While I was at a children’s ministry conference in Dallas, Texas on the campus of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, I had a friend question me about some of the beliefs of the seminary’s president, Paige Patterson. In particular, his stance on women.
While I personally do not know much about Patterson or his stance on these matters, she states them as follows:
“He takes a stance on women I find a bit offensive. He believes women are best suited as mothers and grandmothers, and the whole ‘You lead honey, and I’ll follow’. He has also expressed that he doesn’t think women should preside over men in high positions in church over men.”
I would consider myself a theologically conservative baptist, and still I don’t know much of what Patterson believes on the theology of the role of women. So, since I didn’t know know his beliefs, I did a little research and found a great article that seemed to state his beliefs from his own mouth. Looking at what she wrote and what this article states, that’s probably the one she read.
Since I do not know Patterson or feel the need to defend his beliefs, instead, I will be sharing, expounding on, and defending my own beliefs on what the Bible says about women. But first, there is one thing that you must know about my beliefs: the scripture is the highest authority and all my thinking and theology rests on it. I see the Bible as the perfect, inerrant Word of God and applies to all people of all times and cultures for the purposes God intended.
So, before we delve into women’s roles in the family, the church, and beyond, let’s lay out a few general principles about women (and men) found in the Bible:
- Men and women have equality in God’s view. This includes salvation, service*, and even in the revelation of God’s plan.
- God is neither male or female; He is spirit. He does however, refer to Himself as a male to help mankind understand Him better.
- God has a special place in His heart for women. God hates injustice, but especially injustice to women. The Bible is full of commands and stories about God caring for women.
There you have it. Three general principles about women from the very Words of God. From here, we will look at specifics like women’s roles in family, in government, in business, and in the church.
Back to my friend: she later stated that Patterson’s view of women was “old fashioned.” His view may be old fashioned, but you will see that God’s view and calling of women is quite “progressive” (I use that term very loosely), more progressive than even our view in 2010 America.
To my friend and everyone else who may be following and even joining in on our discussion, let’s keep an searching mind and an understanding heart as we tackle this touchy subject.
More posts to follow.
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*We will talk about exceptions in a later post.
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Posts in this series:
- Introduction
- Women in Business
Thank you for the reply on Patterson, and as for the discussion of women, I’ll begin by sourcing a few verses from the bible and discussing a bit afterwards.
In Deuteronomy 22, on the subject of a woman’s virginity, “If, however, the charge is true and no proof of the girl’s virginity can be found, she shall be brought to the door of her father’s house and there the men of her town shall stone her to death. She has done a disgraceful thing in Israel by being promiscuous while still in her father’s house. You must purge the evil from among you.”
A woman will be stoned to death if she is found not to be a virgin on her wedding night. Why is there nothing about men? Isn’t man’s purity equally important? It seems to me that there is a bias in women’s requirements. If a man is caught raping a young woman, his punishment includes paying 50 silver pieces…or marrying the girl.
Job, Chapter 14 states “Man that is born of a woman is of few days and full of trouble. He cometh forth like a flower, and is cut down: he fleeth also as a shadow, and continueth not. And doth thou open thine eyes upon such an one, and bringest me into judgment with thee? Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean? not one. ”
Basically saying women are unclean and cause human life to be unclean and short.
Hosea 13 “Samaria shall bear her guilt; for she hath rebelled against her God: they shall fall by the sword; their infants shall be dashed in pieces, and their women with child shall be ripped up.”
During war, ripping fetuses from women was okay. (That brings discussion into abortion, but that’s irrelevant)
Ecclesiastes 25… this one gets me ” Of the woman came the beginning of sin, and through her we all die.”
Women are the cause of all evil and death!
The bible may show that the Lord shows care and love for women, but the bible also sanctions the status of women to be inferior in so many situations, and this has had an effect on women’s rights up to modern date.
hope to get some good discussion!
You brought up some very good discussion points. You basically have given three different types of scripture: Mosaic Law (Deuteronomy 22), Theological (Job 14), and Prophetic (Hosea 13). Your other reference is not correct. Ecclesiastes only has 12 chapters. You are referring to the Book of Sirach or Ecclesiasticus. This book is not considered scripture, but a book of the Apocrypha, which (most) Christians reject, including me.
These are good discussion points. Let me answer these more fully in a post…
Oops. I’ll try to refrain from using Apocrypha in discussion. Thanks!
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