[1]
Galatians 3:28
King James Version
28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor
free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.
King James Version
34 Let your women keep
silence in the churches. For it is not permitted unto them to speak; but they
are commanded to be under obedience as also saith the law. 35 And if
they will learn any thing, let them ask their husbands at home: for it is a
shame for women to speak in the church.
Paul is the great doctrine maker of the Christian Church.
Christ brought the gospel, the good news, to the world; and Paul told us how to
apply it. My mother felt that he must have had a very unhappy marriage at home.
This is why he writes such things as we read about women in his epistles. At
times, in fact she branded him as a woman hater.
My church, the Seventh-day Adventist church, is divided in
its own interpretation of how to view women. Ellen White was probably the most
influential of the founders of our church. She was a welcome speaker at many
churches, camp meetings, and conference meetings. The General Conference viewed
her as a wise counselor and yet feared her to the point that they banished her
to Australia for over a decade to get her out of their hair. They offered to
ordain her, and she turned them down flatly; yet today they are literally
dividing the church because some women have been ordained by some entities in
the church, and yet other entities refuse to even consider doing such.
Paul insisted that deacons and bishops (or elders) be the
husband of one wife—clearly defining the leadership role to be male. The church
followed Paul’s directions for roughly a century. However, throughout our
history, women have been welcome speakers as well as Sabbath School and
educational teachers and leaders. My paternal grandmother was a Michigan
Conference departmental secretary of the Sabbath School Association[2]
in the 1890s. Then they decided that these positions could only be held by
ordained pastors. For decades pastors had to be men, so those positions have
been strictly restricted to men.
Adventism finds itself in the unfortunate position of
professing to be people of the Book, the Bible, but being inconsistent in its
application to the extent of splitting the church. The Bible insists that
elders and deacons must be men, and the church has officially chosen to ignore
this principle and ordains both men and women to these positions. Yet on the
other hand, it demands that only men can be ordained as pastors where the Bible
says nothing in relation to this.
It appears that the church has only three choices on this issue:
1. Return to the biblical definition that both
elders and deacons must be men. Declare that when Paul wrote Galatians 3:28, he
was only speaking about salvation’s being equally available to all people no
matter what their earthly state is. This would make 1 Corinthians 14:34,35
consistent with Galatian 3:28.
2. Apply Galatians
3:28 to all church posts, including pastors.
3. Drop our profession
of being people of the Book.
Whatever the eventual choice of the church on this issue, it
is essential that we return to our original mission: to preach that Christ is
coming soon and that He will be looking for those who are so anxious for His
return that they are keeping His commandments.
Lord, please keep your mission for us ever before our
eyes. May we strengthen and support anyone whom You have chosen to deliver that
message.
