The date was around 1990. The place Lake Tapps Christian Church. My position was an unpaid Associate Pastor in a small growing church plant. The issue being discussed in our meeting was installing elders for the first time and whether we should consider a woman who was active in the church desiring to be an elder as a candidate. Up to this point we had never had a reason to look at whether to consider women elders. Since we were just a young church plant, we were guided by a ministry council and the council was divided. There were men and women with opinions on both sides, some for, some against. We openly weighted the biblical text looking at the original Greek as much as possible looking for answers. We looked, as much as, we could as to whether there was a biblical cultural issue that could bring us answers. At that time based on our study we could not come up with a solid answer. Finally, the consensus was to stop looking at the issue of gender and look solely at the spiritual qualification of an elder and the individuals track record at the church when it came to their ability to minister to others. Interestingly enough when the gender issue was removed, and the qualifications and character of the individual was the focus it became unanimous that this individual wasn\u2019t ready to be an elder.<\/p>\n
I can\u2019t help but wonder how things might have been different if we had Katia Adams book Equal<\/em> and Lucy Peppiatt\u2019s book Rediscovering Scripture\u2019s Vision for Women: Fresh Perspectives on Disputed Texts<\/em> available to guide us in the integration of elders in the church planting process. Katia Adams a cultural architect with a background in medicine is the director of Frequntsee a company focused on gender equality. Lucy Peppiatt\u2019s is the Principle of Westminster Theological Centre. Part of her focus of study is looking at women\u2019s roles with the writings of the Apostle Paul. Each author takes the time to look deeply into the biblical text coming up with similar answers. Whether one agrees with their exegetical processes and outcomes it should be agreed that they both bring insight and value to the highly controversial topic of women in ministry. Both dig deep into the 1st<\/sup> century culture drawing from its valuable information that assists their reader in understanding their point.<\/p>\n Peppiatt uses NT Wright as a support as she discusses the social implications in the book of Philemon that had drastic ramifications within that culture.[1]<\/a> In NT Wright’s latest book, The New Testament in Its World: An introduction to the History, Literature, and Theology of the First Christians<\/em> takes a deep look into the new testament culture at the time each book was written. When looking at the issue of women speaking in church Wright points out that the location of this passage in inconsistent and varies from manuscript to manuscript. Given the understand of 1 Cor. 11:5 it is obvious that Paul expected women to Prophesy so it would be unlikely that he was prohibiting women from being teachers or prophets. The more likely issue was cultural and women were disrupting the service by trying to discuss things with their husbands.[2]<\/a> When looking at Paul\u2019s writings in Romans women leaders are a non-issue. Most likely \u201cPaul\u2019s colleague, Phoebe, probably carried the letter to Rome and expounded its theology on behalf of Paul, then provided oversight in the preparation of the community for the next phase of Paul\u2019s missionary program.\u201d[3]<\/a> I think it is important to note that in much of Paul\u2019s writings he is trying to bring a sense of unity to the church that was in struggle wading his way through the cultural issues of the day. Like Paul we will have to wade through the many cultural issues of our day in hopes of bringing a sense of unity.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Why is it so hard for us to seek to understand the biblical message through the cultural context it was written before we try to make a black and white application in our current culture? It would be easy to say that the gender equality issue is solely due to a male dominated society not wanting to relinquish power. Though there is some truth to that is it really that simple? There doesn\u2019t appear to be a lack of opinions on both side of the gender gap. I am usually not one to default gender roles in scripture in a traditional matter, nor have I been one to side with those that desire to de-gender men and women who are obviously created different. This issue is a hot bottom in our culture and within the church and needs to be struggled with. In my case I have seen the benefit of having strong women in my life. My spiritual heritage came from my mom and from my grandmother not from my father. As a father of three strong daughters all of which have been given gifts and insights to benefit the kingdom of God, I understand the limits this culture tries to push on woman. I married an amazing woman who tends to be far more traditional than I am but who is an amazing leader in her own right. Will we ever get to a place where we can embrace the many nuances and differences between men and women and embrace equality as well? As a man I don\u2019t have the answers, but I can make sure I don\u2019t perpetuate the problem.<\/p>\n [1]<\/a> Lucy Peppiatt, Rediscovering Scripture\u2019s Vision for Women: Fresh Perspective on Disputed Texts<\/em>, (Downers Grove: Inter Varsity Press, 2019), 37<\/p>\n