Patriarchy
 is a social system in which males hold primary power
and predominate in roles of political leadership, moral
authority, social privilege and control of property.
 Historically, patriarchy has manifested itself in the
social, legal, political, religious and economic
organization of a range of different cultures.
 Even if not explicitly defined to be by their own
constitutions and laws, most contemporary societies
are, in practice, patriarchal.
Example of Patriarchy in the US
A photograph of Donald Trump signing the “Global Gag Rule,” which bans international groups from receiving U.S. health funding for providing or even discussing abortions.
Monopoly of violence?
 The monopoly of the legitimate use of physical force,
also known as the monopoly on violence, is a core
concept of modern public law.
 Government, in fact, is often defined as the entity
which holds the monopoly on violence within a given
territory.
 For millenia, which gender has – by virtue of its
significant average genetic physical advantages – held
a near monopoly of violence in society?
 [before the invention of firearms]
What Does the Bible Say About Women's Rights?
What Does the Bible Say About Women in Ministry?
In order to not keep having to repeatedly utter the phrase
“according to God, at least from the perspective of Christians
who believe that all Bible texts are, as 2 Timothy 3:16-17 states,
‘Inspired by God’” I will simply write “According to God”, “by
God” or “According to the Bible”. Please forgive the academic
laziness.
Frequently Asked Questions
 Does the Bible say that women must obey their




husbands?
Is it a sin for a woman to speak in church?
Does the Bible say women have lower standing than
men?
Does the Bible authorize discrimination against
women?
Should women be submissive?
Old Testament
 Genesis
 Most of the Bible's teachings about women are based
upon the foundation laid in Genesis.
 Genesis 2:18 “Then the Lord God said, ‘It is not good
that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper
as his partner.’”

“helper” = English translation of the word ‫ עֵ זֶר‬or ʻêzer,
[pronounced ay'-zer] found in the original Hebrew Tanakh
Other instances of ‫עֵ זֶר‬
in the Tanakh
 Psalm 33:20 “Our soul waits for the Lord; he is our ‫עֵ זֶר‬
and shield.”
 Who is ‫? עֵ זֶר‬
 Would you say that the text is implying that “the Lord” is
in a position of weakness?
 Psalm 70:5 “But I am poor and needy; hasten to me, O God!
You are my ‫ עֵ זֶר‬and my deliverer; O Lord, do not delay!”
 Who is ‫? עֵ זֶר‬
 Would you say that the text is implying “God” is
subservient to man because He is man’s ‫ עֵ זֶר‬/ “helper” ?
Other instances of ‫עֵ זֶר‬
in the Tanakh
 Psalm 115:9
 “O Israel, trust in the Lord!
 He is their ‫ עֵ זֶר‬and their shield.
 Look at the Hermeneutics notes you took yesterday
from the PowerPoint
 By showing different Biblical uses of the word ‫ עֵ זֶר‬in
order to better understand Genesis 2:18 “Then the Lord
God said, ‘It is not good that the man should be alone; I
will make him a helper [ ‫ ] עֵ זֶר‬as his partner.’” what step
in the Exegetical Process did we practice?

Lexical Analysis:
 Repeated words
Woman predestined by God to be
a “helper” to man
 For millennia, Genesis 2:18 has been used by many
ancient and modern Jews, Christians, and Muslims as
the basis for implying that women were programmed right down to their DNA- to be
 Inferior
 Subservient
 However, a simple word study can provide an
alternative perspective on the “helper” role assigned by
God at the beginning
Woman as …?
 Genesis 1:27-28
So God created humankind[a] in his image,
in the image of God he created them;
male and female he created them.
God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and
multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it; and have dominion
over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over
every living thing that moves upon the earth.”
 Who is being given authority to “subdue1” the earth?
 Who is being given dominion over the sea, air, and
earth?
‫ כָּבַ ׁש‬kâbash, [kaw-bash‘] = bring into subjection
Woman as an equal to man
 Genesis 1:27-28
So God created humankind[a] in his image,
in the image of God he created them;
male and female he created them.
God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and
multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it; and have dominion
over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over
every living thing that moves upon the earth.”
 Does God seem to differentiate here on who has
authority over the earth?
Godlike woman
 Genesis 5:1-2
When God created humankind, he made them in the
likeness of God. 2 Male and female he created them, and
he blessed them and named them “Humankind” when
they were created.
 According to this text, which gender was created to be
like God?
 According to this text, was one gender created to be
less Godlike than the other?
 “Yeah, but Eve ate the forbidden fruit…”
Woman as the target of evil
 For reasons that are never revealed in the Bible, the
Serpent tempted Eve instead of Adam.
 The fact that the scripture says that Eve ate the
forbidden fruit FIRST has been used for millennia as a
sign of her inferiority to men, though one could argue it
was an arbitrary sequence of events
 Furthermore…
Genesis 3:16-19
What conclusion might one draw
from the man receiving the brunt
of the punishment?
To the woman he said
And to the man he said
“I will greatly increase your pangs in
childbearing;
in pain you shall bring forth children,
yet your desire shall be for your husband,
and he shall rule over you.”
“Because you have listened to the voice of your
wife,
and have eaten of the tree
about which I commanded you,
‘You shall not eat of it,’
cursed is the ground because of you;
in toil you shall eat of it all the days of your
life;
18 thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for
you;
and you shall eat the plants of the field.
19 By the sweat of your face
you shall eat bread
until you return to the ground,
for out of it you were taken;
you are dust,
and to dust you shall return.”
Who is cursed with
the bulk of the
punishment here?
Genesis 3:16-19
To the woman he said
And to the man he said
“I will greatly increase your pangs in
childbearing;
in pain you shall bring forth children,
yet your desire shall be for your husband,
and he shall rule over you.”
“Because you have listened to the voice of your
wife,
and have eaten of the tree
about which I commanded you,
‘You shall not eat of it,’
cursed is the ground because of you;
in toil you shall eat of it all the days of your
life;
18 thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for
you;
and you shall eat the plants of the field.
19 By the sweat of your face
you shall eat bread
until you return to the ground,
for out of it you were taken;
you are dust,
and to dust you shall return.”
Genesis 3:16-19
To the woman he said
“I will greatly increase your pangs in
childbearing;
in pain you shall bring forth children,
yet your desire shall be for your husband,
and he shall rule over you.”
And to the man he said
“Because you have listened to the voice of your
wife,
and have eaten of the tree
about which I commanded you,
‘You shall not eat of it,’
note:of you;
cursed Interesting
is the ground to
because
It isinimplied
hereeat
that
type
ofof your
toil you shall
of itthe
all the
days
life; that women have for for men
desire
18 thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for
is what?
you;
and you shall eat the plants of the field.
19 By the sweat of your face
you shall eat bread
until you return to the ground,
for out of it you were taken;
you are dust,
and to dust you shall return.”
 Does God command Adam to
sweat?
 If a man does not sweat, is he
disobeying a command of
God?
Woman as ruled
 As you can see from the text, man was not ordered by God to
rule over woman. It can be easily argued that Woman was
cursed with a desire that would cause, by consequence, men to
rule over her
 If “he shall rule over you” were an edict by God, who would God
have addressed that passage to?
 In fact who was He addressing, according to the text?
 Whether or not one interprets “he shall rule over you” as a direct
punishment or as descriptor of the impending consequence of
the “desire” curse, this passage is key to understanding later
Biblical teachings about women.
 Both Adam and Eve were punished, and Adam seemingly more so.
 Yet, throughout the course of history, this text has repeatedly been
used by Jews, Christians, and Muslims to justify the degradation
and subjugation of women
Woman as obeyed
Exodus 20:12
 Honor your father and your mother, so that your days may
be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you.
 Who does the writer of Exodus claim wrote the original 10
Commandments?
 Rarely is the claim made in or out of the Bible that God
himself penned words its words, except in this case.
 Did God differentiate the amount of honor that should be
showed to a father or mother?
 So, if God ordained equal honor to be shown to both parents,
to what extent do you think that is a significant indicator of
the Judeo-Christian god’s intended status of women?
Woman as ruler
 Following the conquest of
Canaan by Joshua until the
formation of the first
Kingdom of Israel (ca.
1150–1025 BC), the Israelite
tribes formed a loose
confederation. No central
government existed in this
confederation; in times of
crisis, the people were led
by ad hoc chieftains,
known as judges (shoftim).
Woman as ruler
Judges 4:1-15
 The Israelites again did what was evil in the sight of
the LORD, after Ehud died. So the LORD sold them into
the hand of King Jabin of Canaan, who reigned in
Hazor; the commander of his army was Sisera, who
lived in Harosheth-ha-goiim. Then the Israelites cried
out to the LORD for help; for he had nine hundred
chariots of iron, and had oppressed the Israelites
cruelly twenty years.
Woman as ruler
 At that time Deborah, a prophetess, wife of Lappidoth, was judging
Israel. She used to sit under the palm of Deborah between Ramah and
Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim; and the Israelites came up to her
for judgment. She sent and summoned Barak son of Abinoam from
Kedesh in Naphtali, and said to him, “The Lord, the God of Israel,
commands you, ‘Go, take position at Mount Tabor, bringing ten
thousand from the tribe of Naphtali and the tribe of Zebulun. I will
draw out Sisera, the general of Jabin’s army, to meet you by the Wadi
Kishon with his chariots and his troops; and I will give him into your
hand.’” Barak said to her, “If you will go with me, I will go; but if you
will not go with me, I will not go.” And she said, “I will surely go with
you; nevertheless, the road on which you are going will not lead to your
glory, for the Lord will sell Sisera into the hand of a woman.” Then
Deborah got up and went with Barak to Kedesh. Barak summoned
Zebulun and Naphtali to Kedesh; and ten thousand warriors went up
behind him; and Deborah went up with him.
Woman as ruler
 Now Heber the Kenite had separated from the other Kenites,[a] that is,
the descendants of Hobab the father-in-law of Moses, and had
encamped as far away as Elon-bezaanannim, which is near Kedesh.
 When Sisera was told that Barak son of Abinoam had gone up to
Mount Tabor, Sisera called out all his chariots, nine hundred chariots
of iron, and all the troops who were with him, from Harosheth-hagoiim to the Wadi Kishon. Then Deborah said to Barak, “Up! For this is
the day on which the Lord has given Sisera into your hand. The Lord is
indeed going out before you.” So Barak went down from Mount Tabor
with ten thousand warriors following him. And the Lord threw Sisera
and all his chariots and all his army into a panic[b] before Barak; Sisera
got down from his chariot and fled away on foot, while Barak pursued
the chariots and the army to Harosheth-ha-goiim. All the army of
Sisera fell by the sword; no one was left.
Woman as ruler
 What in the text indicates that Deborah was an




authority over men and women?
What in the text indicates that it was God’s will that
Deborah be in authority over men and women?
How successful was Deborah as a Godly leader over
men and women?
Was Deborah married?
As a married woman, did she speak through her
husband or did she speak for herself?
Other OT women who decided the fate of
Israel in big and small ways:
 Tamar
 Hagar
 Rahab
 Ruth
 Esther
Woman as disciple
 Jesus' attitude toward women was radically different
from what was customary at the time.
 Women normally stayed home and attended to
domestic duties. But Jesus allowed women to travel
with Him and His twelve disciples
Woman as disciple
John 8:1-3
 “Soon afterwards he went on through cities and villages,
proclaiming and bringing the good news of the kingdom
of God. The twelve were with him, as well as some
women who had been cured of evil spirits and
infirmities: Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven
demons had gone out, and Joanna, the wife of Herod’s
steward Chuza, and Susanna, and many others, who
provided for them out of their resources.”
Woman as disciple
 What is the definition of
disciple?
 a personal follower of Jesus
during his life
 Do Mary Magdalene an other
women here fit the definition
of disciple?
John 8:1-3
“Soon afterwards he went on
through cities and villages,
proclaiming and bringing the
good news of the kingdom of
God. The twelve were with him,
as well as some women who had
been cured of evil spirits and
infirmities: Mary, called
Magdalene, from whom seven
demons had gone out, and
Joanna, the wife of Herod’s
steward Chuza, and Susanna,
and many others, who provided
for them out of their resources.”
John 20:1-18
 Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary
Magdalene came to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed
from the tomb. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other
disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken
the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid
him.” Then Peter and the other disciple set out and went toward the
tomb. The two were running together, but the other disciple outran
Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent down to look in and saw the
linen wrappings lying there, but he did not go in. Then Simon Peter
came, following him, and went into the tomb. He saw the linen
wrappings lying there, and the cloth that had been on Jesus’ head, not
lying with the linen wrappings but rolled up in a place by itself. Then
the other disciple, who reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw
and believed; for as yet they did not understand the scripture, that he
must rise from the dead. Then the disciples returned to their homes.
John 20:1-18
 But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb. As she wept, she bent over
to look into the tomb; and she saw two angels in white, sitting where
the body of Jesus had been lying, one at the head and the other at the
feet. 13 They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to
them, “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they
have laid him.” 14 When she had said this, she turned around and saw
Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus. 15 Jesus
said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking
for?” Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you
have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take
him away.” 16 Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to him in
Hebrew,[b] “Rabbouni!” (which means Teacher). 17 Jesus said to her,
“Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father.
But go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father
and your Father, to my God and your God.’” 18 Mary Magdalene went
and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”; and she told
them that he had said these things to her.
Woman as apostle
 What is an apostle?
 from Greek apostolos meaning ‘messenger,’
 from apostellein ‘send forth.’
 What message was Mary Magdalene sent to tell?
 How significant is that message to the religion of
Christianity?
 Who was the first person sent to tell the message of
the Resurrection?
 Who sent Mary Magdalene?
 Mary Magdalene is often called “the Apostle to the
Apostles”
Application
 So, if the Gospel of John claims that Jesus Christ (God
according the Christian doctrine) ordained that a
woman should be the first messanger of the
Resurrection, to what extent do you think that is a
significant indicator of the Christian god’s intended
status of women?
Woman as subject
Ephesians 5:22-33
 22 Wives, be subject to your husbands as you are to the Lord. 23 For the
husband is the head of the wife just as Christ is the head of the church, the
body of which he is the Savior. 24 Just as the church is subject to Christ, so also
wives ought to be, in everything, to their husbands.
 25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself
up for her, 26 in order to make her holy by cleansing her with the washing of
water by the word, 27 so as to present the church to himself in splendor,
without a spot or wrinkle or anything of the kind—yes, so that she may be holy
and without blemish. 28 In the same way, husbands should love their wives as
they do their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29 For no one
ever hates his own body, but he nourishes and tenderly cares for it, just as
Christ does for the church, 30 because we are members of his body.[a] 31 “For
this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife,
and the two will become one flesh.” 32 This is a great mystery, and I am
applying it to Christ and the church. 33 Each of you, however, should love his
wife as himself, and a wife should respect her husband.
The rights of women in general
Civil Roman Law
 Although the woman was considered a Roman citizen, she obtained her
position only through her husband. Neither slaves nor women could carry their
own name. Only men carried this distinct sign of their being a Roman citizen.
 Moreover, the woman was excluded from all public functions and rights:
“Women are excluded from all civil and public functions and therefore can
neither be judges nor carry any civil authority, they cannot bring a court case,
nor intercede for someone else nor act as mediators”.
 The woman could not have charge of another person. “Tutela virile officium est”
[Tutelage is generally a male duty]. She could not have patronage of her
children and cousins (except in 3rd & 4th century Roman Law, after all of the
books of the Bible had been written and collected).
 Women could not function as witnesses, whether at the drawing up of a last
will, or in any other form of law. “The woman is incapable of being a witness in
any form of jurisprudence where witnesses are required”. Women were
reckoned with minors, slaves, the dumb and criminals to be incapable of being
witnesses.
The rights of women in general
Civil Roman Law
 Women could not start a court case without being
represented by a man. Women cannot represent
themselves in law “because of the infirmity of their sex and
because of their ignorance about matters pertaining to
public life”.
 In spite of a slight relaxation in laws which offered more
protection to women in the Roman Empire of the 3rd and
4th centuries, the overall inferior status of women
remained the same.
 Since early Church leaders were understandably influenced
by Roman culture, morality and subject to Roman Law as
the norm for what is right and just, the same negative rules
regarding women found their way into Christian thought,
practice and law.
Building Context
 When Ephesians was written by Paul to the Church in
Ephesus [Greek province of Rome]…
 Did women have legal rights as individuals (apart from
their fathers/husbands) in Ephesus?
 Given the cultural context of Paul’s writings, why do
you think it is that Paul would have instructed
Christian wives of Ephesus to honor the legal authority
of their husbands?
Application
 In the United States, what are the legal rights of
women in relation to men?
 At work?
 In marriage?
 As mothers?
 Do you think that Paul’s instruction for the women of
Ephesus to follow Roman Law in their marriages be
applied to American women today? Why or why not?
1 Corinthians 11:5
 “…any woman who prays or prophesies with her head
unveiled disgraces her head—it is one and the same
thing as having her head shaved. For if a woman will
not veil herself, then she should cut off her hair; but if
it is disgraceful for a woman to have her hair cut off or
to be shaved, she should wear a veil.”
Greek and Roman Culture
 Classical Greek and Hellenistic statues sometimes depict Greek
women with both their head and face covered by a veil.
 Caroline Galt1 and Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones2 have both argued from
such representations and literary references that it was
commonplace for women (at least those of higher status) in ancient
Greece to cover their hair and face in public.
 Roman women were expected to wear veils as a symbol of the
husband's authority over his wife;
 A married woman who omitted the veil was seen as withdrawing
herself from marriage.
 In 166 BC, consul Sulpicius Gallus divorced his wife because she had
left the house unveiled, thus allowing all to see, as he said, what
only he should see. Unmarried girls normally didn't veil their heads,
but matrons did so to show their modesty and chastity.
1 Professor of
Archaeology at Mount Holyoke College (1903–1937)
2Professor of Ancient History at Cardiff University (present)
Building Context
 When 1 Corinthians was written by Paul to the Church
in Corinth [a city in the Greek province of Rome]…
 was it decent for a respectable woman to be seen
anywhere without a head covering?
 Given the cultural context of Paul’s writings, why do
you think it is that Paul would have instructed
Christian wives of Corinth to wear head coverings in
church?
Building Context
 Is it decent for a respectable woman in the United
States to be seen without a head covering?
Application
 Do most American churches require women to wear
head covering outside of the church walls?
 Why do you think that is?
 Do most American churches require women to wear
head covering outside of the church walls?
 Why do you think that is?
 If most American churches have generally recognized
the cultural irrelevance of Paul’s instruction about
head covering, why do you it is that American
churches have not applied the same logic to a woman’s
role in marriage?
God-ordained as helpers?
 Or is Genesis telling us something true about why the
world is predominantly patriarchal in nature?
 Or… ?
Hermeneutics
 By looking at a number of crucial scripture references
regarding the status of women in the Bible, which step
of the Exegetical Process have we been practicing?
 Canonical analysis
 If we were to practice the Secondary Sources step of
the Exegetical Process, do you think that we would
find a majority of conclusions that God ordained
women with inferior status? Why or why not?
Christian concept of God
Malachi 3:6 (OT)
 “For I, the Lord, do not change.”
Psalm 102:27 (OT)
 “But You are the same, And Your years will not come to
an end.”
Hebrews 13:8 (NT)
 “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and
forever.”
Ezekiel 21 (OT)
 “The word of the Lord came to me: 2 ‘Son of man, set
your face against Jerusalem and preach against the
sanctuary. Prophesy against the land of Israel 3 and say
to her: “This is what the Lord says: I am against you.”’
Ezekiel 36 (OT)
 7 I, the Sovereign Lord, solemnly promise that the
surrounding nations will be humiliated. 8 But on the
mountains of Israel the trees will again grow leaves
and bear fruit for you, my people Israel. You are going
to come home soon. 9 I am on your side, and I will
make sure that your land is plowed again and crops are
planted on it. 10 I will make your population grow. You
will live in the cities and rebuild everything that was
left in ruins.
Revelation 2-3 (NT)
Seven Churches are named for their locations. Provides descriptions of each
Church.
 Ephesus (Revelation 2:1-7)
 the church known for having laboured hard and not fainted, and separating
themselves from the wicked; admonished for having forsaken its first love
 Smyrna (Revelation 2:8-11)
 the church admired for its tribulation and poverty; forecast to suffer
persecution
 Pergamum (Revelation 2:12-17)
 the church located at 'Satan's seat'; needed to repent of allowing false
teachers
 Thyatira (Revelation 2:18-29)
 the church known for its charity, whose "latter works are greater than the
former"; held the teachings of a false prophetess
 Sardis (Revelation 3:1-6)
 the church that has a good name; cautioned to fortify itself and return to
God through repentance (3:2-3)
 Philadelphia (Revelation 3:7-13)
 the church steadfast in faith, that had kept God's word and endured
patiently (3:10)
 Laodicea, (Revelation 3:14-22)
 the church that was lukewarm and insipid (to God) (3:16)
Synthesis
 Christians believe that God does not change over time.
 Most humans believe (including Christians) that
humanity changes over time.
 According to the NT & OT, does God’s message change
over time depending on the changing needs /
circumstances of the human audience?
 Insider vs. Outsider perspective:
 Insider: God’s message changes depending on the
changing needs of the audience.
 Outsider: the Bible is full of contradictions.
How does this Christian
understanding of sacred text apply
to the discussion on women in
sacred text?
 Is Paul’s message about women different from that of
the Jewish writers of Judges (story of Judge / General /
Prophetess Deborah)?
 Insider vs Outsider interpretation?
Before we move on to the video…
The rights of women in general
Civil Roman Law
Review
 The woman was excluded from all public functions
and rights: “Women are excluded from all civil and
public functions.
 Is teaching in a public school a public function?

American culture comparison: 76 % of American public
school teachers are female
The rights of women in general Civil
Roman Law
Review
 She could not have patronage of her children and
cousins (except in 3rd & 4th century Roman Law, after
all of the books of the Bible had been written and
collected).
 Western Culture today: Do women in most Western
nations have legal custody rights to their own children?
The rights of women in general
Civil Roman Law
Review
 The woman could not have charge of another person.
“Tutela virile officium est” [Tutelage is generally a male
duty].
1 Timothy 2:12
Paul wrote a letter of advice to a young man named Timothy
who was pastoring in Ephesus
 “I permit no woman to teach or to have authority over a
man; she is to keep silent.”
Acts 1-2
 When they had entered the city, they went to the room upstairs
where they were staying, Peter, and John, and James, and
Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James
son of Alphaeus, and Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of[c]
James. 14 All these were constantly devoting themselves to
prayer, together with certain women, including Mary the mother
of Jesus, as well as his brothers…When the day of Pentecost had
come, they were all together in one place. 2 And suddenly from
heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it
filled the entire house where they were sitting. 3 Divided
tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested
on each of them. 4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit
and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them
ability.
(Then Peter quotes Joel to the crowd that
thinks they’re all drunk)
Joel 2 (OT) – Quoted by Peter on
the day of Pentecost (NT)
Then afterward
I will pour out my spirit on all flesh;
your sons and your daughters shall
prophesy,
your old men shall dream dreams,
and your young men shall see visions.
29 Even on the male and female slaves,
in those days, I will pour out my spirit.
• Is it possible to prophesy without speaking?
• Were women speaking on the day of the birth of the Church
(Pentecost) according to the apostle Peter?
• According to the Bible, who decided who would prophesy on the
day of Pentecost?
• The Holy Spirit (God chose both women and men to speak
for him on the day of the birth of the Church)
Women as deacons
 1 Timothy 3:8-13 (Paul)
8 In the same way, deacons are to be worthy of respect, sincere,
not indulging in much wine, and not pursuing dishonest gain. 9
They must keep hold of the deep truths of the faith with a clear
conscience. 10 They must first be tested; and then if there is
nothing against them, let them serve as deacons.
11 In the same way, the women are to be worthy of respect, not
malicious talkers but temperate and trustworthy in everything.
12 A deacon must be faithful to his wife and must manage his
children and his household well. 13 Those who have served well
gain an excellent standing and great assurance in their faith in
Christ Jesus.
The only higher position in the church at
that time was bishop / “overseer”
Romans 16:1-2 (Paul)
 16 I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a deacon of the
church at Cenchreae, 2 so that you may welcome her in the
Lord as is fitting for the saints, and help her in whatever
she may require from you, for she has been a benefactor
of many and of myself as well. Greet Prisca and Aquila, who
work with me in Christ Jesus, 4 and who risked their necks
for my life, to whom not only I give thanks, but also all the
churches of the Gentiles…. Greet Mary, who has worked
very hard among you. … Greet Philologus, Julia, Nereus
and his sister, and Olympas, and all the saints who are
with them. ..All the churches of Christ greet you. 17 I urge
you, brothers and sisters, to keep an eye on those who
cause dissensions and offenses, in opposition to the
teaching that you have learned; avoid them.
Who is Paul instructing to do what
Phoebe requires? Just women?
Did Paul prohibit females from having
authority in the early church?
Women as hosts of house churches
Women as hosts of house churches
 “When he [Peter] realized this, he went to the house of
Mary, the mother of John who is called Mark, where
there were many people gathered in prayer” (Acts
12:12).
 “When they [Paul and Silas] had come out of the
prison, they went to Lydia’s house where they saw and
encouraged the brothers, and then they left” (Acts
16:40).
 “Give greetings to the brothers in Laodicea and to
Nympha and to the church in her house” (Colossians
4:15).
Woman as teacher?
Paul wrote a letter of advice to a
young man named Timothy who
was pastoring in Ephesus
 “I permit no woman to
teach or to have authority
over a man; she is to keep
silent.”
Application:
 Weighing this text against
the other texts in the
Biblical canon, would you
say that this is an
instruction that is
temporal [meant for a
specific group of people at
a specific time] or eternal
[meant to be applied to all
women at all times]?
Roman Catholic
 The teaching of the Roman Catholic Church, as emphasised by Pope John Paul II in the
apostolic letter Ordinatio Sacerdotalis, is "that the Church has no authority whatsoever
to confer priestly ordination on women and that this judgement is to be definitively held
by all the Church's faithful".[132] This teaching is embodied in the current canon law
1024[133]) and the Catechism of the Catholic Church (1992), by the canonical statement:
"Only a baptized man (Latin: vir) validly receives sacred ordination."[134] Insofar as
priestly and episcopal ordination are concerned, the Roman Catholic Church teaches that
this requirement is a matter of divine law; it belongs to the deposit of faith and is
unchangeable.[135][136][137]
 In 2007, the Holy See issued a decree stating that attempted ordination of a woman
would result in automatic excommunication for the women and bishops attempting to
ordain them,[138] and in 2010, that attempted ordination of women is a "grave
delict".[139]
 An official Papal Commission ordered by Pope Francis in 2016 is charged with
determining whether the ancient practice of having female deacons (deaconesses) is
possible. Determined: male deacon authority – proclaiming the Gospel at Mass, giving a
homily, and performing non-emergency baptisms – would not be permitted for the
discussed female diaconate.
Protestant
 Today, over half of all American Protestant denominations ordain
women,[127] but some restrict the official positions a woman can hold.
For instance, some ordain women for the military or hospital
chaplaincy but prohibit them from serving in congregational roles.
Over one-third of all seminary students (and in some seminaries nearly
half) are female.[128][129]
 The Protestant denominations that refuse to ordain women often do so
on the basis of New Testament scriptures that they interpret as
prohibiting women from fulfilling church roles that require
ordination.[130] An especially important consideration here is the way 1
Timothy 2:12 is translated and interpreted in the New Testament.[130]
Debate on how to best interpret the 1 Timothy verse is intense and
ongoing. Arguments regarding context and the Greek words have been
used against the literal interpretation of some.[131]
Othodox
 The Orthodox Church follows a line of reasoning similar to that of the Roman Catholic
Church with respect to the ordination of bishops and priests, and does not allow
women's ordination to those orders.[108]
 Thomas Hopko and Evangelos Theodorou have contended that female deacons were fully
ordained in antiquity.[109] K. K. Fitzgerald has followed and amplified Theodorou's
research. Metropolitan Kallistos Ware wrote:[110]
 The order of deaconesses seems definitely to have been considered an "ordained" ministry
during early centuries in at any rate the Christian East. ... Some Orthodox writers regard
deaconesses as having been a "lay" ministry. There are strong reasons for rejecting this
view. In the Byzantine rite the liturgical office for the laying-on of hands for the deaconess
is exactly parallel to that for the deacon; and so on the principle lex orandi, lex credendi—
the Church's worshipping practice is a sure indication of its faith—it follows that the
deaconesses receives, as does the deacon, a genuine sacramental ordination: not just a
χειροθεσια (chirothesia) but a χειροτονια (chirotonia).
 On October 8, 2004, the Holy Synod of the Orthodox Church of Greece voted to permit
the appointment of monastic deaconesses, that is, women to minister and assist at the
liturgy within their own monasteries, but it made clear that the rite was a χειροτονία
(appointment), not a χειροθεσία (ordination).
The rights of women in general
Civil Roman Law
Review
 The woman was excluded from all public functions
and rights: “Women are excluded from all civil and
public functions.
 Is teaching in a public school a public function?

American culture comparison: 76 % of American public
school teachers are female
The rights of women in general Civil
Roman Law
Review
 She could not have patronage of her children and
cousins (except in 3rd & 4th century Roman Law, after
all of the books of the Bible had been written and
collected).
 Western Culture today: Do women in most Western
nations have legal custody rights to their own children?
The rights of women in general
Civil Roman Law
Review
 The woman could not have charge of another person.
“Tutela virile officium est” [Tutelage is generally a male
duty].
 Global comparison today…
Today, can women legally take charge of
other persons, including men?
Today, can women legally take charge of other
persons, including men?
 43.6% of Senior Lecturer faculty positions in Australia are
held by women
 36% percent of university professors in the US are women.
 Margaret Thatcher was a British stateswoman who was the
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990.
She was the longest-serving [democratically elected]
British prime minister of the 20th century. A Soviet
journalist dubbed her The Iron Lady, for she made her
mark in history as a significant force of resistance against
the USSR during the Cold War.
 Does our Western culture consider it categorically
scandalous for a woman to take a position of instruction
and leadership over adult men?
Synthesis
 If most American churches have generally recognized
the cultural irrelevance of Paul’s instruction about
head covering, why do you it is that American
churches have not as consistently applied the same
logic to
 a woman’s role in marriage?
 a woman’s role in the church?