Apostle Pauls View On Women In The Church PT 2
Concerning the role of women in the temple, Shmuel Safrai states:1
According to Jewish religious law, women were allowed in every area of the Temple precincts in which men were. The Mishnah specifies areas within the Temple which nonpriests were allowed to enter, but it does not differentiate between men and women.
Women had the privilege of participating in activities of the Temple. They were present for the three benedictions recited with the people following the daily preparation of the morning,"Tamid."2 Also, women of priestly lineage had certain obligations, just as the men did, of bringing sacrifices and offerings to the Temple.3
The role of women in the synagogue has been reevaluated recently with the discovery that in the excavations of first-century synagogues no evidence has been found for a separate women's gallery.4 In fact, "…all archaeological evidence points to just the opposite—a common meeting room for both men and women."5 No longer can we conclude that women were spectators, but rather that they were actively involved in all aspects of the worship.
The context of some rabbinic sources presupposes the presence of women in synagogue services. The Mishnah even "…provided that a woman could be one of the seven called each Sabbath to publicly read from the Torah scroll."6 Women were obligated to pray, as well. According to the Mishnah, "…they are not exempt from saying the Tefillah, from the law of the Mezuzah or from saying the Benediction after meals."7 Although the issue was related to the distance walked to attend synagogue, the following quote demonstrates the presupposition that women attended synagogue to pray:
A certain widow had a synagogue in her neighborhood; yet she used to come daily to the school of R. Johanan and pray there. He said to her, "My daughter, is there not a synagogue in your neighborhood?" She answered him, "Rabbi, but have I not the reward for the steps!"8
Archaeological studies have shown that women served in many capacities in the synagogue. There are numerous inscriptional evidences of women donors to the synagogue and the honor they were given.9 That Jewish women served in leadership positions is evident from inscriptions denoting these functions. Bernadette Brooten10 has made an extensive study of archaeological inscription and has noted evidence for such leadership roles among women as:
1. Heads of synagogue: archisynagogos, whose function was in administration and exhortation.
2. Leaders: archegissa, derived from archegos.
3. Elders: presbytera, with indication that they were the wives of elders; may have been involved in financial oversight of the synagogue and/or have been scholars.
4. Mothers of the Synagogue: meter synagogues, from second century CE and later; their function may have had to do with administration.
5. Members of Priestly Class: Hiereia/hierissa, perhaps equivalent to the rabbinic cohenet.
Women had prominent roles in the ministry of Jesus. In Luke 2:36-38 we read of Anna, a prophetess who first proclaimed Jesus as Messiah. Mary, the sister of Lazarus, sat at Jesus' feet (Luke 10:39). The Hebrew idiom of sitting at someone's feet means being a student, a disciple, Talmid. This idiom is used in rabbinic literature. We read in Avoth, for example, "…let thy house be a meeting-house for the Sages and sit amid the dust of their feet and drink in their words with thirst."11 The idiom also is used in Acts 22:3, where Rabbi Gamliel was the teacher at whose feet Paul studied. Many women are mentioned in the Gospels as traveling with Jesus and helping support Him and His disciples from their own means (Luke 8:1-3). These women and many others can clearly be considered disciples; this parallels the accounts of Jewish traditions in which women studied with scholars and teachers.12
Women were in the group at Pentecost and included in the fulfillment of the prophecy of Joel that "I will pour out of my Spirit…and they shall prophesy" (Acts 2:17). Indeed, in Acts 21:9, we are told that Philip the evangelist had four daughters, "which did prophesy."
The Bible offers ample evidence of women who were associated with Paul serving in the whole spectrum of Church leadership roles. The church at Philippi began with a nucleus of women, in which Lydia, an influential business-woman, took an active role (Acts 16:12-15). Other women who were leaders in house churches include Apphia, a leader alongside Philemon and Archippus at Colossae (Philemon 2); Nympha of Laodicea (Colossians 4:15); Chloe (I Cor. 1:11); and Priscilla, along with her husband Aquila (I Cor. 16:19).
In Athens several converts joined Paul. Of the two mentioned by name, one was a woman, Damaris (Acts 17:34). Women were considered co-workers with Paul. In Philippians 4:2-3, we read of Euodias and Syntyche, who had labored with Paul. Priscilla along with Aquila were also co-workers (Rom. 16:3). The term co-worker is the English rendering of the Greek sunergos, which means "working together with, helping, fellow laborers with God,13 taking part with, in cooperation with."14 In Acts 18:24-26, we read that when Priscilla and Aquilla met Apollos in Ephesus, they "…expounded to him the way of God more perfectly." It is interesting to note that the King James translation lists the couple as Aquilla and Priscilla, in spite of the fact that the Greek text lists Priscilla first. "If the order of the names implies what it seems to, it was not Aquilla who took the lead, as might be expected, but his wife."15
Some of Paul's co-workers were also called apostles. Andronicus and Junia, "notable among the apostles" (Rom. 16:7), may have been a husband and wife team. This passage suggests either that they were apostles or that they were honored by the apostles.16 There is no evidence contrary to the understanding that Paul is referring to a woman, however. In fact, this person is referred to as a woman by John Chrysostom and Jerome.17 Catherine Kroeger has concluded that, in fact, early tradition considered Junia an apostle, and it was not until the Middle Ages that this identity was questioned. In the Middle Ages a male-oriented Church hierarchy could not conceive of a female apostle. The name Junia was changed to the masculine, Junias, by translators and appears as such in manuscripts from that time on. This is in spite of the fact that the masculine form is "…unknown in antiquity; and there is absolutely no literary, epigraphical or papyrological evidence for it."18 The term apostolos, means delegate, envoy, messenger, one sent out.19 This corresponds to the Hebrew shaliach, one sent by someone to accomplish a specific task.20
Paul described Phoebe as a "servant of the church" (Rom. 16:1). The Greek word is diakonos, the same as the masculine, which is usually translated "deacon." In his letter to Timothy, directions are given as to women deacons as well as male deacons (I Timothy 3:8-13). In the Pauline epistles, it usually has the meaning of ministry. Phoebe is also described as prostatis: the meaning given by Liddell and Scott is exercising authority, to be a leader, to hold office, a leader, chief, a protector.21 It would appear that the translation "helper" is too weak. Phoebe was a person with authority who was a leader and teacher in the community of Cenchreae.22
It is clear that Paul allowed and encouraged women in all aspects of ministry, including leadership roles. How, then, do we explain such statements as, "Women should keep quiet in the churches" (I Cor. 14:34), and "I allow no woman to teach or to have authority over men" (I Tim. 2:12)?
In order to correctly interpret these passages, it is imperative to understand the religious, cultural, and sociological context in which the statements are made. Much of the misunderstanding relating to Paul's teaching may be attributed to a lack of comprehension of Paul's Jewishness and an attempt to alienate him from his Jewish roots. Also imperative to a correct interpretation of these passages is an accurate understanding of Jewish and pagan religious teaching, and the vast differences between Judeo-Christian and pagan religious practices. Paul was dealing with specific problems in specific situations. It is important to note, for example, that in the Corinthian Church, which was composed largely of Gentiles that had come out of pagan religion, there were those who had brought in practices that had been part of their pagan religions.
Religious activities in Greco-Roman paganism included cult prostitution and shriek cries, described as wild outcries. The Corinthian female dominated religious thought and practice. From the mother goddess Artemis to the women serving their time as sacred temple prostitutes and speaking messages from the gods, the male of Corinth was deeply dependent upon the female.23 It was specifically this female religious domination that the converts from paganism were bringing into the church that Paul was dealing with. Unfortunately, the universal application of Paul's specific discipline has resulted in a church that is dominated by men. How much richer would our interpersonal relationships be if we could rediscover God's original intent of equality of the sexes without domination by either!
An in-depth discussion of these particular passages is beyond the scope of this article. However, numerous examples have been offered from the biblical, rabbinic, and archaeological records to support the contention that women occupied positions of leadership before, during, and after the time of Paul. When both Paul and these troublesome passages are viewed within their proper cultural and historical context, there is no longer a valid basis for restricting the role of women in the Church.
__________________________________
NOTES on Part II
1 Shmuel Safrai, "The Role of Women in the Temple" Jerusalem Perspective 2, no. 9 (1989): p. 5.
2 m. Tamid 5:1.
3 Safrai, p. G.
4 Bernadette J. Brooten, Women Leaders in the Ancient Synagogue (Chico, CA: Scholars' Press, 1982), p. 104.
5 Rachel D. Levine, Women in First Century Judaism," Yavo Digest vol. 1, no. 4 (1`987): p. 7.
6 Levine p. 7.
7 m. Berahot 3:3
8 b. Sotah 22a.
9 Brooten, p. 142.
10 Brooten, pp. 5-99.
11 m. Avoth 1:4.
12 Rachel D. Levine, "Women Disciples," Yavo Digest vol. 1, no. 5 (1987): p. 4. RETURN
13 William Arndt and Wilbur Gingrich, A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature (Chicago: University of Chicago, 1979), p. 787. RETURN
14 Henry G. Liddell and Robert Scott, A Greek-English Lexicon (Oxford: Claredon, 1985), p. 1711.
15 Ruth A. Tucker and Walter Liefeld, Daughters of the Church, (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1987), p. 69.
16 Arndt and Gingrich, p. 99.
17 Tucker and Liefeld, p. 73.
18 Catherine Kroeger, "The Neglected History of Women in the Early Church," Christian History VII, no. 1 (1988): p. 7.
19 Arndt and Gingrich, p. 99.
20 Abraham Even-Shoshan, Hamilon Hechadash (Jerusalem: Kiryath Sepher, 1975), p. 2706.
21 Liddell and Scott, p. 1526.
22 Elisabeth Schussler Fiorenza, "Word, Spirit and Poser: Women in Early Christian Communities," Women of Spirit, ed. Rosemary Ruether and Eleanor McLaughlin (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1979), p. 36.
23 Catherine Kroeger, "The Apostle Paul and the Greco-Roman Cults of Women," Journal of Evangelical Theological Society, March, 1987), p. 25
According to Jewish religious law, women were allowed in every area of the Temple precincts in which men were. The Mishnah specifies areas within the Temple which nonpriests were allowed to enter, but it does not differentiate between men and women.
Women had the privilege of participating in activities of the Temple. They were present for the three benedictions recited with the people following the daily preparation of the morning,"Tamid."2 Also, women of priestly lineage had certain obligations, just as the men did, of bringing sacrifices and offerings to the Temple.3
The role of women in the synagogue has been reevaluated recently with the discovery that in the excavations of first-century synagogues no evidence has been found for a separate women's gallery.4 In fact, "…all archaeological evidence points to just the opposite—a common meeting room for both men and women."5 No longer can we conclude that women were spectators, but rather that they were actively involved in all aspects of the worship.
The context of some rabbinic sources presupposes the presence of women in synagogue services. The Mishnah even "…provided that a woman could be one of the seven called each Sabbath to publicly read from the Torah scroll."6 Women were obligated to pray, as well. According to the Mishnah, "…they are not exempt from saying the Tefillah, from the law of the Mezuzah or from saying the Benediction after meals."7 Although the issue was related to the distance walked to attend synagogue, the following quote demonstrates the presupposition that women attended synagogue to pray:
A certain widow had a synagogue in her neighborhood; yet she used to come daily to the school of R. Johanan and pray there. He said to her, "My daughter, is there not a synagogue in your neighborhood?" She answered him, "Rabbi, but have I not the reward for the steps!"8
Archaeological studies have shown that women served in many capacities in the synagogue. There are numerous inscriptional evidences of women donors to the synagogue and the honor they were given.9 That Jewish women served in leadership positions is evident from inscriptions denoting these functions. Bernadette Brooten10 has made an extensive study of archaeological inscription and has noted evidence for such leadership roles among women as:
1. Heads of synagogue: archisynagogos, whose function was in administration and exhortation.
2. Leaders: archegissa, derived from archegos.
3. Elders: presbytera, with indication that they were the wives of elders; may have been involved in financial oversight of the synagogue and/or have been scholars.
4. Mothers of the Synagogue: meter synagogues, from second century CE and later; their function may have had to do with administration.
5. Members of Priestly Class: Hiereia/hierissa, perhaps equivalent to the rabbinic cohenet.
Women had prominent roles in the ministry of Jesus. In Luke 2:36-38 we read of Anna, a prophetess who first proclaimed Jesus as Messiah. Mary, the sister of Lazarus, sat at Jesus' feet (Luke 10:39). The Hebrew idiom of sitting at someone's feet means being a student, a disciple, Talmid. This idiom is used in rabbinic literature. We read in Avoth, for example, "…let thy house be a meeting-house for the Sages and sit amid the dust of their feet and drink in their words with thirst."11 The idiom also is used in Acts 22:3, where Rabbi Gamliel was the teacher at whose feet Paul studied. Many women are mentioned in the Gospels as traveling with Jesus and helping support Him and His disciples from their own means (Luke 8:1-3). These women and many others can clearly be considered disciples; this parallels the accounts of Jewish traditions in which women studied with scholars and teachers.12
Women were in the group at Pentecost and included in the fulfillment of the prophecy of Joel that "I will pour out of my Spirit…and they shall prophesy" (Acts 2:17). Indeed, in Acts 21:9, we are told that Philip the evangelist had four daughters, "which did prophesy."
The Bible offers ample evidence of women who were associated with Paul serving in the whole spectrum of Church leadership roles. The church at Philippi began with a nucleus of women, in which Lydia, an influential business-woman, took an active role (Acts 16:12-15). Other women who were leaders in house churches include Apphia, a leader alongside Philemon and Archippus at Colossae (Philemon 2); Nympha of Laodicea (Colossians 4:15); Chloe (I Cor. 1:11); and Priscilla, along with her husband Aquila (I Cor. 16:19).
In Athens several converts joined Paul. Of the two mentioned by name, one was a woman, Damaris (Acts 17:34). Women were considered co-workers with Paul. In Philippians 4:2-3, we read of Euodias and Syntyche, who had labored with Paul. Priscilla along with Aquila were also co-workers (Rom. 16:3). The term co-worker is the English rendering of the Greek sunergos, which means "working together with, helping, fellow laborers with God,13 taking part with, in cooperation with."14 In Acts 18:24-26, we read that when Priscilla and Aquilla met Apollos in Ephesus, they "…expounded to him the way of God more perfectly." It is interesting to note that the King James translation lists the couple as Aquilla and Priscilla, in spite of the fact that the Greek text lists Priscilla first. "If the order of the names implies what it seems to, it was not Aquilla who took the lead, as might be expected, but his wife."15
Some of Paul's co-workers were also called apostles. Andronicus and Junia, "notable among the apostles" (Rom. 16:7), may have been a husband and wife team. This passage suggests either that they were apostles or that they were honored by the apostles.16 There is no evidence contrary to the understanding that Paul is referring to a woman, however. In fact, this person is referred to as a woman by John Chrysostom and Jerome.17 Catherine Kroeger has concluded that, in fact, early tradition considered Junia an apostle, and it was not until the Middle Ages that this identity was questioned. In the Middle Ages a male-oriented Church hierarchy could not conceive of a female apostle. The name Junia was changed to the masculine, Junias, by translators and appears as such in manuscripts from that time on. This is in spite of the fact that the masculine form is "…unknown in antiquity; and there is absolutely no literary, epigraphical or papyrological evidence for it."18 The term apostolos, means delegate, envoy, messenger, one sent out.19 This corresponds to the Hebrew shaliach, one sent by someone to accomplish a specific task.20
Paul described Phoebe as a "servant of the church" (Rom. 16:1). The Greek word is diakonos, the same as the masculine, which is usually translated "deacon." In his letter to Timothy, directions are given as to women deacons as well as male deacons (I Timothy 3:8-13). In the Pauline epistles, it usually has the meaning of ministry. Phoebe is also described as prostatis: the meaning given by Liddell and Scott is exercising authority, to be a leader, to hold office, a leader, chief, a protector.21 It would appear that the translation "helper" is too weak. Phoebe was a person with authority who was a leader and teacher in the community of Cenchreae.22
It is clear that Paul allowed and encouraged women in all aspects of ministry, including leadership roles. How, then, do we explain such statements as, "Women should keep quiet in the churches" (I Cor. 14:34), and "I allow no woman to teach or to have authority over men" (I Tim. 2:12)?
In order to correctly interpret these passages, it is imperative to understand the religious, cultural, and sociological context in which the statements are made. Much of the misunderstanding relating to Paul's teaching may be attributed to a lack of comprehension of Paul's Jewishness and an attempt to alienate him from his Jewish roots. Also imperative to a correct interpretation of these passages is an accurate understanding of Jewish and pagan religious teaching, and the vast differences between Judeo-Christian and pagan religious practices. Paul was dealing with specific problems in specific situations. It is important to note, for example, that in the Corinthian Church, which was composed largely of Gentiles that had come out of pagan religion, there were those who had brought in practices that had been part of their pagan religions.
Religious activities in Greco-Roman paganism included cult prostitution and shriek cries, described as wild outcries. The Corinthian female dominated religious thought and practice. From the mother goddess Artemis to the women serving their time as sacred temple prostitutes and speaking messages from the gods, the male of Corinth was deeply dependent upon the female.23 It was specifically this female religious domination that the converts from paganism were bringing into the church that Paul was dealing with. Unfortunately, the universal application of Paul's specific discipline has resulted in a church that is dominated by men. How much richer would our interpersonal relationships be if we could rediscover God's original intent of equality of the sexes without domination by either!
An in-depth discussion of these particular passages is beyond the scope of this article. However, numerous examples have been offered from the biblical, rabbinic, and archaeological records to support the contention that women occupied positions of leadership before, during, and after the time of Paul. When both Paul and these troublesome passages are viewed within their proper cultural and historical context, there is no longer a valid basis for restricting the role of women in the Church.
__________________________________
NOTES on Part II
1 Shmuel Safrai, "The Role of Women in the Temple" Jerusalem Perspective 2, no. 9 (1989): p. 5.
2 m. Tamid 5:1.
3 Safrai, p. G.
4 Bernadette J. Brooten, Women Leaders in the Ancient Synagogue (Chico, CA: Scholars' Press, 1982), p. 104.
5 Rachel D. Levine, Women in First Century Judaism," Yavo Digest vol. 1, no. 4 (1`987): p. 7.
6 Levine p. 7.
7 m. Berahot 3:3
8 b. Sotah 22a.
9 Brooten, p. 142.
10 Brooten, pp. 5-99.
11 m. Avoth 1:4.
12 Rachel D. Levine, "Women Disciples," Yavo Digest vol. 1, no. 5 (1987): p. 4. RETURN
13 William Arndt and Wilbur Gingrich, A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature (Chicago: University of Chicago, 1979), p. 787. RETURN
14 Henry G. Liddell and Robert Scott, A Greek-English Lexicon (Oxford: Claredon, 1985), p. 1711.
15 Ruth A. Tucker and Walter Liefeld, Daughters of the Church, (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1987), p. 69.
16 Arndt and Gingrich, p. 99.
17 Tucker and Liefeld, p. 73.
18 Catherine Kroeger, "The Neglected History of Women in the Early Church," Christian History VII, no. 1 (1988): p. 7.
19 Arndt and Gingrich, p. 99.
20 Abraham Even-Shoshan, Hamilon Hechadash (Jerusalem: Kiryath Sepher, 1975), p. 2706.
21 Liddell and Scott, p. 1526.
22 Elisabeth Schussler Fiorenza, "Word, Spirit and Poser: Women in Early Christian Communities," Women of Spirit, ed. Rosemary Ruether and Eleanor McLaughlin (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1979), p. 36.
23 Catherine Kroeger, "The Apostle Paul and the Greco-Roman Cults of Women," Journal of Evangelical Theological Society, March, 1987), p. 25
Replies to This Discussion
-
Permalink Reply by Myrina K. R. on
-
This is interesting information and I look forward to furthering my understanding of women in Christian leadership in the church. Thank you.
Hosea 4:6 (King James Version)
6My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children.
© 2024 Created by Raliegh Jones Jr..
Powered by
