kdm1984
New Member
I've spent a lot of time trying to figure out roles of women in the church.
I know that, Biblically, leadership of men is obviously off-limits to us. I don't have natural leadership potential (I'm very reserved and have bad social skills), so this isn't as much of an issue for me, personally, as it is for other women, whom often try to fight against this clear Biblical mandate.
Yet there is nonetheless lots of debate as to how many other boundaries should be in place for women as well. I've often found the whole topic of roles of women to be very puzzling, and I often get in the habit of thinking my life is of lesser worth or value to God because I'm female. I also think confusion stems from having been exposed to lots of different denominations growing up; I'm amazed at the many differences in opinion there are on this subject.
As for my own history, my parents weren't very strict. I'm naturally tomboyish and nerdy. I love most sports (even though I have some gross motor deficits) and did very well academically. I've since learned this is an alarm in some Christian circles, who think Biblical femininity is June Cleaver vacuuming in pearls (never mind that the pearls likely violate 1 Timothy 2:9), and that only men can like sports and have intellectual logic. In my twenties, I became friends with Reformed Calvinists, who forbade their women to go to college, vote, or have jobs. They followed the interpretations of Doug Phillips, who thought the Bible lent itself to such dogmas and principles. I remember when my father saw some of these people and their women, and he remarked on how timid and frightened the women looked all the time, like they were in cults. John Piper once even wrote about a man who did not allow his wife to go to the bathroom without asking him first:
Some Complementarians Deny Women More Opportunities Than the Bible Does?
Even Piper admitted this was "sick," and Piper is pretty strict himself.
Naturally, this all leads to the question of, what are women allowed to do? The only universal agreement I have seen in Christian circles is we're allowed to be wives and mothers. However, Paul says it's better for a woman to be single in 1 Corinthians 7 so that her mind is set solely on God and not distracted by the needs of others (he doesn't say that it's a sin to be married, but that a woman who does not give herself in marriage "does better"). I aimed to be this way when younger, but the desire for a man was too strong, so I got married.
I'm happy with my marriage, but sometimes it seems like it's too easy for women, and that we don't really do anything important anyway. Men have to do all the work while women can just sit by in the home, take care of it, and help raise children. However, since the husband is the head, he technically does more of the important aspects of raising children anyway, so what role does that leave women? We seem pretty useless since we can't teach. It seems like woman's only use is to perpetuate the species through childbirth, and perhaps tend to practical home and personal needs.
That doesn't seem like much of a life. I think perhaps men can develop the technology in the future to phase out women, reproduce artificially, and have robots do all the housework. There is nothing a woman does that a man cannot already do better. We're pretty expendable, it seems, when you think about it.
I want to believe this is wrong and that we have use, but using strict logic, women's roles seem pretty meaningless and replaceable.
I know that, Biblically, leadership of men is obviously off-limits to us. I don't have natural leadership potential (I'm very reserved and have bad social skills), so this isn't as much of an issue for me, personally, as it is for other women, whom often try to fight against this clear Biblical mandate.
Yet there is nonetheless lots of debate as to how many other boundaries should be in place for women as well. I've often found the whole topic of roles of women to be very puzzling, and I often get in the habit of thinking my life is of lesser worth or value to God because I'm female. I also think confusion stems from having been exposed to lots of different denominations growing up; I'm amazed at the many differences in opinion there are on this subject.
As for my own history, my parents weren't very strict. I'm naturally tomboyish and nerdy. I love most sports (even though I have some gross motor deficits) and did very well academically. I've since learned this is an alarm in some Christian circles, who think Biblical femininity is June Cleaver vacuuming in pearls (never mind that the pearls likely violate 1 Timothy 2:9), and that only men can like sports and have intellectual logic. In my twenties, I became friends with Reformed Calvinists, who forbade their women to go to college, vote, or have jobs. They followed the interpretations of Doug Phillips, who thought the Bible lent itself to such dogmas and principles. I remember when my father saw some of these people and their women, and he remarked on how timid and frightened the women looked all the time, like they were in cults. John Piper once even wrote about a man who did not allow his wife to go to the bathroom without asking him first:
Some Complementarians Deny Women More Opportunities Than the Bible Does?
Even Piper admitted this was "sick," and Piper is pretty strict himself.
Naturally, this all leads to the question of, what are women allowed to do? The only universal agreement I have seen in Christian circles is we're allowed to be wives and mothers. However, Paul says it's better for a woman to be single in 1 Corinthians 7 so that her mind is set solely on God and not distracted by the needs of others (he doesn't say that it's a sin to be married, but that a woman who does not give herself in marriage "does better"). I aimed to be this way when younger, but the desire for a man was too strong, so I got married.
I'm happy with my marriage, but sometimes it seems like it's too easy for women, and that we don't really do anything important anyway. Men have to do all the work while women can just sit by in the home, take care of it, and help raise children. However, since the husband is the head, he technically does more of the important aspects of raising children anyway, so what role does that leave women? We seem pretty useless since we can't teach. It seems like woman's only use is to perpetuate the species through childbirth, and perhaps tend to practical home and personal needs.
That doesn't seem like much of a life. I think perhaps men can develop the technology in the future to phase out women, reproduce artificially, and have robots do all the housework. There is nothing a woman does that a man cannot already do better. We're pretty expendable, it seems, when you think about it.
I want to believe this is wrong and that we have use, but using strict logic, women's roles seem pretty meaningless and replaceable.
) But God gives women vitally important roles and sees us as equally important to men (Galatians 3:28) and without women, things in this world would just basically fall apart. It was women that the risen Christ first appeared to which I think is very interesting and very telling!! We are valuable!! We can share the good news of our Risen Savior! 
