Radiance

The greatest weakness of the CBMW apology demand is that no men were signatories. Perhaps I am prejudging, but I believe on that fact alone, prominent complementarian Evangelical leaders will dismiss the document as a mere “feminist rant.”

Which leads me to my next thought, which is a continuation of my previous post:

The complementarian camp’s idolatry of their Titus 2 interpretation leads to this implied assumption that because women are primarily called to be “keepers at home” they’ll have no other insight to offer the church except “homekeeping” advice – for other women of course.

Okay let’s say for a second then, all women are truly called to be full time “keepers at home” in the way the complementarians understand it.

What about the “keepers at home” who spend hours and hours of their day (at home) reflecting on Scripture, studying theology, reading about current events, and examining the state of the church? Why aren’t these women allowed to have a public voice on these matters? Why can’t a homemaking “wife and mother” be allowed to represent her denomination and the greater church in debate with a prominent atheist in a public forum? Why does there have to be an emergency meeting of the Sanhedrin to discuss whether a such a woman can lecture seminary students about the lives of early female martyrs?

I read a quote the other which said, “Dissatisfaction with the status quo is not a vision.” I believe that rather than attempting to engage in back and forth debate with the staunchest of the patriarchalists, dissatisfied believers must take action:

*If seminaries and theology schools discriminate against women, women must found and start their own.
*If patriarchal churches are on the rise, egalitarian men and women must plant their own, do the most evangelism and reach out to the lost by giving them a new sense of what “church” looks like in practice.
* If women are dissatisfied with their frilly, dumbed-down Bible studies, they must start their own.
* Parents must raise their children to value Biblical equality and warn them of the dangers that befall the church and society whenever equality is not cherished, fought for, and preserved.

All this must be done without the need or expectation of validation or affirmation from the leaders we disagree with–validation, affirmation, agreement, and RESPECT which may never come.

(This is my first time commenting and the following is a re-post of a comment I left underneath an entry from the Wartburg Watch blog.)

At the moment, my greatest problem with the Reformed community is the lack of prominent, public female leaders, speakers, and thinkers. They don’t have to be “pastors,” but why do only MEN get to speak at conferences such as “Together 4 the Gospel?” Why is it that only MEN are allowed to attend annual “General Assembly” meet-ups, where key decisions are made with regard to the direction of their prospective denominations? Why is it only MEN who are writing on subjects such as Reformed theology, church history, and culture?

Why is that the women’s voices are only relegated to the subject of Titus 2 revivals and feminism bashing? It seems these days the only way for women to have a voice is only if they have an Oprah-like persona with an “expertise” on the subject of “Biblical Womanhood.”

Why is that we aren’t considered valuable assets and contributors to the OVERALL theological, intellectual, and scholarly discourse as it relates to the church and its future?

I notice too, ther’s a fraternity-inspired lingo that surrounds and characterizes these male-dominated conferences and settings. Speakers and pastors constantly make statements like “I enjoy the privilege to get to speak with these MEN,” or to “thankful to be around like-minded MEN” or “to study under great MEN of God such as…” —

There’s this overwhelmingly constant referral to themselves and to their events as “MEN” events. So it’s very clear to me, that that’s part of their appeal!

It’s not that there’s a problem with brothers-in-Christ fellowshipping at all…but why can’t they make fraternities and old boys clubs out of “male-geared” events and conferences on “male-specific” subjects such as “Fatherhood,” and “Marriage from a Husband’s perspective? ”

Yet the “women-geared” conferences are only on such things!

I don’t appreciate that only MEN are considered the torch-bearers and passers of the “general” subjects like theology and the very GOSPEL itself!

And don’t even get me started on the utter lack of attention devoted to celebrating the great WOMEN of church history who did not exactly fit into the established “complementarian” mold…