Cheryl Schatz

@Craig #27,

Wouldn’t this then put the christian with multiple wives in a somewhat similar predicament to women in a comp world today? What if he matured as a christian and God gave him leadership gifts?

No it isn’t the same as a “leadership” is not a “gift” per se but a place of Christian maturity that has such a high standard that the congregation is to follow the example of their leaders. A leader is to be an example to the flock in such a way that they are to be without blame and worthy of setting a godly example. While “husband of one wife” is a clear note about marital faithfulness, it also prohibits a “faithful husband of two or three wives” from being set up as an example to the congregation as one to follow in their marital choices.

So while a polygamist who had become a Christian after he had already married multiple women was not forced to divorce his additional wives, the Christian standard was that any Christian who took multiple wives after conversion was an adulterer. Thus a leader who was to be an example to the congregation could not be a polygamist. Could a pre-Christian polygamist who was now following the Lord use his God-given gifts in the assembly? Certainly. But could he be listed as a leader who was worthy of being followed and emulated? No. The Christian standard that Paul set up disallowed that as the Christian standard went further than what was allowed in the Old Testament. The Christian standard was one of purity for one man and one woman in marriage and in faithfulness. So while I agree that the term referred to marital faithfulness and thus did not disallow women to serve as an example to the congregation, it does disallow those who were polygamists before their conversion. And a person who became a polygamist after their conversion was considered guilty of adultery.

In later years polygamy was not as common and in the early years of the church converts who were Greek or Romans did not come from a culture that practiced polygamy although there was some polygamy in other cultures including among the Jews. There is some disagreement in church history on how to handle polygamists who became Christians, but no disagreement on whether these ones could be an example to the flock. They could not.

In Philip Schaff’s “The Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers Second Series Vol. XIV pg 80, he records:

Ancient Epitome of Canon III.
The time of polygamists is well known.A zeal for penance may shorten it.

Hefele.
As the Greek commentators have remarked, this canon speaks of those who have been married more than twice. It is not known what were the ancient ordinances of penitence which the synod here refers to. In later times digamists were condemned to one year’s penance, and trigamists from two to five years. St. Basil places the trigamists for three years among the “hearers,” and then for some time among the consistentes.

Another volume that quotes from early church leaders is a 1924 volume A critical and exegetical commentary on the Pastoral epistles (I & II Timothy and Titus) (pgs 36–37) written by W Lock in 1924. It reads concerning the qualification of elders: (I am removing the actual Greek quotes as my blog doesn’t support Greek fonts)

(ii) It certainly implies—not a polygamist. Such a rule would still be necessary, as polygamy might still be found among Jews; cf. Justin Martyr, Tryph. c. 134, …Joseph. Ant. xvii. 1, 2, …cf. Schürer, i. 1, p. 455 note. Schechter, Documents of jewish Sectaries, i. 17.
(iii) It also certainly implies “a faithful husband,” married to one woman and loyal to her, having no mistress or concubine; cf. Tertull. Apol. 46, “Christianus uxori soli sae masculus nascitur.” Canones Apost. xvii. …cf. ib. lxi. A similar provision is found in heathen marriage contracts; cf. Tebt. Pap. 104,… (92 B.C.), and similarly Pap. Eleph. 1 (310 B.C.).
(iv) It also implies, and was probably meant to imply, not divorcing one wife and marrying another. This would be a Christian rule, based both on Our Lord’s teaching and on St. Paul’s …

One recent example of a Christian author who while giving some credence to a possible exception allowed to the rule of a monogamous marriage as the only accepted form of marriage in the church, still claims that as a rule those who were polygamists were not even accepted into the church.
From Charles Hodge Vol. 3: Systematic theology (pgs 387–388)

Converted Polygamists.

The question has been mooted, Whether a polygamist, when converted to Christianity, should be required to repudiate all his wives but one, as a condition of his admission into the Christian Church? The answer to this question has been sought from three sources: First, the Scriptural doctrine of marriage; secondly, the example of the Apostles when dealing with such cases; and thirdly, from a consideration of the effects which would follow from making monogamy an indispensable condition of admission to the Church.
As to the first point, it is admitted by all Christians, that it is the law of God, the law of Christ, and consequently the law of the Christian Church that polygamy is sinful, being a violation of the original and permanently obligatory law of marriage. As every man who enters the Church professes to be a Christian, and as every Christian is bound to obey the law of Christ, it seems plain that no man should be received into the communion of the Church who does not conform to the law of Christ concerning marriage. The only question is, Whether Christ has made a special exception in favour of those who in the times of their ignorance, contracted the obligations of marriage with more than one woman? It is of course possible that such an exception might have been made. It would be analogous to the temporary suspension of the original law of marriage in favour of the hardhearted Jews. Has then such an exception been made? This is the second point to be considered. It concerns a matter of fact. Those who assume that such an exception has been made, are bound to produce the clearest evidence of the fact. This is necessary not only to satisfy the consciences of the parties concerned, but also to justify a departure from a plainly revealed law of God. It would be a very serious matter to set up in a heathen country, a church not conformed in this matter to the usual law of Christendom. Missionaries are sent forth to teach not only Christian doctrines but Christian morals. And the churches which they found, profess to be witnesses for Christ as to what He would have men to believe, and as to what He would have them to do. They ought not to be allowed to bear false testimony. It is certain that there is no clear and definite expression of the will of Christ, recorded in the New Testament, that the case contemplated should be an exception to the Scriptural law of marriage. There is no instance recorded in the New Testament, of the admission of a polygamist to the Christian Church. It has, indeed, been inferred from 1 Timothy iii. 2, where the Apostle says, a bishop must be “the husband of one wife,” that a private member of the Church might have more wives than one. But this is in itself a very precarious inference; and being inconsistent with Christ’s express prohibition, it is altogether inadmissible.

Scripture shows that those in leadership are those who are to set an example to be observed and followed.

Philippians 3:17 (NAS)
17 Brethren, join in following my example, and observe those who walk according to the pattern you have in us.

1 Thessalonians 1:6–7 (NAS)
6 You also became imitators of us and of the Lord, having received the word in much tribulation with the joy of the Holy Spirit,
7 so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia.

1 Timothy 4:12 (NAS)
12 Let no one look down on your youthfulness, but rather in speech, conduct, love, faith and purity, show yourself an example of those who believe.

1 Peter 5:3 (NAS)
3 nor yet as lording it over those allotted to your charge, but proving to be examples to the flock.

And finally, Paul as a true leader sets himself up as one to be imitated just as he imitated Christ.

1 Corinthians 11:1 (NAS) Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ.

Is a polygamist one who is to be imitated? I think that Scripture and church history shows that they were not and to my knowledge no polygamist was ever recorded as being set up as an example to the flock as a leader to be followed. Can they be an exemption to the rule about marriage and yet be a Christian if they are legally married to more than one wife before coming to Christ? It does appear that their predicament would allow them to be such an exception to be accepted in the congregation but they would never be set up as a leader.

Does this make sense?