All God's Children

All God's Children...

Women's Leadership and the Church

"For ye are all the children of God

by faith in Christ Jesus." Gal 3:26

Sharon and Ray Steelman

Special Thanks

To Bill Phillips whose fiery sermons inspired us to open our Bibles.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form or by any mechanical or electronic means whatsoever, including any retrieval systems or information storage systems, except by a reviewer, who may quote brief passages in an article, without prior permission in writing from Steelman & Associates, Inc.

International Standard Book Number: Pending

Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: Pending

First Printing: November 1997

Printed in the United States of America

Dedication

This publication is dedicated to our daughters, Natalie Brynne Steelman and Bethany Shanel Steelman, whom we love with all our hearts and believe that God never intended for them to be second-class Christians.

Foreword

All my life I have known that women were to be silent in the church. Oh, they could sing those grand old hymnals but that was that! They were not to openly participate in any other way in the worship services.

I remember when I was baptized at the age of twelve that the following Sunday I was quickly removed by the church leadership from my Sunday school class since that class was taught by a woman. I was immediately placed in a class that had a male teacher. I remember thinking how strange that was since that dear lady who had read the Bible to me each Sunday; had studied with me; taught me about God; and led me to the very act of baptism was, suddenly, no longer worthy to teach me!

Over the years I accepted the woman's limited role in church as being a commandment from God. Eve was deceived, then cursed...end of story! Women were forever to be in total subjection and never "usurp" religious authority over a man. They could serve, and were commanded to serve, but not in the same way that a man serves his God. The church had its own pecking order and the woman was forever ranked below every Christian male in God's kingdom.

I remember learning the 23rd and 100th Psalm, not in Sunday school, but at the feet of my third grade public school teacher, Mrs. Forbes. Almost everything I knew about the Bible during my formative years I learned from my mother and grandmother, two fine Christian ladies. Christian women had such a great influence on my life and the lives of others yet they could not publicly and fully share the talents God had bestowed upon them.

As recently as five years ago I believed that woman, religiously, should be in total subjection...no ifs, ands or buts! Then a funny thing happened...I began to seriously study God's word. Suddenly the more that I studied the more I began to question the things that I had been taught throughout the years pertaining to the woman's role in the church. The more that I studied the more that I realized that the church that I read about in the Bible did not resemble, in certain aspects, the church that I attended each Sunday. The most glaring discrepancy was that of the woman's role. I noticed that women in the first century church were very active and served in religious leadership positions. Not only were they active but the scriptures told me that they preached, served as deaconesses and elders, headed house churches, served as disciples and apostles, and worshipped on an equal status with the men. The women in the early church were much more liberated as children of God than were our 20th century sisters. What happened? Was our doctrine at fault? The more that I studied the more apparent it became that something happened since the first century A.D. to alter the authority of women to serve as leaders in the church.

The event that stimulated me to devote the hundreds of hours of research necessary to write this paper happened during a Wednesday night Bible study class. The little girls that were in attendance that night were to read Bible verses to some of the adults. This would help inspire, and motivate them and to build their personal confidence. All the girls were lower elementary age and none were baptized. When it became time for the children to read the scriptures, the men scurried from the room leaving only the women. The men were so afraid that one of these precious little children would read from God's holy scriptures in their presence. When questioned about their actions, it was stated that it was unscriptural for these little girls to read in a male member's presence. Would Christ have been that bigoted? Would Christ have run from the room with his hands over his ears afraid that one of these beloved children would read the word of God in His presence? Christ stated that:

"Whosoever shall receive one of such children in my name,

receiveth me...and (him) that sent me" (Mark 9:37)

What would Christ have said about one who rejected these children? The fact was these children were not rebuffed because they were children but instead because they were females! How twisted our doctrine had become! Christ did not teach this, God did not intend this, and the scriptures did not support this!

The purpose of this paper is to challenge the reader to study the scriptures in more detail. Learning makes the wise wiser and reveals the foolish more foolish. Our system fails not because of what the Bible says but instead because of our lack of study and because of man's misinterpretation and distortion of what the Bible says. II Timothy 2:15 tells us:

"Study to show thyself approved unto God,

a workman that needeth not to be ashamed,

rightly dividing the word of truth." (2 Tim 2:15)

This passage challenges us to study so that we are pleasing to God. I want to challenge you to study so that you know why you believe what you believe. To be truly wise one should never stop asking questions.

I know in my heart that God did not create a system with second-class Christians. I believe this system was created by man's petty prejudices and traditional customs. I believe that God's love and mercy will always transcend any of man's futile religious beliefs. I believe that God's Word, when rightly divided, will substantiate the fact that Christ's blood liberated all Christians and His love is the same for all of His children.

This paper was not written to destroy anyone's faith, attack the Bible's credibility, or challenge anyone's doctrine. This research is compiled into this paper in the spirit of brotherly love (Eph 4:15) to inspire the reader to further study and more accurately decipher the scriptures. Proverbs 1:5 tells us that a wise man will hear and will increase in learning. This writing is an attempt by laymen to "boldly make known the mystery of the Gospel (Eph 6:19)."

In the Bibliography at the close of this paper is found sources of materials that are excellent reading for the Christian who wants to explore this subject in more detail. Oliver Wendell Holmes once said, "What you bring away from the Bible depends on what you carry to it." Knowledge begets knowledge. The Bible is like a microscope. It is to be looked through to see what is not visible by looking at it. This paper is a very brief summary to magnify the role of women in church leadership. The books and articles in the Bibliography investigates the subject in the depth that it deserves.

Sharon and I would like to state that we have never attended any worship services, meetings, seminars or workshops of our "so called" liberal religious brothers sometimes sarcastically referred to as "change agents." We also have never read any material published by these liberal sects. The thoughts contained in this paper are the result of our private and personal discoveries during the study of the King James Bible and other carefully selected resources. Throughout this paper, we have tried to use soft words to address hard arguments (paraphrase of Col 4:6). The results contained herein are our private conclusions.

Ray Steelman

All God's Children...Women's Leadership and the Church

In the Beginning

At least eight times in the New Testament the Apostle Paul states that one person was responsible for the fall of mankind, and twice he named that person as Adam (Rom 5:14; I Tim 2:14). In Genesis 5:2, God specifically called both man and woman Adam so one could surmise that Paul's attributing the fall of mankind to "Adam" actually meant both Adam and Eve. The right-wing religious conservatives have used this explanation for centuries as an argument to avoid passages that placed "the original sin" squarely on Adam's, not Eve's shoulders. Paul proclaimed in I Timothy 2:14, "and Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression." This passage tells us without question that Eve was tricked by the subtle beast while Adam, having been forewarned of God, knew exactly what he was doing! "Adam was the clear-headed one who could have stopped the affair (the fall). All he had to say was, "Satan! Get out of my garden, and Eve, don't let me ever catch you talking to that snake again!" But he didn't. Who was responsible for sin? The Bible says Adam was!" [1]

In Genesis 3:13, when confronted by God, Eve was honest and straightforward and replied, "the serpent beguiled me and I did eat." Adam, on the other hand, blamed Eve, failed to be responsible for his actions and indirectly pointed an accusing finger directly at God with the statement, "the woman whom 'thou' gavest to be with me" (Gen 3:12). What he really meant was "God, this would not have happened if you had not given that woman to me!" Regardless of who committed the original sin, Eve since the very beginning of time has been a scapegoat and Genesis chapter 3 has been the foundation used by men and organized religion to force women into total submissiveness and domination by males (Gen 3:16).

If we believe in the Bible then we must believe that a curse was placed by God on Eve in Genesis 3:16. This resulted in four big changes in Eve's life. First, her pain was greatly increased in childbearing; Secondly, with pain she would give birth to children; third, her desire would be for her husband; and lastly, her husband would rule over her. As a punishment for the part she played in the fall of mankind, Eve was placed into a position of permanent inferiority...or was she?

For centuries, Biblical scholars have debated the first few chapters of Genesis. There are hundreds of theories pertaining to the interpretation of these scriptures. Many scholars debate the true meaning of the original Hebrew language while some textural experts go as far as stating that the creation account (there were actually two different accounts - Gen. 1:27 & Gen. 2:22) originated from four separate sources, the "J-E-P-D documents," when compiled into one source (Genesis) was deliberately slanted toward male domination. To delve into a detailed exploration of the book of Genesis is far beyond the scope of this text. We must believe that "all scripture is given by the inspiration of God" (2 Tim 3:16). That is the root of the Christian faith that is proclaimed in Hebrews chapter 11 and embedded deep within the heart of every Christian. So, for the purpose of this study, we will not challenge the book of Genesis. Instead we will accept it exactly as it is written by the inspiration and direction of God. We believe completely that the curse placed on Eve was certainly a critical part of the divine plan of the Lord.

So Eve was cursed...The next question that we must ask ourselves is, "Did Christ's blood have the power to remove the curse placed upon Eve and forever liberate the female Christian?" Of course it did! During the course of this study we will prove that that is exactly what happened.

Exploring the Scriptures

When studying the Bible we must always evaluate a passage based on the following:

1-Historical Review - We must evaluate each passage according to the

time, the place and the cultural conditions that surrounded the

writing.

2-Original Language - In interpreting scripture we must return to the

original language and decipher the actual definition, grammatical

structure and intent of the author.

3-Textural evaluation - When reading one's Bible a person must

always cross reference words and phrases comparing them to other

scriptures and early writings to understand how particular words

and phrases were used and translated elsewhere.

We must remember that the actual meaning of a text is what it conveyed to the people to whom it was originally written in that particular time and culture. The text's significance is how it applies to our particular cultural situation today. We must also keep in mind that the command of the scripture is absolute but culture is relative. What we as Christians must do is "absolute" but how a Christian does it is culturally relative. When studying our Bibles we should use the clear passages to assist in interpreting the unclear ones. In exploring the woman's role in the Church of the twenty-first century we will apply the principles above to see what the scriptures actually say to us today.

Women in Biblical Times

In Biblical times social status was determined by:

1-Religious background (Jew or Greek)

2-Special status (slave or free)

3-Gender (male or female)

Women had had the greatest curse possible placed upon them. They were cursed directly by God. Since the very beginning of time women were placed in total subjugation. They were considered to be chattel...simple property along with cattle and household pets. Jewish women were subject to their husbands whims and wishes. Women were not to be educated or allowed to own real estate or personal property. They enjoyed lowly status in the synagogue for it was "better to burn the Torah than teach it to a woman." A woman could not divorce her husband while the husband could divorce any of his wives through a simple written statement. A woman could be the wife of only one man while a man could have many wives and concubines. There is no wonder that Christ caused such an uproar when he outstretched his arms and openly welcomed women into his ministry. He not only had numerous dedicated women disciples and followers, Christ had an open and encouraging attitude toward these women. This was in complete contrast with the woman's demeaning social position in the community and that alone was enough to get him crucified!

Note: "Some early teachers carried this idea (woman's inferiority) into an ontological structure and claimed that women were actually created as serving creatures. John Calvin, a brilliant Reformation theologian, commented on I Tim 2:12 by saying "Women are by nature born to obey men." What he implied was, "Men are by nature born to govern and control women." Martin Luther expressed similar attitudes."[2]

The Greeks like the Jews, had a whole society that was demeaning toward women. The philosophers of this ancient civilization, Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Demosthenes, Zeno, Sophocles and others felt that no good could be found in a woman. These Stoic philosophers influenced the thinking of both the Greek and Roman societies for multiple generations. They believed in the total deprecation of women. "The Greeks believed that women existed either to produce sons for their husbands or to provide sexual pleasures as courtesans. Women could not aspire to become teachers or philosophers."[3] The Greeks along with Jews were a double indictment against the rights and freedom of women. "Especially offensive in first-century society were women teachers."[4]

Christ's Ministry and Women

As we investigate the four gospels, nowhere is Christ critical, demeaning, or negative toward women. In fact, on every occasion he was exactly the opposite. He publicly associated with them and uplifted their social status. This must have made both the Jews and Greeks furious! Was Christ trying to tell us something by his actions? Was he preparing mankind for the liberation of all Christians as stated by Paul in Gal 3:28? Christ never criticized women for violating cultural, religious, or traditional taboos. Christ refused to follow the century old traditions of man and keep women restrained by the religious bondage of his time. Christ accepted women as individual beings capable of making their own choices and being responsible for their own salvation.

A great example of Jesus' attitude toward women is illustrated in Luke 10:38-42. When Martha rebuked Mary for not helping her, Christ did not remind her that her proper role was that of serving men. Instead Christ let it be known that the important thing for Mary was at his feet learning the word of God. Christ's message was clear!

Another example is found in John 12:1-7. Again in the home of Mary and Martha the passages find "Martha serving." Mary not only stayed in the room with the men while the men were eating but also loosed her hair and washed Jesus' feet with a bottle of expensive perfume. If a Jewish woman let her hair hang naturally she was considered uncovered and if this happened in public it was grounds for divorce under Jewish law. Mary violated two of the strictest rabbinical laws yet Jesus said nothing . Christ even reprimanded those who tried to correct Mary. How would Christ feel about the restrictions placed on women in our worship services today?

Other examples of Christ's open and supporting attitude toward women are found in Luke 11:27-28; Matthew 19:3-10; Mark 10:12; Matthew 22:23-30; Luke 7:36-50; John 4: 7-30; Mark 12:38-40; Luke 18:1-8; Luke 7:11-17; and so on. Jesus often used women to illustrate his eternal lessons and truths as found in Luke 21:1-4 and many other locations. Christ through his actions stripped away centuries of male domination and religious restrictions, yet today in Christ's church the Jewish and Greek traditions of bigotry and male domination still rule! "In the context of the Judaism of his day, Jesus emerged as a unique, radical reformer of the widely-held attitudes toward women and their role in society."[5]

Looking further at Christ's ministry we see the following:

1-Jesus had women disciples (Mark 15:40-41; Matt 27:55-56) (It is

interesting to note that the word used for the women who served

Jesus is "diakoneo," the basic word for "deacon" and it honestly

describes the women that Jesus counted as his disciples.)

2-The women stood beside Jesus at the cross (Matt 26:56) "all the

disciples left him and fled"..."except the women"

3-Jesus chose women evangelists to take the message of his

resurrection to his hiding male disciples (Matt 28:1-8)

4-The angel entrusted to the women to tell the disciples (Mark 16:7)

5-Christ met the women first and told them to take the word of His

ressurection to his brethren (Matt 28:9-10) Christ purposely chose

women first to carry the good news of the most important event in

history!

The Power of Christ's Blood

Christ through his blood closed the door to the Old Covenant and ushered in a New Covenant wherein there is neither Jew nor Greek, bond nor free, male or female, only oneness in Christ (Gal 3:28). This verse (Gal 3:28) is the most explosive passage in the Bible! This is the Declaration of Independence and The Emancipation Proclamation for equality among Christians: It is as binding today as it was then. Through Christ, all Christians, regardless of their gender or social status, share in the one Spirit (I Cor 12:13) who blesses all with gifts for the ministry (I Cor 12:7).

"Our brethren...overcame him (Satan) by the blood of the Lamb" Rev 12:11

"The woman was given the two wings of a great eagle, so that she might fly to a place prepared for her in the desert, where she would be taken care of for a time, times and half a time out of the serpent's reach" (Rev 12:14) "Then the dragon was enraged at the woman and went off to make war against the rest of her offspring--those who obey God's commandments and hold to the testimony of Jesus" (Rev 12:17)

"Ye who sometimes were afar off are made nigh by the blood of Christ. For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us" (Eph 2:13-14) Not only did this refer to Jew and Gentile, bond or free, but does it not also refer to male and female?

"...who has delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son in whom we have redemption through his blood" (Col 1:13-14)

"Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us" (Gal 3:13)

Did Christ's blood have the power to remove Eve's curse? It most certainly did! Did Christ's blood free women to openly worship and serve God in his kingdom? Absolutely!

The First Century Church

The first century church was an exciting place. Christians, many of whom had witnessed Christ's miracles, crucifixion and resurrection were now entrusted with Christ's kingdom on earth, the church. The blood of Christ had liberated all men and women and all were now one in Christ (Gal 3:28). Women wasted no time in assuming leadership positions in the new church.

"In the last days...your daughters shall prophesy...even my bondslaves, both men and women" (Acts 2:17-18) (Joel 2:28-32).

Prophesying is defined in I Cor 11:3-4 "He that prophesieth speaketh unto (Anthropois) mankind to edification and exhortation, and comfort...he that prophesieth edifieth the church." By definition prophesying was preaching. "Nothing in Paul's epistles suggest that preaching and teaching, which Paul seems to associate with prophecy, are gender-specific gifts."[6]

God said women can and should prophesy (I Cor 11:3-5).

Examples of women prophesying and being added to the church:

1-Acts 1:14 "they all continued with one accord in prayer and

supplication, with the women and Mary..."

Acts 2:1 "all (including women) with one accord in one place"

Acts 2:4 "they were all (including women) filled with the Holy Ghost

and...spoke in tongues as the spirit gave them utterance"

Note: "Women's participation in the Pentecost event had radical and far reaching implications. Not only did women receive Christ's commission as credible witnesses to the resurrection, but at Pentecost they also received the Spirit's power to carry out this central community responsibility. This meant that women had received the same foundational qualifications for ministry as men in the New Testament church."[7]

Acts 2:17 "and your daughters shall prophesy"

Acts 5:14 Women were added to the church

2-Acts 21:9 Phillip's 4 daughters were prophetesses

3-Rev 2:20-23 Jezebel was accepted as a prophetess by church at

Thyatira

Note: The church at Thyatira was not condemned because they had a prophetess, but rather it was condemned for Jezebel's false teachings. If women were not suppose to preach to men then this would have been the perfect place for the Lord to have made it known. Jesus could have rebuked Jezebel but instead gave her an opportunity to repent, not of the act of preaching, but instead of her immorality and error!

There is more than enough proof in the New Testament to confirm that the first century church had women preachers. Not women who preached only to other women but rather women who held leadership positions as open ministers of God's word.

Secular history reinforces the fact that women were very active and held leadership positions in the early church. The author, W.M. Ramsay, spent many years pouring over the writings of the early church historians. In his book, The Church in the Roman Empire, he states that without a doubt in the early Christian Church women had full equality with men. John Chrysostom (337-407), Origen of Alexandria (185-253), Jerome (340-419), Hatto of Vercelli (924-961), Theophylack (1050-1108) and Peter Abelard (1079-1142) all spoke in their writings of the leadership positions women held in the early church. This reinforces the fact that women were strong leaders in the early church since many of the above writers were not at all favorable toward women. "Christian art from the 1st and 2nd centuries depicts women performing various ministerial activities--administering the Lord's Supper, teaching, preaching, baptizing, caring for the physical needs of the congregation and leading in public prayers. Tombstone epitaphs also substantiate the presence of women elders in the early church."[8]

We know that Paul preached to both men and women. In chapter 16 of Romans, Paul mentions several women who were active in the leadership of the first century church. They are as follows:

16:1 (1) Phoebe - a deacon of the church in Cenchrea (for further explanation see page ________)

16:3 (2) Priscilla - Paul calls her "my fellow worker"

(3) Mary, Tryphaena, Tryphosa & Persis - hard working gospel

laborers

16:7 (4) Junia - a female apostle said by Paul to be "outstanding

among the apostles"

Note: There are those who say that Junia could be Junias (masculine). The writings of early church historians will verify the fact that Junia was never considered to be masculine. It was the commentator Aegidus of Rome (1245-1316) who first twisted the idea that Junia could have been a man. Until that time Junia was known by all to be a woman.

Paul in the 16th chapter of Romans closes this letter by greeting twenty-eight different early church leaders, ten of them women!

Other early female church leaders found in the scriptures are:

(1) Chloe - a house church leader (I Cor 1:11)

(2) Mary (Mark's mother) - a house church leader (Acts 12:12)

Note: Many say that I Tim 3:12 excludes women as deacons/elders, however, in both cases above, the house churches were identified by the name of a female. It was customary to identify a house church by the name of its chief elder (verified in Philemon 1:2). Could it be that both Chloe and Mary were elders in these early house churches?

(3) Elect lady - (II John 1) - Most scholars agree that the term "elect

lady" was not referring to the church but rather a lady overseer of

a church. Clement of Alexandria during the second century

reinforced the fact that the "elect lady" was indeed a woman

church officer.

(4) Lydia - a house church leader (Acts 16:14-15, 40)

(5) Nympha of Laodicea - a house church leader (Col 4:15)

(6) Apphia - assisted Archippus as a house church leader (Philemon

vs. 2)

(7) Priscilla - she and her husband conducted a church in their house

(I Cor 16:19)

Note: The customary way of addressing a husband and wife was to always address the husband's name first. However, Priscilla was oftentimes mentioned first which indicates that perhaps she was the chief teacher of the two (Rom 16:3; 2 Tim 4:19, Acts 18:18, 26).

Were women active in the early church? Emphatically Yes! By reading Acts 8:3; 9:1-2, we see that women Christians suffered persecutions right along side the men." This should imply to Luke's readers that women were significant enough in number and/or importance to "the cause" that Saul did not think he could stop the movement without taking women as well as men prisoners."[9] Were women silent in the early church? Of course not! Did women fill positions of leadership over men? Certainly! If so then we must explain the passages that for centuries have maintained the male domination found in organized religion.

Women Leadership in the Early Church

Under Jewish law women were not only excluded from religious practices but they were also excluded from learning. This was based, as we have already discussed, upon Genesis Chapter 3 as well as the rabbi's clumsy interpretation of the scriptures beginning with Zechariah 12:12. This referred to "their wives apart" and resulted in the silencing and separation of women in worship activities. Were women, like men, not made in the image of God? Yes, according to I Cor 11:2-12 & Genesis 1:27. The traditional woman's role in the church has been determined by Jewish tradition not by God's intent! The Bible warns us repeatedly about "teaching for doctrine the commandments of men" yet these misdirected practices still continue in Christ's church today (Matt 15:3, Mark 7:3-9).

Just as the old rabbi's flimsy interpretation of Zechariah 12, our New Testament fathers based worship practices on a misunderstanding of the author's original intent of a few passages. To truly understand these passages we must go back to the original language.

It was stated earlier in this writing that Phoebe was a deacon in the church (Rom 16:1). It was also stated that the female church leaders were probably chief elders in churches under their direction. Either of the above would be a violation of I Timothy chapter 3, where the passages on first examination seem to indicate that an elder and deacon can only be a man. In Romans 16:2, Paul states that Phoebe was a ruler (prostatis) of many. The word "prostatis" in the original language meant "a patroness" or protectoress...a woman set over others." In Romans 3:1, the statement, "If a man (tis) desires the office..." 'tis' is a neuter word...not a word referring to males only. The word for males only was "ander" not "tis." Therefore, "tis" is a neuter word meaning "if a male or female desires the office!" The early church fathers understood this. That is why the early church had female deaconesses and elders!

Church history affirms the leadership of women in the early church. The Western church ordained women in leadership positions well into the second century while the eastern church ordained women continuing into the late 4th century. In 325 the Council in Nicea numbered women deacons along with the clergy. The council of Chalcedon in 451 went as far as listing the requirements for women deacons.

The Roman orator, Pliny the younger, wrote of the strength of the women deacons in the early Christian church. The Didascalia, a third century historical writing, tells of the women deacons teaching the newly baptized the ways of Christianity. During the Apostolic Age women were deaconesses, just as the men were deacons (Rom 16:1-2, I Tim 3:12). For the first 500 years of the church women were not silent or subordinate but instead were dynamic leaders in the church.

Women Leadership is Eliminated

In Titus 1:14, Paul warned Titus to guard against Jewish fables and commandments. The old Jewish traditions and customs as they relate to women began slowly creeping back into the Christian Church beginning in the second century. By the close of the Council of Orange in 441, women's ministries and leadership roles had almost been obliterated. The Council decreed that women could no longer be ordinated as deaconesses. Sixteen years later the Christian church had reverted back completely to the traditions of the Jewish elders. It was then during the Council of Orleans that the decree went out, "no longer shall the blessing of women deaconesses be given, because of the weakness of the sex." (Almost a direct quote from Socrates [470-399 BC], the Greek Philosopher.) A study of church history will show that by this time the moral and spiritual apostasy that Paul warned about in I Tim. Chapter 4 was rampant. Many practices of the 4th century church would not have been recognized by Paul and the early apostles. One of them was the elimination of the leadership role of the female Christian.

Paul's Comments in First Timothy