Women 's Life Of Christianity

Professor of religious studies Karen Armstrong finds in the early Christian Church examples of hostility toward women and fear of their sexual power, which she contends led to the eventual exclusion of women from full participation in a male-dominated church.

When one thinks about the leaders of early Christianity, an orthodox vision of Jesus’ male apostles and disciples fills their head. While there is no doubt these men were important, their influential women counterparts are often overlooked and underrated. For years, historians were perplexed at the rapid spread of early Christianity, until they considered women. Women had a major role in the rise and spread of early Christianity because they were not only numerous, but also influential in leadership positions and converting others.

Women were not held to such a high standard as men. Men had a more prominent active duty in the church and in order to gain their membership they needed to show their commitment to a congregation of people, while women could just make their consult in private. Although men and women still had to have a testimony from a Brethren before they were fully admitted, it was clear that men and women were separated in the church as they were at home.

Women took charge of religious and charitable enterprises because they were excluded from other public roles and because of their numbers. After 1800, more than 70 percent of the members of New England Congregational churches where women. The overabundance of women prompted Congregational ministers to end gender segregated prayer meetings.

As there is much debate about the role of women in the church, I believe that we should, as in all circumstances, rely on the Word of God to instruct us as to God 's will. In many religious circles, this is a hot-button subject and everyone will not easily accept this teaching. Nevertheless, because it has become a church dividing issue, it demands an appropriate review.

and obey the word of God just as much as men are, but they still are denied the

Often, women were forbidden to even speak in the church. This precept has been erroneously supported by one particular verse of scripture in the Bible. When Paul addressed a conflicting situation in the church, he sought to resolve confusion with a verse in the Bible. He said, “Let your women keep silence in the churches: for it is not permitted unto them to speak; but they are commanded to be under obedience, as also saith the law”. (1 Corinthians 14:34, KJV). This misunderstood verse has prompted many religious organizations to forbid women to teach, speak or minister in any capacity. Walter Elwell sums this well when he stated, “The reason that women rather than men are mentioned here may be due to the fact that in Corinth women were the primary disturbers”. (Elwell, 2001) (pg.1284). It was a matter of order being practiced in the church not a preeminence of male authority over women as many believed. Unfortunately, this position has been passed down through many generations and

In today’s society the controversial subject of what positions in the church a woman can hold; has become incredibly debatable among the nation. Some people believe that women have equal rights with men and can uphold any position that a man can. Today’s society also believes that because a woman can be in political and business power, then a woman can also be in authority in the church. However, that could not be farther from the truth a women’s positions in the church are defined by God.

The involvement of women continued in the first few decades of the church and noted by both biblical and non-biblical sources. The earliest Christian communities did not have a designated church building and instead met in people’s homes. According to Acts, many of these houses where early Christians met were owned by women. This activity allowed these women to serve as leaders of these house churches

Women’s Roles in the Church The roles of women in the Bible first interested me when I realized my call to ministry not too long ago. I strive to be a woman who makes a difference in the lives of the people I come into contact with. Women, in the church especially, have been oppressed for years and it is still seemingly rare that a woman holds more than a service position in the church. The outdated gender roles for men and women are swiftly changing as women are starting to fill positions that were once reserved for only men many years ago.

As I thought about all the topics we have read and studied in this class there was one topic that I really did enjoy and changed the way I thought about the topic and gave me a whole new perspective on how I look at religion now. I chose the topic of feminism and Christianity and how the authority of the women gender role in religion has been a struggle for many years. I think Lynn Japinga did a very good job in writing about this topic in her book, “Feminism and Christianity: An Essential Guide”. Japinga includes in her book the use of the male dominated language in the Bible, the blame for the original sin, and the lack of women gender clerical role authority within the religion world.

Now I want you to realise that the head of every man is Christ, and

Gender roles, and the mere existence of a gender binary, has been a recent topic of conversation for many churches, theologians, and individual believers. As the cultural pressure to remove gender-specific limitations builds, many of those aforementioned have turned to scripture for answers. Seldom are women’s roles in the Old Testament characterized by decision making or personal merits. Rather, a woman’s capacity to produce an heir for their husband complements his dominance and responsible faithfulness and allows God’s plan to be fulfilled through their combined efforts. In the New Testament, through the transformative power of Christ, prominent women became less of an anomaly, but were still held to a different set of standards and expectations than men and were usually still praised according to their actions and their faith. The Pauline epistles, written in the context in which the Church still exists today: the age to come, provide a basis for today’s understanding of women’s roles in marriage and in church leadership. Although there are many instances of women fulfilling God’s plans and proving their worth among the community of Christians, the biblically normative role of women is to avoid authoritative church leadership positions and remain submissive in situations of teaching and interpreting the Word.

The bases of keeping women out of the ministry in most religions are more or less tradition. A Bible scripture such as (Mat. 10:2) as Jesus was searching for His disciples he only chose men. Even when he had to replace them, He only chose men. In most of the passages in the bible, Jesus never chose a woman nor did He address the public by speaking to the woman specifically. Some would believe that Jesus was a sexist, but during the times it was only tradition for a man to be the head of everything and the role of a woman during the biblical times were to listen to the man, nurture her family and husband. During the biblical times when Jesus walked this earth, Christianity was a very warous event. People were not accepting of the Christ therefore it leads to wars and battles. (Mat. 24: 6). During those days women did not do battle. As of today the tradition still holds and it plays a significant part in our everyday lives as well as our religious worship. We

Until recently, women were not allowed to preach or even speak in the Christian Church, but in modern times women are beginning to play a more significant. While sects of Christianity still hold the traditional teachings about women, others have given them equal status within the church, an increasingly accepted interpretation.