WATCH DRURY WRITE A BOOK. – THIS IS A TEMPORARY POST Writer’s first draft of a book to be
published by The Wesleyan
Publishing House. as an introduction
to the ministry. This web-posted copy is
an early draft of the manuscript and not intended to be used as a final
document. While the editors will catch minor errors if you see something significantly
wrong or missing drop Keith Drury a note at kdrury@indwes.edu
©
2003 Keith Drury
6
Women in Ministry
What if you are a woman who
has sensed a call to the ministry from God?
Can women be ministers and get ordained, or is the ministry reserved for
men only? What if you are a woman and
you are called to the ministry but your denomination won’t ordain women? Is it biblical for churches to ordain women? Didn’t the Apostle Paul say women should be
silent in the church?
This chapter is to women called to ministry; however, men should
read it too. Does your denomination
refuse to ordain women? You should still
read this chapter to see why some denominations do ordain women. Does your denomination enthusiastically
ordain women? Read this chapter to see
why some denominations resist the idea.
Does your denomination rarely (perhaps even grudgingly) ordain
women? Then you should especially read
this chapter to determine how you might influence your own denomination in the
future. You might not agree with this chapter, and your denomination might not
either. But whatever your views, you should read it anyway.
The Bible and
women ministers
Whole books have been written on the subject of what the Bible
says about women in ministry, and we cannot adequately give the arguments
here. Eventually you will want to read
several of these books to discover why some churches refuse to ordain women who
are called, and others happily ordain them.
However, here we will provide a short survey of the positions to help
you understand each. Of course, these
summaries are not perfectly representative; there are as many variations on
this issue as colors in the rainbow. But
generally, these two summaries will help you see the primary positions. They are not given so you can bash “the other
side” so much as to help you understand both positions and eventually reconcile
them.
Don’t worry; the church will come to general agreement on these
issues just like we did several hundred years ago on slavery. At that time, many churches argued that
slavery was clearly supported by the Bible. Yet some used the same Bible to
claim that slavery was wrong. The
quarrel took years to resolve.
Eventually, the entire
Position #1 --
Women should not be ordained
For most of history the church has not
ordained women—neither Catholic nor protestant.
Ordaining women is a recent notion growing out of the feminist movement
and it is contrary to Holy Scripture and church tradition. The apostle Paul was very clear: “women
should remain silent in the churches” (1 Cor. 14). Men are the spiritual and administrative heads
of the home and women should be submissive to them both at home and at church. When Paul said women should be quiet at
church he meant exactly what he said—women should remain quiet at church! The Bible says it and the Bible says it very
clearly—a woman speaking at church is unbiblical.
If anyone wonders if Paul really meant it,
or was writing only to a single church, look at how he repeats it in 1 Timothy
2. Here Paul said it even more
clearly. He told us exactly what his
practice was: “I do not permit a woman to teach or have authority over a man;
she must be silent.” What more do we
need? Isn’t that clear enough? Women should not have authority over men, and
they should not be speaking at church.
Period. Sure, it is OK for them
to speak to children, or teach each other, but they cannot teach or lead
men. Thus a woman can’t be an ordained
preacher—a position of authority over men that requires them to teach and
preach to men. The Bible says it clearly
and that should be enough for us.
Position #2 --
Women should be ordained
While Paul does appear to restrict women
from speaking in two specific places in Scripture, he did this because of the
social environment of that day. He was
not making a rule for all time. Like his
admonition to slaves that they should obey their masters, he was advising
people how to live in the first century, not writing a rule for all time.
Besides, there have always been women
active in God’s service, even though women were second class citizens in
ancient days. At Pentecost, Peter
claimed the prophecy was fulfilled that sons and daughters would prophecy.
We don’t have their names, but certainly this prophecy was being lived
out. In fact, Philip had four daughters
who prophesied (Acts 21:9). Prophecy was
the first century equivalent of preaching.
If Paul was so opposed to women leaders, what will we do with
Priscilla—an obvious tower of power in the book of Acts. Or, how about Phoebe (Rom 16:1-2), whom Paul
calls a minister from Cenchrea? When Paul ends Romans (16:7) he commends
“Junia, outstanding among the apostles.”
(not until the middle ages was the translation adjusted from the female name
Junia into the male name Junias). What
about Paul telling us in Galatians that “In Christ…there is neither slave nor
free, male and female?’ Was he serious
or not?
Yet even on top of all this evidence,
there is an even more important argument: consider the trajectory of Scripture (or “heaven trajectory”). Is there any doubt that it is God’s intention
that women and men be fully equal in heaven?
Shouldn’t we be trying to move toward heaven, instead of looking back at
the fall of humanity?
But the most important question is this:
does God call women? If He does, then He
expects them to serve. The resistance against women in ministry is
temporary—like those who defended slavery using their favorite proof
texts. Eventually, women will have full
access to ministry—it will just take time.
A hundred years have not even passed since women got to vote! In 1920 the
Until then, women will find a place of service. If God calls an
Asian, or a black, or a single person, or a white person He always has a place
of service for them. If you are a women
and God calls you, He will provide a place of service for you too. Your
denomination may refuse to ordain you, but some denomination somewhere will
ordain you. No one denomination is
strong enough to block you from ministry if God has called you. The Roman Catholic Church was once so
universal and powerful (during the Middle Ages) that they could block all women
from ordination, but not today. A woman
called to the ministry will find a place of service—either in your own
denomination, or in mine.
Extra challenges for women
in ministry
This book is not neutral on this issue. It promotes women’s ordination. However, that is not to say that ministry
will be easy for you if you are a called women.
God has called you to the ministry and you must obey. You must do it. But be forewarned; life as a minister may be
much harder for you. That’s not a pretty
fact, but it’s true…at least for now.
Knowing so from the start will help you prepare.
A woman in ministry faces extra challenges and barriers many males
don’t experience. Most of all, she will
find it more difficult to get a job (for now at least). Most denominations aren’t big on trying to
maintain gender balance among the employees and leadership. Most denominations
(particularly in
When a congregation is deciding who will be their new pastor,
(especially senior pastor/preacher) they are often considering several
resumes. They will consider your
training, gifts, skills, and your references.
They’ll look at your church involvement in college and seminary and your
“track record” at other churches. But
they’ll also consider other things—even if they don’t admit it out loud. For instance, many churches will “prefer”
married couples over a single man or woman.
Many will prefer a couple with children over a couple with no
children. Lots of churches will prefer a
young family over an older minister who is an empty-nester. A single man with no female interests whatsoever
has the hardest time of all getting a ministry job. And many local churches will prefer a man
over a woman. Not just male members, but
female members too.
All this sounds very unfair.
And it is. But if a denomination
permits local people to “vote” and interview and choose their own minister,
both personal and congregational preferences will affect the outcome. And these preferences and prejudices are
influenced by hundreds of years of sociology far more than good theology or
biblical exegesis.
It may be unfair, even outright wrong, but it is true. If you are a women entering ministry, you
need to recognize this now. Indeed, if you are a single man, Black, Asian,
overweight, have grey hair and your children have all moved away, recognize this
factor as well. A local church’s
preferences and prejudice will be a factor in their hiring even after you’ve
“made the cut” based on your competence and “track record.”
For these churches, selecting a minister is something like
selecting a spouse. College students don’t “try to be fair” or “give everyone
an equal chance” in selecting whom to date.
You probably spend time with people you prefer and don’t even think of
dating people who are unattractive to you for the sake of being fair to
them. Churches who tip the scale on otherwise equal
candidates with personal preferences think they are doing the same thing you
would do in dating. (They aren’t, but
that’s what they think.) Most of these churches don’t believe they are
doing anything wrong.
So, if you are a woman going into ministry, you may have to be
better than the men who interview for the same position. That’s not fair, but it’s true. You’ve simply got to be better. Luckily, that’s not difficult. Women tend to have some traits that make them
better equipped for many elements of
the ministry. Perhaps that is why God
calls both women and men into the ministry—men and women both have traits the
ministry needs. Just like God wants both
men and woman to be active in raising children in the home, perhaps he needs
the strengths and traits of both men and women in raising up spiritual children
in the church.
But getting a job is not the only extra challenge you will face as
a woman minister. Even after you get a
job as a minister, there may be people in your church who resist your
ministry--especially your preaching. It
may surprise you to discover that your most deep resistance may come from other
women, not men. And when you get sick
and are missing from the pulpit they'll crack jokes about you being "the
weaker sex." If you decide to stay
home and care for your preschooler daughter when she has an ear infection, some
unkind people will remark, "She's doing the mommy thing." And if you decide to stay home an entire
decade to raise your children as a stay-at-home mom some will wonder what
happened to your call and "lifetime ordination" and use it to dismiss
women’s ordination altogether. If you
are in a denomination where there are few women in ministry you'll get invited
to the "Minister's wives" meetings and when you attend the
mostly-male ministerial retreats, you may have trouble finding a ride with a
fellow minister unless there is a group going. If you are a co-minister with
your husband it is admittedly easier, but if you have a husband outside of the
ministry, people won't exactly know how to deal with him as a "pastor's
husband." If you invite people to
your parsonage you'll have to sort out who is the social entertainer and who
will do the cooking. And there are a
hundred other little things that you'll notice about being a woman in ministry
that seem to make it harder for you.
But what can you do? If you
are called can you walk away from it? If
you are truly called can you decide "it’s not worth it?" Thus the real question for all men and women
headed for ministry, but especially for women, is am I really called? In fact,
this may be your only “defense” against people who are against your being in
the pulpit. To debate this topic with
someone based on Bible verses sometimes just gets you in a dart-tossing
contest. Let’s face it, people both
support women in ministry and oppose women in ministry using the same
Bible. (That is not to say that the Bile
is unclear on these points, just that we have not found a church wide consensus
on this yet) The only thing you may be able to say if your ministry comes under
attack is simply, “God has called me.”
If you are truly called, then you must find a place of
ministry. This is not to say you
shouldn't try to change your denomination and people—you should. But being an
activist for change in how churches should treat women ministers will probably
not be your primary calling. Your
calling will be the same as any man's calling—to be a prophet and priest for
the people of God. To represent God to
the people, and the people to God.
Indeed, more men should be leading the charge on bringing change in this
area—that will appear less self-serving.
And if all else
fails…
If you are a called woman, God has a place of service for you. God wasn’t playing games with you when He
called you. You might even have to
change denominations—as hard as that would be.
Remember, God is far less concerned about your denominational label than
He is about equipping and ministering to His universal church. God is not a Baptist, Nazarene, Methodist,
Presbyterian or Wesleyan. God is the God
of His universal Body of Christ—the church.
God’s call to you was never a denominational call anyway. It was a call to be a minister in the church
universal. In fact, many denominational
ordination rituals ordain you to be a minister in that particular denomination
“and the church universal.” So, if you
are called by God to His universal church, and your denomination refuses to
“confirm that call” by ordaining you, what else can you do? Go find a denomination that does appreciate
women in ministry and join them! God
won’t be disappointed. This sounds
drastic. And many women would
"rather stay and fight" than leave the denomination of their
childhood. However, fighting for this
cause can take a toll—despair and bitterness are sometimes the price this
battle extracts. As a young woman,
search your heart carefully on this matter.
If your denomination is turning back the clock on women's ordination,
you may have to jump ship to save your ministry.
Face it, some denominations have never ordained women and they
don’t intend to (though eventually only a few will refuse ordination of
women—but this could take more than your lifetime). Several major evangelical denominations have
recently turned back the clock and stopped ordaining women—even ousting women
already ordained from the Ministry!
(Shame on them.) But there are
lots of denominations who welcome both men and women into the ministry, and
these denominations will increasingly become places of service for women called
into God’s work. Some of these will
actually promote your opportunities for ministry. However most will just “give you a chance to
make a church grow.” They might not
give you any preferential treatment, and they’ll expect you to produce a “good
track record” where you are. But they'll
give you a chance.
But even if they don’t give you preferential treatment, at least
these denominations will ordain you. If
they do, then use your gifts and graces to produce the fruit of ministry
wherever you go. Prove that you can
minister to a congregation and reach out to the unchurched. Make the church grow. For even the most highly prejudiced people on
this issue are often impressed with fruit.
(And district and denominational leaders always are!) People may tell
you that you shouldn’t be fishing as a woman, but if you catch a string of
giant fish for the kingdom, don’t worry, they won’t tell you to toss them
back! Producing the fruit in your
ministry is the route to greater freedom in the future.
So know this: if you are a woman headed for ministry: it may be hard, but if you are truly called,
what else can you do but obey that call? God doesn’t call people as a trick; He
won’t call you if He has no place for you to minister. If He’s called you, go for it. If you can’t “go for it” in your own
denomination, switch to a more female friendly denomination. But you cannot abandon your calling just
because it is difficult. Certainly you
could at least (at least?!) plant a church like the apostle Paul did. The apostles in
So what to do?
So are you a woman called to ministry? What should you do? First, clarify your call so that it becomes a
burning certainty—you’ll need that certainty in the ministry. Second, be encouraged that given the two thousand years of church
history, women like you have made great progress in the last hundred
years. Third, know that ultimately the
church in the future will be shocked that in the past the church actually
refused to ordain women—and they’ll remember you kindly as a pioneer. Fourth,
find a good women minister as a mentor and model and develop the savvy you’ll
need to “work the system” in your future ministry. Finally, be encouraged—God values you or He
wouldn't have called you. God can be
trusted. God does not call up workers if
He has no job in mind!
Follow up study
and application
To Share:
1. Tell about a woman minister you have met or heard
speak—describe her ministry.
2. Tell about your own personal preferences and prejudices in who
you would like to be your pastor—not just male/female but other preferences—be
honest and don’t condemn others confessing.
To Discuss:
3. How does a denomination change its traditions—that is, how
would a denomination adopt a different stand on ordaining women?
4. This book argues that a call must be confirmed by the
church—what would a person (woman or man) do if no church anywhere would ordain
them, and even when they tried to start an independent church nobody would
attend. What advice would you give this
person?
5. There are many
in-between positions on this issue. For
instance, some argue for (married) women to be submissive at home but equal at
church. Others argue that a woman should
be ordained but for staff work, not ever to serve as a senior pastor and
preacher. Without committing yourself too quickly on these issues, explore them
in discussion with others.
To Do:
6. Make a simple chart
using all the Scriptures listed in this chapter and how you are inclined to
interpret them. Find somebody who
disagrees with you to help you refine it.
7. Interview a woman in ordained ministry and hear her story, or
if none are available interview a woman called to ministry to get her take on
where she is headed and the obstacles she thinks she faces.