Kristen

Elastagirl and Greg (#87 & 88) — I am in agreement with you, too. Sometimes endless wrangling over what the Bible says and doesn’t say eclipses simply following Jesus and His command to “love one another, as I have loved you” and “do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” The problem, of course, is that when someone finds justification in the Bible to assert the God-given authority of one group over another, and that authority can and has been used to harm a whole group of people, then because the Bible is held to be the sole authority on faith and practice, such claims really must be refuted from the Bible. But I think a really good test of an interpretation is, “Does following this interpretation uphold the command to do unto others as we would have them do unto us? Or does this interpretation bind up a heavy burden to tie upon someone’s back?”
I would really much rather it be the case that this conversation about whether women are born to be under male authority, was unnecessary, because everyone recognized that it was against the law of “do unto others.” If you wouldn’t want someone asserting that they have a God-given right to authority over you, regardless of their calling, character or competence, but simply by the privilege of their birth and the lack of privilege of yours– then do not so assert to someone else!
But unfortunately the conversation is necessary, because as long as some sectors of Christianity assert male privilege, then I must reply to the contrary. It might be different if they’d just keep it to themselves and practice it at home with their own wives (I wouldn’t mind– if it works for them for him to lead and her to follow, and they both feel happy, loved and respected, I have no quarrel), but they must needs tell me how to run my marriage too (or rather, how my husband must run our marriage, since he’s supposed to be the leader– but he wants an equal partner with equal say, and I’m happy to submit!)