach before ordaining female pastors. A few COG groups do this now, with "women's weekends." And Christian author/teacher Beth Moore built her ministry on holding Friday-Saturday seminars, not serving as a Pastor on Sundays.
Moore also has led Tuesday night Bible studies at a Baptist church in Houston. This certainly toes the line of a woman speaking in church - one step beyond the person called "Nympha and the church in her house" in the NIV rendering of Colossians 4:15. The King James refers to this person as Nymphas, and the house as "his"; the American Standard Version combines "Nymphas" with "the brethren that are in Laodecia" earlier in the verse and offers as a compromise "their house."
Knowing Our Roles
The pastor who led the Bible discussion "set up" the topic of female roles by noting women have had key roles in Biblical history. We're absolutely not disputing that. From Deborah the prophetess and judge (Judges 4-5) to Mary the mother of Jesus, several women are mentioned with prominence and positive words.
But when the pastor turned to the passage about the "Proverbs 31 wife," he could not quote verses about women speaking up in congregations. They aren't there. Verse 26 notes, "She opens her mouth with wisdom, and in her tongue is the law of kindness" -- but the context indicates she does so in the home or marketplace. We must note neither Deborah nor the women who closely followed Jesus are quoted in the Bible as giving sermons.
The pastor quoted only the last three verses of Proverbs 31 - especially verse 30: "a woman that fears the Lord, she shall be praised." That's true for males and females alike. So instead of appealing to extra-Biblical historical arguments, let's consider the "whole counsel of God" about their positions and roles. The principle of Ecclesiastes 3:7 about "a time to keep silence, and a time to speak" applies to women in the church, even today - if we allow God and the Bible to have the last word.
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© 2012, Richard Burkard, All Rights Reserved.