Is it really the 21st Century?

So this week I've been obsessed with gender wars. What gender wars you might ask. And surely you'd be correct in wondering where in this great country women are oppressed or made to feel like second class citizens. After all, our new Speaker of the House is a woman. In many states, the highest offices are held by women. Many corporations are helmed by women. And if I'm remembering my statistics correctly, more women then men are entering and graduating from college.

So what gives?

Did you know that several years ago, a woman was hired at a-shall-remain-unnamed seminary to teach Hebrew? Did you know that when that seminary got a new president, instead of granting her the tenure she was expecting, they fired her? Did you know that it was because the president's reasoning was because "the Bible forbids women teaching men?"

Yes. I'll give you time to pick up your dropped jaw and wipe up the spit.



There are also seminaries that won't admit women into their divinity programs (along with anyone who has been divorced) because they believe those two things disqualify one for pastoral ministry.

Sorry. And you'd just gotten your jaw picked up.



I've been reading blogs left and right all over the "blogosphere" about this issue. And let me tell you! I have never seen such theological hair splitting as I've been reading. There are basically two sides to the argument. One side (championed by groups such as the Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood) claims that while equal, men and women are different and are given different roles by God. We/they call them complimentarians.

Are men and women different? Do you have a mirror? In the immortal words of Homer Simpson, "Duh!" Men and women are different. We look different. We act different. In fact, men are all different. Women are all different. What do we have in common? We're all made in the image of God. My beef with the CBMW centers around the belief that there are a set of qualities that are specifically male and a set of qualities that are specifically female. You don't have to be a serious student of human nature to know that's full of bologna!

Anyhoo, the other side (championed by groups such as Council on Biblical Equality) believe pretty much the opposite of the other folks. These folks are known as Egalitarians. They believe that men and women are equal in abilities and gifts and that no one should be barred from any certain ministry because of their plumbing.

The Complimentarians believe at the root that ordaining women will bring about the destruction of life as we know it. I'm quoting there. I swear. Both sides tend to get a little riled up when talking about the other. Debates can often be civil but there's usually one joker in the bunch who slings some mud on everyone else.

What about the hair splitting? Oh yeah! So there is one verse in the Bible, in I Timothy, that says "I suffer not a woman to teach or usurp authority over a man." That's the KJV. The NIV says something like "I do not allow a woman to teach or have authority over a man." The Complimentarians believe that this passage "obviously" says that women can't hold office or authority over a man or teach him Bible, doctrine or theology. In church.

Then there's the further splitting...what about seminaries? They are specifically for training pastors. Should someone who can't be a pastor train others to do so? Apparently not. Some apparently believe that a woman can teach a man music theory, but not a bible language. Can a man read the writings of a woman? Responses are divided.

So here's some of the really funny places this line of thinking takes us: if you're pulled over by a woman you know to be a Christian, how do you make her understand that she does not have authority over you (a man)? Or how about this: at what age does a boy go from being under his mother's authority to being in authority over her and any sisters he might have?

Can you see where this can go? And you might not be aware of this, but the number one thing that families where abuse occurs (physical, sexual, emotional) is substance abuse. Drugs and alcohol. But did you know that the second is religion? Apparently there are still plenty of men who take being head of their home to mean they own their wife and children. Plenty of men who believe that they have a right to beat their wives or have sex with their children.

*long drawn out sigh*

My father once pointed out that a couple of centuries ago, good Christian men and women defended slavery from pulpits across this country. But no one today would even dare to speak those words aloud. Perhaps someday in the future we will look back and wonder how those zealous few used the Bible to defend silencing and oppressing over half of the church's population.

We can only hope and pray.