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Essay Religion in Society

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Religion in Society

Miriam, Deborah and Huldah all are names of prophets from the Bible; they also all happen to be women. There are even two books in the Bible about women, Esther and Ruth. Psalm 68:11 reads, "The Lord gives the command; the women who proclaim the good tidings are a great host." With all of this support for women, why are they treated as the inferior sex in the church?

The article, “Women and Gender; Reading the Bible through the Eyes of Women,” states that it is “crucial that women have the same opportunities and freedom of expression as men in the Church, so that the entire community may benefit from their contribution.” However, many churches do not allow women to play a role in the services, and most do …show more content…

Many of those opposed to women playing an active role in the church may also quote 1 Corinthians 14: 34-35: "Women should remain silent in the churches. They are not allowed to speak, but must be in submission, as the Law says. If they want to inquire about something, they should ask their own husbands at home; for it is disgraceful for a woman to speak in a church.” In Corinthians, Paul is writing to the church in Corinth, which was a major cosmopolitan city filled with idolatry and immorality. In the Corinthian culture, women were not allowed to confront men in public. Some women thought that their Christian freedom gave them the right to question the men in public worship, and this caused a division in the church. Women in that day did not receive formal religion education like men, so women may have been raising questions in the services that could have been answered at home. Paul was trying to promote unity, not teach about women’s roles in the church.

Another verse brought to question is 1 Timothy 2: 11-14, which reads: "A woman should learn in quietness and full submission. I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man; she must be silent. For Adam was formed first, then Eve. And Adam was not the one deceived; it was the woman who was deceived and became a sinner.” Again, the author is Paul writing to Timothy and other young church leaders. The situation in which they worked

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