Jesus did not indicate a subordinate role for women

Several years ago, I had the privilege of standing on the floor of the Jerusalem Synagogue in Jerusalem, one of the most important synagogues in Israel. I had covered my head in order to be accepted, although to be fair my head covering was far from being the traditional yarmulke that Orthodox and Conservative Jews wear.

As I stood there explaining some of the things to my tour friends, a Jewish man and his wife came in the door along with his son and his wife. The Jewish man stopped at the door, and I heard his wife say, “But we just want to see what’s here.” The man turned to his wife, and said, “You know your place.” So, while the two Jewish men wearing yarmulkes and I with my simple head covering stood there on the ground floor accepted as worthy before God, the two women were resigned to view the synagogue from the balcony.

There is no doubt that women occupied an inferior place among people during the Old Testament era and some of this carried over into the New Testament. But having said this, it is important to point out that much of this had to do with culture and the dominance of men, not because women were somehow inferior.

People who like the Jewish Old Testament which subjugates women to a submissive role often point to Abraham having life and death control over his family — e.g. offering up his son as a sacrifice — and 1 Timothy 2:9-15 in the New Testament. However, both of these examples have to be carefully examined. They must be tempered with examples of what women in the Bible did or did not do, and by the clear teachings of Jesus.

Let’s look at 1 Timothy 1:9-15. The author, Paul, first says that all women must “adorn themselves in modest apparel … not with braided hair or gold or pearls or costly clothing.” Well, that just about eliminates all of the women attending church today. Then, he continues by requiring women to learn in silence with all submission, and that he does not allow a woman to teach or have authority over a man, but to be silent. Of course, this ignores his teachings in 1 Corinthians 12:12-30 where everyone has a role to play in the kingdom of God, but then he offers two strange reasons for his teachings.

First, he says men are better because Adam was created first and then Eve, and that Eve was the first one tempted (but yet he insists sin came into the world through Adam — Romans 5:12-14; 1 Corinthians 15:20-22); and second, that the way women will be saved is through child-bearing. Judaism did have strict rules requiring everyone to be quiet and submissive when being taught by a rabbi, but no one seems to know where Paul got the idea about being saved through child-bearing. It is far more convincing to believe that Paul was addressing specific issues the Greek churches were having where Timothy was helping and trying to create order. Women have taught and served as missionaries for centuries.

There are examples of women in the Bible serving in every role that men did with the exception of being a priest. I cannot give you everything in this short article, but let me at least provide some scriptures for your study. There are two creation stories. In Genesis 1:26-28, God created both man and woman together and told them to rule over the world together. There is no Hebrew word meaning “Helpmeet”; the Hebrew word means “suitable for” or “corresponding to.” In Exodus 15:20 and 2 Kings 22:14, women were prophetesses. Huldah was the prophetess who declared that the book of Deuteronomy

found in the temple was the Book of Law, a proclamation which got it into the Old Testament.

In Judges 4:4, Deborah is listed as both a prophetess and a judge. In 1 Corinthians 11:2-16, Paul says women have the right to prophesy and pray in church while setting an appearance code not followed even in the Old Testament. In 1 Corinthians 11:11-12, Paul also affirms that while men and women are different, they both depend upon one another. In Romans 16:3-5, Paul praises Prisca and Aquila for being fellow-workers. In Romans 16:1-2, Paul refers to Phoebe as a deacon (or deaconess). The RSV translates the Greek text

right since it is the Greek word for deacon, not servant or helper. In Romans 16:7. Paul refers to Junias as an apostle. Junias is a female name. In 2 Timothy 1:5, Paul claims it was Timothy’s grandmother and mother who taught him about Christ in the home (both women). In Galatians 3:28, Paul says there is no difference between male and female. In Ephesians 5: 21ff, Paul begins by saying husbands and wives must be subject to one another and ends by pointing out that he is talking about Christ and the church. What occurs in between is an illustration of his point.

In Luke 10:39-42, Jesus did not indicate a subordinate role for women. He said that Mary had the right to receive instruction from him and that it would not be taken from her. In Luke 8:1-4 and Matthew

27:55ff, Jesus not only took the 12 apostles with him on a missionary journey, but there were women traveling with them ministering. And there are other examples.

It is clear that the Bible reflects a transition from a Jewish model to a Christian model regarding the roles of men and women, something which turned the worship of God and home life upside down. However, contemporary Christians supported by conservative Bible schol

ars clearly march to a different standard. The key to understanding this transition is simple: If God gives a person a certain ability and calls him or her to use it to glorify him, that calling must be recognized and fulfilled regardless of a person’s gender.

•••