Commentary: "Counter-Cultural" Is Not a Truth Test — And His View Is Also Cultural

Ardavanis suggests that his complementarian view is counter-cultural, implying that its friction with modern culture validates it. But culture is not how we measure truth. A view being unpopular does not make it correct any more than a view being popular makes it correct.

More importantly, his view is ALSO cultural. Complementarianism is deeply embedded in church culture — in many denominations, leadership circles, seminaries, and conferences. It is the dominant position in most evangelical institutions. It is the default assumption in countless churches. That is itself a culture.

So if "counter-cultural" is his litmus test for truth, should he reject his own position because it is cultural to the church institutions he operates within? Or does he simply presume that church culture equals biblical?

The implicit logic is:

1. My view goes against secular culture → therefore it is biblical

2. My view aligns with church culture → this alignment is ignored

This is selective reasoning. If cultural alignment disqualifies a position, it disqualifies his own. If it does not, then it cannot be used as evidence for his position either.

Truth is measured by faithful exegesis of the text, not by whether a position makes people uncomfortable. Both egalitarian and complementarian readings must stand or fall on the text itself, not on their relationship to any culture — secular or ecclesiastical.