Response to Response

I received a very good response to my blog from a friend who had reservations about women in pastoral leadership in regards to the over-arching Scriptural support and specifically how this would coincide with home life. I thought his comments were very well-thought out. Anyway, this is part of the response I sent to him, and thought I'd go ahead and share it. It's not very organized, very informal, and probably has lots of loopholes. BUT, it might be beneficial to someone who reads it.



In response to your responses :), I totally understand and respect where you are coming from. Like I said in my blog, your opinions were pretty much my own four years ago. And I don't say that to mean I've come to more advanced opinions either--just to say that I completely understand your stances and respect them.

Here are some of the reasons/questions that prodded me to come to the stances I hold now in regard to the issues you raised.

As to the women in leadership in the Bible being the exception to the rule, I totally agree. However, I think the reason isn't that God made the rule and sometimes chose to break it, but rather that the culture had a very strong rule in place, so rarely were there women who had the opportunity to break it. I think it seems odd to say that God would design genders in such a way that men were to be the leaders and women not, but then call specific women throughout the course of Biblical and post-Biblical history to step up.

Secondly, the issue of submission in the home was a much tougher one for me to deal with when God called me to ministry. Being very vulnerable and honest, what single woman in her right mind wants to be called to ministry? I want to be married. I'm female. I long for companionship--for a man who will pursue me and be a protector figure in my life. I don't want to have to make life decisions on my own. I don't want to go it solo. And what man wants to marry a pastor? It sounds so odd... a pastor's husband... we don't see it all that often. Some people have accused women in ministry (not at all saying you have) of being power-hungry, feminists who want to have control over men... Well, I'm definitely not one of them. I want to serve and love... and I desperately want to be married. So anyway, all that to say that I struggled with this like none other... And it often times made me want to run from my call. But God has shown me in Scripture that Christianity is all about submission--not just wife to husband, but "one to another." In fact, in Ephesians, the verse preceding "Wives, submit to your husbands" says "submit one to another." The division in our Bibles was only added, and I think it's placement was significant to the cultural bias of the day. Finally, I think we have a skewed understanding of what pastoral leadership means. Yes, leadership involves authority... but it is ultimately an act of service, humility, and submission to God and others. All in all, I guess I would be lumped in the "mutual submission" category in regards to marriage--that in some areas I may lead in the home, in others my husband may lead. However, I don't take this stance out of a desire to negate Scripture or to elevate myself, but simply because I think that's the ultimate principle. My desire is to submit to my husband... which is why I'm praying for a very godly, wise man in whom I can place the utmost respect and admiration, but who also affirms my call and will support me in pastoral leadership. But I think my desire to submit is not motivated by a God-given mandate of women as those who submit so much as it is motivated by my desire to love selflessly and the fact that because I'm a leader, I'd really just appreciate to be able to be led sometimes. :)