“Therefore I want the men everywhere to pray, lifting up holy hands without anger or disputing. I also want the women to dress modestly, with decency and propriety, adorning themselves, not with elaborate hairstyles or gold or pearls or expensive clothes, but with good deeds, appropriate for women who profess to worship God.
A woman should learn in quietness and full submission. I do not permit a woman to teach or to assume authority over a man; she must be quiet. [ii]For Adam was formed first, then Eve. And Adam was not the one deceived; it was the woman who was deceived and became a sinner. But women will be saved through childbearing—if they continue in faith, love and holiness with propriety.” (1Timothy 2:8-15 NIV)
I Timothy 2:12 (above in dark print) proves to be one of the
most contested and misunderstood scriptural
passages ever. In spite of the lack of consensus and obvious translation
difficulties, many Christians use this verse as a foundation for their belief
in male only leadership in the church.
“Fill the cup of happiness for others, and there will be enough
overflowing to fill yours to the brim.” (Rose Pastor Stokes)
1.
Authority
is a poor translation of the Greek word Paul uses in 1 Timothy 2:12: The Greek word
Paul used for “authority” in this passage is authentein. It is so unusual compared to other references of this word
that it could not be talking about normal church leadership structures, but
abuses of it.
“Clearly
in Bible times, women were used in ministry leadership roles, and still are
today.” (Debora Hooper, author of Hooper's Evangelist and Minister's Handbook)
2.
Applying 1 Timothy 2:12
literally but not doing the same for the surrounding verses is poor biblical
exploration: Few
pastors teach that women should be silent in church (verse eleven), or that they
are saved in childbearing (verse fifteen). What does it say about the integrity
of your biblical interpretation if you single this one verse out and disregard
those around it?
“Encourage everyone you meet
with a smile or compliment. Make them feel better when you leave their presence
and they will always be glad to see you coming.” (Joyce Meyer)
3.
Paul’s restriction was given
in the context of a personal letter to Timothy with specific issues in the
church at Ephesus: There is no command from God here, and no suggestion that
Paul was establishing church policy for all time. There is no mention of this
anywhere else in the Bible. It’s evident in Paul’s discussion of false teaching
in chapter one of 1 Timothy.
“The Heavenly
Father does not ask for golden vessels. He does not ask for silver vessels. God
asks for yielded vessels.” (Kathryn Kuhlman)
4.
Using this passage to
restrict women in leadership requires elevating a handful of verses over the
rest of Paul’s writing (not to mention the entire New Testament): When you read Paul’s letters and
Acts, it is apparent that Paul supported the leadership of women. We see this
in the churches at Philippi, Thessalonica, Cenchrae, and Rome. It is baffling
to me that some people give credence to the 1 Timothy 2:12 passage when many
other scriptures support gender equality. Such a restriction contradicts the
Kingdom of Heaven values Jesus ushered in.
“Some women remain
hidden who genuinely desire to launch out in their God-given potential, but who
do not feel authorized to carry out their mission. I get it. I had to check and
double check that my role as a lead pastor was not going to hinder or go
against God’s Holy Word.” (Kelly Preston, author of 5
Truths about Women in Leadership)
5.
Churches find it impossible
to put 1 Timothy 2:12 into practice in a logical way: I’ve observed
that in some churches women can do everything but hold the position of senior
pastor. In other churches women can’t even teach a mixed gender high school
Sunday school class. We can often get ridiculous in our illogical attempts to
be accurate to biblical interpretation.[iii]
“Perhaps we could push beyond these legalistic gender
roles if we spent less time worrying about acting like men and acting like
women, and more time acting like Jesus.” (Rachel Held Evans)
“Make no mistake: Satan’s specialty is psychological
warfare. If he can turn us on God (“It’s not fair!”), or turn us on others
(“It’s their fault!”), or turn us on ourselves (“I’m so stupid!”), we won’t
turn on him. If we keep fighting within ourselves and losing our own inner
battles, we’ll never have the strength to stand up and fight our true enemy. “(Beth Moore)  |
| Minister Jarena Loo (see below for more information on this amazing woman) |
[i] Jarena Lee (1783–1855) was the first
African-American female to publish her autobiography (Religious Experience and Journal of Mrs. Jarena Lee, Giving an Account
of Her Call to Preach the Gospel) in the USA. Jarena was the first woman
authorized to preach in the African
Methodist Episcopal Church (in 1819).
She became a traveling minister. (Lee
traveled 3, 325 miles in one year on foot and preached 178 sermons).
[ii] Another version viewpoint of 1
Timothy 2:12 (International Standard Version, ISV): “Moreover, in the area of teaching, I am not
allowing a woman to instigate conflict toward a man. Instead, she is to remain
calm. “
[iii] Adapted from “5 Reasons to Stop Using 1 Timothy 2:12
against Women” by Gail Wallace and Wikepedia
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