15 Oct Women in the Church

15 October 2023

WOMEN IN THE CHURCH

BUILDING LIFE-AFFIRMING COMMUNITIES

There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus. (Galatians. 3: 28)

If men and women are one in Christ, what are some of the implications for Christian families, churches, and organizations? How can God’s people daily reflect their oneness in Christ?

The text says, there is neither male nor female, they are one in Christ. But in today’s context or in my own church, women are not only the silent majority but the ‘silenced majority’ of the church. Even today, it is believed that women should occupy an inferior position in the church. Women are not given equal opportunities in the church, and their ministry is limited in the church. Some women who take the scripture seriously and have a great passion for theology and evangelism feel frustrated, not knowing whether just to “shut up and be passive wimps” being instructed by their husbands at home or can use their minds and abilities to God’s glory. Most women who feel they were called to ministry have experienced the pain of speaking with men who have told them that their desires are unbiblical.

One of the reasons behind such conditions for women in the church today is that the authority of the apostle Paul has been invoked against women’s preaching and teaching in the church. Paul’s statements against women like “women should be silent in the churches,” (1 Cor. 14:34), “I do not permit a woman to teach or have authority…” (1 Timothy. 2:12) and so on. Paul made such statements in a context where women were considered an object, mostly prostitutes, uneducated, and less privileged. We should, therefore, not allow our tradition or an uncertain and most likely mistaken interpretation of a single passage to deny the calling of women who otherwise prove themselves fit for ministry.

Galatians 3:28 provides a paradigm that can include a vision of equality regardless of race, class, and sex/gender. We are called to act as agents of change with regard to the struggles of women. The hopes and dreams of women to be complete humans need to be considered as part and parcel of the mission of the church. Jesus himself spoke and acted always in the context of His time, reaching out to those in need and fulfilling those needs where he saw them. Therefore, as we are called to be agents of change, our responsibility is to take our direction from this, attempting to identify the gender issues prevailing in the church, and then seeing what we can do to bring equality or give equal opportunities to both men and women in the church to build life-affirming communities in midst of patriarchal structures prevailing in the church today. If a society is envisioned and created based on equal opportunity between men and women in the church where men and women can equally participate, and work together, then that will be a progressive step towards empowering a human culture where no individual has struggled for either identity or position in the church.

prayer

O God of justice and equality, guide us in envisioning and creating a church where men and women equally participate and minister together. Help us to take inclusive and compassionate steps toward empowering a human culture where your love, justice and peace shall prevail. Amen!

for further thought

What must we do to facilitate equal participation of women in decision-making discussions in churches and families?

Gifta Angline Kumar

Church of North India