{"id":26428,"date":"2020-03-17T18:27:47","date_gmt":"2020-03-18T01:27:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dminlgp\/?p=26428"},"modified":"2020-03-17T18:27:47","modified_gmt":"2020-03-18T01:27:47","slug":"complementary-equality","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/complementary-equality\/","title":{"rendered":"Complementary Equality"},"content":{"rendered":"

Within theology, \u201cegalitarianism\u201d is defined as \u201ca movement based on the theological view that not only are all people equal before God in their personhood, but there are no gender-based limitations of what functions or roles each can fulfill in the home, the church, and society.\u201d[1]<\/a>\u00a0 It\u2019s counterpart, \u201ccomplementarianism\u201d is defined as \u201cthe theological view that although men and women are created equal in their being and personhood, they are created to complement each other via different roles and responsibilities as manifested in marriage, family life, religious leadership, and elsewhere.\u201d[2]<\/a>\u00a0 These two theological concepts have been used (and abused) to create hierarchies within the church as well as to cause division within churches over who should be allowed to lead.\u00a0 However, in looking deeper into the concepts of both egalitarianism and complementarianism, I have found that I do not think it is an either\/or, but rather a both\/and.<\/p>\n

The terms themselves carry various connotations behind them that are filled with baggage that draw battle lines.\u00a0 Egalitarianism brings with it the idea of a too liberal theology where those who hold to it do not truly believe in the Bible and want to see the institution of the church taken down, while complementarianism brings forth the idea of fundamentalist, sexist, misogynists that are bent on keeping women in their place.\u00a0 This has created a dichotomy that has brought forth an \u201cus vs. them\u201d mentality.\u00a0 This is where I find Lucy Peppiatt\u2019s redefinitions of the two positions helpful.<\/p>\n

In particular, I agree with her assessment of complementarianism.\u00a0 She writes, \u201cThe term complementarianism<\/em> should describe a view where two different entities enhance one another in a reciprocal, harmonious, and interdependent fashion.\u201d[3]<\/a>\u00a0 The issue with the traditional definition of complementarianism is that it has been used to subjugate or bar women from entering into positions of leadership or to create a false dichotomy of inferiority.\u00a0 However, if one were to look through Scripture, one can see that the Body of Christ as described in 1 Corinthians 12 is to be a complement to one another:<\/p>\n

Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body\u2014whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free\u2014and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. Even so the body is not made up of one part but of many. Now if the foot should say, \u201cBecause I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,\u201d it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. And if the ear should say, \u201cBecause I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,\u201d it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? But in fact God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. If they were all one part, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, but one body.\u00a0\u2013 1 Corinthians 12:12-20<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The passage goes on to read that the various parts of the body cannot say to the others, \u201cI don\u2019t need you!\u201d\u00a0 What is so unique about this is that it shows not only the diversity that is supposed to be found within the church, but also that each member has a unique, God-given role that is to be used for building up and edifying the church.\u00a0 We are all equal within the body of Christ, but our gifts are not the same; our gifts are used to complement other members of the body, regardless of gender.<\/p>\n

This<\/em> is where complementarianism should be: Not a dichotomy of men vs. women, but rather a unique lens into the beauty of the how God created the world.\u00a0 In my experience of leading teams with my previous organization, the thing I was always astounded by was how each of my teams carried with them strengths and weaknesses that the others complemented.\u00a0 Their unique gifts were used in ways that not only brought our team closer together, but allowed each to contribute to the mission.<\/p>\n

This is a lesson I had to learn the hard way.\u00a0 The first time I led a team, I tried to do everything myself and realized very quickly what my shortcomings were.\u00a0 I did not take my team\u2019s gifts into account when we were planning teaching activities and I tried to lean into an identity that wasn\u2019t mine, but rather my previous leaders\u2019 identities.\u00a0 When I finally realized how my team complemented one another and shifted my paradigm, each person felt empowered and our team was able to accomplish great things that summer with our students.<\/p>\n

We cannot continue to assume that others do not bring value to the body of Christ because they break with the traditional molds of leadership and positions found within the church.\u00a0 When are bar people \u2013 whether men or women \u2013 from using these gifts as God has empowered them, we dishonor the imago dei<\/em> and Body of Christ.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Although Peppiatt refers to complementarians as \u201chierarchicalists\u201d and egalitarians as \u201cmutualists,\u201d the term mutualist also infers a complementary nature to it.\u00a0 There is a mutual building up of the church through complementary gifts.\u00a0 However, in order for this to happen there needs to be a reclamation of what it means to be both man and woman as created by God.\u00a0 Katia Adams writes, \u201cOnce we align ourselves with His understanding around our identity and authority on the earth, then we will be ready to start taking up the full mantle of what we were created for.\u201d[4]<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

[1]<\/a> https:\/\/www.theopedia.com\/egalitarianism<\/a><\/p>\n

[2]<\/a> https:\/\/www.theopedia.com\/complementarianism<\/a><\/p>\n

[3]<\/a> Lucy Peppiatt, Rediscovering Scripture\u2019s Vision for Women,<\/em> Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press (2019), 6.<\/p>\n

[4]<\/a> Katia Adams, Equal: What the Bible Says about Women, Men, and Authority,<\/em> Colorado Springs: David C Cook (2019), loc. 192-214.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Within theology, \u201cegalitarianism\u201d is defined as \u201ca movement based on the theological view that not only are all people equal before God in their personhood, but there are no gender-based limitations of what functions or roles each can fulfill in the home, the church, and society.\u201d[1]\u00a0 It\u2019s counterpart, \u201ccomplementarianism\u201d is defined as \u201cthe theological view […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":129,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[558],"tags":[1832,1833],"class_list":["post-26428","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-drama-2","tag-adams","tag-peppiatt","cohort-lgp10"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26428","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/129"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=26428"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26428\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":26429,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26428\/revisions\/26429"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=26428"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=26428"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=26428"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}