The role of women in Christianity can vary greatly today as they vary historically since the third century New Testament church. This is particularly true in marriage and in official ministry positions in certain Christian denominations, churches, and parachurch organizations.
Many leadership roles in an organized church have been banned for women. In Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches, only men can serve as priests or deacons; only men serving in senior leadership positions such as the pope, patriarch, and bishop. Women can become abbesses. Most mainline Protestant denominations have begun to loosen their old obstacles in ordaining women into ministers, although some major groups, especially the Southern Baptist Convention, tighten their limits as a reaction. Almost all Charismatic and Pentecostal churches are pioneers in this and have received female ordination since their establishment.
Christian traditions that officially recognize the saints as people of the greatness of life, make a list of women in the group. Most striking is Mary, the mother of Jesus who is highly respected throughout Christianity, especially in Roman Catholicism where she is considered the "Mother of God".
Both the apostle Paul and Peter hold women in high and worthy positions for prominent positions in the church, although they are careful not to encourage anyone to ignore the New Testament household code, also known as the New Testament House Code or Haustafelen Colossians 3: 18-4: 1 , Ephesians 5: 22-6: 9 , 1 Peter 2 : 13-3: 7 , Titus 2: 1-10 and 1 Timothy 2: 1ff. , 3: 8 , 5:17 , and 6: 1 Religion Christians emerged from Judaism and in Greco-Roman culture, a patriarchal society that places men in positions of authority in marriage, society and government. The New Testament records only the men mentioned among the original 12 apostles of Jesus Christ. Women are the first to discover the Resurrection of Christ.
Since the mapping of the clergy (priest) and the post-New Testament priesthood conception, his 27 books do not contain specifications for such ordination or distinction. Furthermore, the early church in Catholicism developed a monastic tradition that included a convent institution where women developed the religious order of sisters and nuns, an essential ministry of women that continues to date in the establishment of schools, hospitals, nursing. houses and monastic settlements.
Video Women in Christianity
Teologi
Mary the Mother of Jesus, Mary Magdalene, Mary of Bethany, and her sister, Martha, have become one of the women identified as key to the formation of Christianity. Karen L. King, Harvard Professor of New Testament Studies and History of Ancient Christianity, writes that the history of women in ancient Christianity has been almost completely revised in the last twenty years. Many more women were added to the list of women who contributed significantly in the early history of Christianity. New history comes primarily from new discoveries of biblical texts that have been neglected for centuries.
The belief that Mary Magdalene was an adulterer, the wife of Jesus, and a repentant whore can be traced back to at least until the fourth century. Because of the acceptance of that opinion in the influential homily of Pope Gregory the Great in about 591, historical error became a generally accepted view of Western Christianity. In his homily, the Pope mistakenly identifies Magdalena not only with anonymous sinners with perfume in Luke's Gospel, but also confuses her with Mary of Bethany, sister of Martha and Lazarus. Karen King concludes that the discovery of new texts by biblical scholars, combined with their sharp critical insights, has now been proved beyond a doubt that the poor portrait of Mary Magdalene is completely inaccurate.
Mary Magdalene was a prominent student and an important leader in the early Christian movement. His appointment as the first apostle of Jesus has helped promote contemporary awareness of women's leadership in Christianity.
The New Testament gospels, written ahead of the last quarter of the first century AD, recognize that women were among the earliest followers of Jesus.
- From the beginning, the Jewish female disciples, including Mary Magdalene, Joanna, and Susanna, had accompanied Jesus during her ministry and supported her out of their personal means. [Luke 8: 1-3]
- Jesus speaks to women publicly and personally, and allows them to set examples of faith. According to two Gospel accounts, an unnamed Gentile woman understood and praised by Jesus when declaring that his ministry is not limited to certain groups and people, but belongs to all those who have faith.
[Mark 7: 24-30] ; [Matthew 15: 21-28] - A Jewish woman honors her with extraordinary hospitality washing her feet with perfume.
- Jesus often visits Mary and Martha's home, and is used to teaching and eating with women and men.
- When Jesus was arrested, the woman remained steadfast, even when her male pupil escaped to hiding. The woman accompanied her to the foot of the cross.
- It was the woman who was the first witness to the resurrection, among them Mary Magdalene. This Gospel record reflects the prominent historical role that women play in the ministry of Jesus as disciples.
In one of several books, Linda Woodhead notes the early Christian theological basis for forming positions on the role of women in the Book of Genesis in which the reader is interested in the conclusion that women under men and "that the image of God shines brighter" in men than women. "The following New Testament passages and newer theological beliefs have contributed to the interpretation of women's role in Christianity over the centuries:
- "Women will be saved through childbirth, if she continues in faith and love and holiness, with decency." [1 Timothy 2:15]
- "The rule remains with the husband, and the wife is forced to obey him by the command of God, He rules the house and country, wars war, and defends his property.... The woman, on the other hand, is like a nail pushed against the wall. He sits at home.... He does not transcend his most personal obligations. "(Luther, Lecture)
- "Speaking correctly, women's business, duties and functions, is to actualize fellowship in which men can only precede, stimulate, lead, inspire." (Karl Barth, Church Dogmatics)
In general, all evangelicals involved in gender debates claim to obey the authority of the Bible. Egalitari usually argues that disputes have arisen because of differences in interpretation of certain verses. However, Wayne Grudem and other supplements have accused egalitarianism of taking a position that denies the authority, sufficiency and inerrancy of the scriptures.
... I believe that ultimately the effective authority of Scripture to govern our lives is at stake in this controversy. The problem is not whether we say we believe that the Bible is the Word of God or that we believe it without error, but the problem is whether we really obey it when the Teachings are unpopular and contrary to the dominant viewpoint in our culture. If we do not obey it, the effective authority of God to govern his people and his church through his Word has been eroded, Grudem concludes.
Church Exercise
Christian leaders through history have become patriarchal, taking names that underline male leadership in the church. These include "father", "abbot" (abba = father) ", and" 'pope' (papa = father) ". Linda Woodhead notes that "Such a language... does not include women from such role training". He also noted sentiments in 1 Corinthians that "exemplify a pattern of Christianity of all varieties", where Paul "explains that women should be veiled in church to signify their subordination to men because 'everyone's head is Christ and the head of a woman is her husband 'and that' women should remain silent in the churches because they are not allowed to speak, but must be subordinates, as even the law says. '"
Biblical Hermeneutics
The egalitarian and complementary positions differ significantly in their approach to hermeneutics, and especially in their interpretation of biblical history. Egalitarian Christians believe that men and women are created equal [Gen. 1-2] without any role hierarchy. God created both women and men in their own image and likeness. God made the same first husband and wife in the leadership of the earth. Both are assigned together to "bear fruit and multiply... to fill the earth... subdue the earth... and master it." [Gen. 1:28] When the Fall, God prophesies to Eve that one of the consequences of sin entering mankind is that her husband will "rule" her.
Conservative Christian Theologian Gilbert Bilezikian points out that throughout the Old Testament era and beyond, as prophesied by God, man continues to govern women in a patriarchal system which he considers to be a "compromise" or "accommodation" between sinful reality and divine ideals. The coming of Jesus is understood as moving forward from the patriarchy of the Old Testament, re-institutionalizing equality of gender roles, as articulated clearly in Galatians 3:28 .
New Testament Section, like " 22 Wife, subject to your husband, as to God. 23 Because the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, His Savior. 24 Since the church is subservient to Christ, so let the wife also submit to everything for their husbands "[Eph. 5: 22-24] that teaches the surrender of wives to husbands, usually understood by egalitarians as temporary accommodation for a hard 1st century culture in which Roman law Patria Potestas gives the father a tremendous power over the familia which includes wives, children, slaves, and dependent adults. That power gives the father/husband the right to kill his wife in various circumstances.
Gilbert Bilezikian writes that "the poisoned hierarchy caused by the fall (mankind) has permeated the relationship in such a way that the disciples of Jesus practice by means of slavery insist on replacing hierarchy for servanthood, they continue to compete among themselves for supreme status and for position of excellence. "Bilezikian continues:" To solve this problem once and for all, Jesus sharply illustrates the fundamental difference between social organization in the secular world and in the Christian community. " He concludes that "As a result, there is no mandate and no allowance in the New Testament for one adult believer to hold authority over other adult believers, but the overall rule of the call to subservience among all believers of respect for Christ".
Christian egalitarian Hermeneutics has received a very systematic treatment from William J. Webb, professor of the New Testament at Heritage Theological Seminary, Ontario, Canada. Webb argues that the main challenge is to determine which biblical command is "transcultural" and therefore current today, compared to the "cultural" and therefore only valid for the recipients of the original text (first century). His hermeneutic "redemptive" movement is justified by using the example of slavery, which Webb sees as analogous to the subordination of women. Christians today see slavery as a "culture" in biblical times and not something to be reintroduced or justified, although slavery is (a) found in the Bible and (b) not explicitly forbidden there. Webb recommends that biblical commandments be examined in the cultural context in which they were originally written. According to the "redemptive approach", the enslavement and subordination of women is found in the Bible; however, the same Scripture also contains ideas and principles which, if developed and brought to its logical conclusion, will lead to the abolition of these institutions. According to the ideological and biblical patriarchy it must be replaced by "everyone in Christ Jesus" proclamation Galatians 3:28 that says "There is no Jew or Greek, slave or free, male or female. you are all one in Christ Jesus. "
Some other New Testament instructions are almost universally considered "culture" and therefore only applies to the recipients of the original text (first century) is for women to wear veils when praying or prophesying, [1 Cor 11 : 5-6] Christians wash their feet to one another (direct command of Jesus in the upper room of discourse, [Jn 13: 14-15] appeared five times in the New Testament, to greet each other with a sacred kiss - among other things.
In contrast to egalitarian teaching, the supplements teach that male priority and headship (position leadership) are institutionalized before the Fall of the class supplements (references nourlexpansion) [Gen. 1-2] and that the decision in Genesis 3:16 only distorts this leadership by introducing "wicked domination." Complementaries teach that male leadership seen throughout the Old Testament (ie, patriarchs, priesthood and monarchies) is an expression of the ideals of creation, as well as Jesus' choice of 12 male apostles and New Testament restrictions on church leadership only to man. sup class = "reference nourlexpansion"> [1 Tim. 2: 11-14]
Complementarians criticize Webb's hermeneutics. Grudem argues that Webb expects Christians to pursue "superior ethics" with those found in the New Testament, thus undermining the authority and sufficiency of Scripture. He claims that Webb and some other evangelicals misinterpret Bible teaching about slavery and women, and incorrectly confuse the two. He wrote that slavery was tolerated in the Bible but was never commanded but in some cases criticized, while wives were explicitly ordered to submit to their husbands and male leadership was never criticized. In addition, Grudem believes that Webb's "Webb's redemption" hermeneutics (itself a variation of the hermeneutic "trajectory" commonly used by egalitarians) ultimately depends on subjective judgments that are unable to produce certainty about ethical views.
Gender and Image of God
Complementaries traditionally argue that Christian ministers must be men, because the need to represent Jesus Christ, who is the "Son" of God, and incarnate as a man. The related position is that while men and women are made in God's image, the woman shares a divine image through the man because he was created from him, and is his "glory". [1 Cor 11: 7-8]
For us, a minister is primarily a representative, a double representative, representing us to God and God for us... We do not mind a woman doing the first: all the trouble is with the second. But why?... If the reformer stopped saying that a good woman might be like God and start saying that God is like a good woman. Suppose he says that we may also pray to 'Our Mother who is art in Heaven' for 'Our Father'. Suppose he says that the Incarnation may have also taken the form of women as men, and the Second Person of the Trinity also called Princess as Son. Suppose, finally, that mystical marriage is reversed, that the Church is the Bridegroom and Christ Bride. All of this, as I know, is involved in the claim that a woman can represent God as a priest.
The egalitarian Christians respond by declaring that God has no gender, and that men and women portray God equally and without distinction. In addition, terms such as "Father" and "Son", used in reference to God, must be understood as analogies or metaphors used by Bible authors to communicate attributes of God in cultures in which men have social rights. Similarly, Christ became male not because it was theologically necessary, but because the first century Jewish culture would not accept the female Messiah. Wayne Grudem excludes these egalitarian arguments, insisting that Christ's elegance is theologically necessary; he also alleges that egalitarians are increasingly advocating that God should be regarded as "Mother" and also "Father", a movement which he considers liberal theologically. The Christian doctrine of the Trinity has been the main focus of contemporary gender debates, especially in relation to 1 Cor. 11: 3 . In 1977, George W. Knight III argued in a book on the role of gender that the subordination of women to men is theologically analogous to the subordination of the Son to the Father in the Trinity. The Australian theologian Kevin Giles has recently responded that the supplement has "rediscovered" the doctrine of the Trinity to support their view of men and women, suggesting that some supplements have adopted the heresy view of the Trinity as similar to Arianism. Fierce debate has taken place, with some egalitarians moving towards the idea that there is "interdependence" in the Trinity, including the "subordination of the Father to the Son", which must be reflected in the gender role relationship. Wayne Grudem has responded by asserting that mutual submission in the Trinity can not be supported by the scriptures and the history of the church.
Relationship between ontology and role
Modern supplements argue that Genesis 1: 26-28 and Galatians 3:28 establish the full equality of men and women in terms of status, value and dignity. Complementary roles in marriage and church leadership, including the primary authority of men and the surrender of wives, are not considered to be contrary to the principle of this ontological equation. Equal role or functional subordination and ontological inferiority are considered as category confusion. The egalitarian author Rebecca Merrill Groothuis objected to this position. He argues that "the spiritual and ontological equality of women with men overrides the kind of subordination prescribed by gender traditionalists... It is not logically logical for women to be essentially the same as humans, yet universally subject to men on an essential basis. (ie, femininity). "
Maps Women in Christianity
A leading lady in the Hebrew text of the Bible
Christianity developed as a sect of Judaism in the first century AD. Because it inherits the depictions of women already in the Hebrew Bible (known to Christians as the Old Testament).
In Genesis, the first creation story creates both men and women at the same time, the second story of Adam and Eve's creation as the first man and the first woman; in the narrative, Adam was created first, and Eve from Adam's rib. Some commentators have stated that Eve became the second God Creation indicates the inferiority of women, but in calling Eve the "meat of my flesh" others say the relationship of equality is implied.
Some women are praised in the books of Ruth and Esther. The Book of Ruth is about the loyalty of a Moabite woman to her Jewish mother-in-law and her willingness to move to Israel and become part of their culture. The story ends with praise and blessing when he married an Israelite and then King David came from his lineage. In the Book of Esther, a young woman named Esther from the Jewish lineage was praised for her courage as Persian queen who saves many people from being killed by an appeal to the king.
Women in the New Testament Church
The New Testament sets forth the values ​​describing Jesus as setting a standard of values ​​regarding attitudes toward and treatment of women.
Jesus and the lady
As the founder of Christianity, Jesus never taught or approved any form of subordination of one of his followers over another. Instead, he explicitly forbids it in Christian relations. The three Synoptic Gospels record Jesus teaching his disciples that every subordination to each other, both harsh and custom, is a pagan practice - not something that happens among his followers. After issuing a substantial prohibition against the subordination of others, he prescribes a Christian alternative to subordinate as the opposite: deep service to others, even extending to make the ultimate sacrifice in giving one's life if necessary:
"You know that the rulers of the Gentiles are not the Lord who heads them, and their high officials exercise authority over them, but it will not be so among you.Everyone will be great, You, and whoever will be first among you must be your slave, even when the Son of Man came to be not served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many "- Jesus Christ. [Mt 20: 25-26a] [Mk 10: 42-43]
[Lk 22:25]
The first sentence, "upper master" , describes Roman dictators who hold supreme and unlimited power. The second phrase, "high officials", refers to the lesser Roman officials who, having some limitations of power, "exercise authority" (not always brute force) over their citizens. In almost identical passages in the three Synoptic Gospels, Jesus emphatically commands his disciples that "it will not happen among you", clearly prohibits both the extremes of the rough "in favor of" others, and even more moderate. , ordinary "exercise of authority" over others. The Egalitarian Christians consider this teaching of Jesus to those who are the 12 apostles to defeat every doctrine of Paul and Peter which is further interpreted by the Pioneers as "Husband-Leaders" in need of "Delivery of Wives", or denying women the opportunity to serve in which leadership even. position within the Church.
The authors Marsh and Moyise also understand this teaching of Jesus to forbid any hierarchy in all Christian relations, even when there is no connotation of abuse of authority.
The New Testament Scripture refers to a number of women in the inner circle of Jesus - especially Mary and Mary Magdalene who are claimed to have found the empty tomb of Christ and are known as the "apostle of the apostles" because he is commissioned by the risen Jesus to go and tell the 11 disciples that he has risen, according to the Gospel.
According to the New Testament, Christ saved a woman accused of committing adultery from an angry mob who tried to punish her, saying: "He who is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her".
The Gospel of John
Another Gospel story concerns Jesus in the home of Martha and Mary where Mary's women sat at the feet of Jesus as he preached, while his sister worked hard in the kitchen preparing food. When Martha complains to Mary that she should help in the kitchen, Jesus says that actually, "Mary has chosen what's better".
The story of Mark 5: 23-34, where Jesus heals a woman who has bleed for 12 years shows not only that Jesus can cleanse his followers, but this story also challenges the Jewish cultural conventions at the time. In Jewish law, women who are menstruating or have given birth are excluded from society. Therefore, the woman at Mark is excommunicated for 12 years. Jesus healed him not only a miracle, but by interacting with an unclean woman, he broke from the practice that was accepted then and embraced the woman. [Mark 5: 23-34]
Both complementary and egalitarian see Jesus treating women with compassion, mercy and dignity. The New Testament gospels, especially Luke, mention Jesus speaking to or helping women openly and openly. Martha's sister Mary, sitting at the feet of Jesus being taught, a privilege reserved for men in Judaism. Jesus had the followers of the woman who sponsored him, and he ceased to express concern for the women of Jerusalem on his way to crucifixion. Mary Magdalene is stated in the Gospels to be the first to see Jesus after his resurrection. [23: 26-31] In his narration, Jesus accused him of telling others about what he had seen, even though a woman's testimony at that time was not considered valid.
Historian Geoffrey Blainey writes that women were more influential during Jesus' short service period than in the next thousand years of Christianity. Blainey shows gospel accounts of Jesus teaching women to teach, just as a Samaritan woman in a well, and Mary of Bethany, who rubs her hair with a valuable ointment; Jesus healed the sick woman and openly expressed admiration for a poor widow who donated some copper coins to the Temple in Jerusalem, her move to help the woman accused of adultery, and to the presence of Mary Magdalene by the side of Jesus when she was crucified. Blainey concludes: "Because women's position is not high in Palestine, the goodness of Jesus against them is not always approved by those who strictly enforce tradition.According to Blainey, women may be the majority of Christians in the first century after Christ.
Jesus always shows the greatest honor and honor of women, for every woman, and especially He is sensitive to the suffering of women. Beyond social and religious barriers at that moment, Jesus rebuilds the woman in its full dignity as a man before God and in front of man... the act of acting Christ, the gospel of his words and deeds, is a consistent protest against anything that touches the dignity of women.
Apostle Paul and the woman
In his writings, the Apostle Paul includes various comments about women. In his Letter to the Galatians, the Apostle Paul emphasized that Christianity is a faith open to all:
There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is no slave or free, there is neither male nor female, for you are all one in Jesus Christ. " [Galatians 3:28]
The Letters of St. Paul - dated to the middle of the 1st century - and his mediocre greeting to acquaintances offered information about prominent Jewish and Gentile women in early Christianity. His letters provide clues about the types of activities in which women engage more generally.
- He praised lovingly the Roman community Phoebe, a church deacon in Cenchreae, for he has been the protector of many people, including himself. [Rom. 16: 1]
- He greets Priscilla with the official Latin name (Prisca), Junia, Julia, and Nereus's sister. [Rom. 16: 3,7,15]
- When Paul refers to Priscilla and Aquila, he enrolls the first Priscilla in 5 of 7 times they are referred by their spouse's name, suggesting to some experts that he is the head of the family unit.
- Acts 18: 2-3 : There he met a Jew named Aquila, originally from Pontus, who recently came from Italy with his wife Priscilla, because Claudius had ordered all the Jews to leave Rome. Paul went to see them, and because he was a tent-maker, they lived and worked with them.
- Acts 18:18 : Paul stayed in Corinth for some time. Then he left the brothers and sailed to Syria, accompanied by Priscilla and Aquila.
- Acts 18:19 : They arrived at Ephesus, where Paul left Priscilla and Aquila . He himself went to the synagogue and reasoned with the Jews.
- Acts 18:26 : He (Apollos) began to speak boldly in the synagogue. When Priscilla and Aquila heard it, they took it aside and explained to him how God was more adequate (??????????).
- Romans 16: 3-4 : Sapa Priscilla and Aquila , my co-worker in Jesus Christ. They risked their lives for me. Not only me but all the churches of the Gentiles thanking them.
- 1 Corinthians 16:19 : Churches in Asian provinces send you greetings. Aquila and Priscilla greet you warmly in the Lord, and so do the churches that meet in their homes.
- 2 Timothy 4:19 : Sapa Priscilla and Aquila and Onesiphorus's household.
- He praised Junia (or Junias) as "leading among the apostles" (NRSV) or "famous for the apostles" (ESV), who had been imprisoned for their work. Some theologians understand the name to be a woman, showing that Paul recognizes the female apostles in the Church.
[Rom 16: 7] - Tryphena from Rome, Mary, and Persis is praised for their hard work. [Rom. 16: 6,12]
- Euodia and Syntyche are called co-workers in the Gospels. [Phil. 4: 2-3]
Some theologians believe that this biblical report provides evidence that female leaders are active in the earliest work in spreading the Christian message, while others reject the understanding.
There are also biblical passages from Paul's letters supporting the idea that women should have different roles or obedience to men:
- "A woman must learn in fullness and surrender, I do not allow a woman to teach or to take authority over a man, she must be silent.Because Adam was first formed, then Eve.And Adam is not the deceived it is a woman who is deceived and becomes a sinner, but women will be saved through childbirth - if they continue in faith, love and holiness with goodness. "<1 classim. 2: 11-15]
- "Give one another out of respect for Christ Wife, submit yourself to your own husband as you do to God, for the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, where he is the Savior Now as the church subject to Christ, as well as wives should submit to their husbands in all things.B husband, love your wife, just as Christ loves the church and surrenders himself to make it holy, " [Eph. 5: 21-27]
- " 3 But I want you to realize that the head of every human being is Christ, and the head of the woman is human, and the head of Christ is God. 4 Every person who prays or prophesies with a closed head defiling his head. 5 But every woman who prays or prophesies with her head denying her head - it's the same as shaving her head. 6 Because if a woman does not cover her head, she may also cut his hair, but if it is a disgrace for a woman to have her hair cut or her head shaved, then she should cover her head. 7 A man should not cover his head, because he is the image and glory of God, but woman is a man's glory. 8 For men not of woman but woman of man 9 not created for woman but woman for man 10 It is for this reason that a woman must have authority over his own head, because of the angels. 11 However, in God women are not independent of human indi- viduals, nor independent of women. 12 Because when a woman comes from a man, so is a man born of a woman. But everything comes from God. 13 Judge for yourself: Is it appropriate for a woman to pray to God with her head open? 14 Is not the nature of things that teach you that if a man has long hair, it is a disgrace for him, 15 but that if a woman has long hair, he glory? For long hair given to him as a cover. 16 If anyone wants to make an issue of it, we have no other practice - nor the churches of God. " [1Cor 11: 3-16 NIV]
The New Testament scholar, Frank Stagg, considers verse 10 above as "very mysterious, where a veiled woman is" because of the angels. "In his book, he suggests clues to intentions.He concludes his comment on this section by saying that" here a lot. What is Paul's authority or source for hierarchy: God, Christ, man, woman?... What is the importance of having a headdress in worship? Does the hijab bind women today? What about the subordination of women (or wives) with men (or husbands)? What about the angels? What about the teachings of nature? Is the habit in v. 16 binding Christian conscience today? "
- "As in all churches of the saints, women must remain silent in the churches because they are not allowed to speak but should be subordinates, as even the law says: If there is something they want to know, let them ask their husbands at home, so it is embarrassing for a woman to speak in church. " [1Cor. 14: 33-35]
Women in church history
Apostolic Age
From the beginning of the early Christian church, women were important members of the movement, although some complained that much of the information in the New Testament on women's work had been ignored. Some also argue that many assume that it is a "human church" because the source of information derived from the New Testament church is written and interpreted by humans. Recently, experts began looking for mosaics, frescoes, and inscriptions from that period for information on the role of women in the early church. Historian Geoffrey Blainey writes that early Christian texts refer to various women activists in the early church. One such woman is St. Priscilla, a Jewish missionary from Rome, may have helped find the Christian community in Corinth. He traveled as a missionary with her husband and St. Paul, and guided the Jewish intellectual Apostles. Others include the four princesses of Philip the Evangelist, from Caesarea, Palestine, who is said to be a prophet and has hosted St. Paul in their home.
Patristic age
From an early patristic age, the ministry of teachers and priests of the sacrament are reserved for men in most churches in the East and West. Tertullian, the Latin father of the 2nd century, wrote that "It is not permissible for a woman to speak in a church, nor can she teach, baptize, offer, or claim herself any worthy function for a man, at least of all sacred office "(" Di Veiling of Virgins "). Origen (185-254 AD) states that,
Even if it was given to a woman to show signs of prophecy, she was still not allowed to speak in a meeting. When Miriam the prophetess speaks, she leads the women's choir... Because [as Paul declares] "I do not allow a woman to teach," and even less "to tell a man what to do."
In the early centuries, the Eastern church permitted women to participate in the limited ecclesiastical office by ordaining deaconesses.
Women who are celebrated as saints from the early centuries of Christianity include some martyrs who suffered under Persecution of Christians in the Roman Empire, such as Agnes Rome, Saint Cecilia, Agatha of Sicily, and Blandina. The spirit of Santa Perpetua and Felicity, written by Perpetua during his imprisonment in 203, recounts their martyrdom. This spirit is regarded as one of the earliest surviving documents that had been written by a woman early in Christianity. At the end of ancient times, Saint Helena was a Christian and empress of Emperor Constantius, and mother of Emperor Constantine I. Similarly, Saint Monica was a pious Christian and the mother of Saint Augustine of Hippo. In the Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church, the priesthood and ministries that depend on it such as Bishops, Patriarchs and Pope, are restricted to men. The first Orange Council (441) prohibited the ordination of women to the diaconate.
Medieval
When Western Europe transitioned from the Classical Period to the Middle Ages, the male hierarchy with the Pope at its peak became a central player in European politics. Mysticism flourished and monasteries and Catholic monastic communities became institutions in Europe.
With the formation of Christian monasticism, other influential roles become available to women. From the fifth century onwards, the Christian monastery provides an opportunity for some women to break away from marriage and raise children, gain literacy and learning, and play a more active religious role. In the late Middle Ages women such as Saint Catherine of Siena and Saint Teresa of Avila, played a role in the development of theological ideas and discussion within the church, and later declared as Doctors of the Roman Catholic Church. Belgian nun, St. Juliana of LiÃÆ'¨ge (1193-1252), proposed the Feast of Corpus Christi, celebrating the body of Christ in the Eucharist, which became a great feast throughout the Church. In the Franciscan movement of the thirteenth century, religious women such as St. Clare of Assisi plays an important role. Later, Joan of Arc took the sword and won a military victory for France, before being captured and tried as a "witch and heresy", after which she was burned at the stake. A papal inquiry later said the trial was illegal. A hero to France, sympathy grows for Joan even in England. Pope Benedict XV canonized Joan in 1920.
Historian Geoffrey Blainey writes that women were more prominent in Church life during the Middle Ages than at any time in its history, with a number of church reforms initiated by women. In the 13th century, the author began writing about a mythical pope-Pope Joan-who managed to disguise her gender until giving birth during a procession in Rome. Blainey cites the growing cultivation of the Virgin Mary and Mary Magdalene as proof of high standing for female Christian women at that time. The Virgin Mary was awarded titles such as Mother of God and Queen of Heaven and, in 863, her feast day, "The Feast of Our Lady", was declared as important as the Passover and Christmas celebrations. The feast of Mary Magdalene was celebrated earnestly since the 8th century and her combined portrait was built from the reference of the Gospel to the other women whom Jesus met.
In addition to monastic institutions, the monarchy is a major European institution that allows alternative women to marry and raise children. The female kings of this period include: Olga from Kiev, who was around 950 AD, became the first Russian ruler to convert to Christianity; The Italian noblewoman, Matilda of Tuscany (1046-1115), recalled her military accomplishments and became the main supporter of Italian Pope Gregory VII during the Investigative Controversy; Saint Hedwig of Silesia (1174-1243), who supported the poor and the church in Eastern Europe; and Jadwiga of Poland, who ruled as king of Poland and, in the Catholic Church, were respected as patron saints of the queen and "European unity". St. Elisabeth of Hungary (1207-1231) is a symbol of Christian charity using its wealth to build hospitals and care for the poor. Each of these women was chosen as a Christian model by Pope John Paul II in Dignitatem's letter Dieritatem on the dignity and vocation of women.
Post Reform
The Reformation ended centuries of unity among Western Christians and brought Protestantism into political and religious opposition to Catholicism. Religion of a heir to the throne becomes a very important political issue. Pope Clement VI's refusal to grant a cancellation in the marriage of King Henry VIII to Catherine of Aragon saw Henry establish himself as the highest church governor of England. Her female Protestant successors have served as the Supreme Governor of the Church of England. Competition between Catholic and Protestant heirs also took place. Protestantism was consolidated in England by the daughter of Henry, Elizabeth I. Religion couples heirs or monarchs complicated mixed marriages between royal houses until the coming centuries. Empress of Holy Roman Emperor was given the title of Holy Roman Empress. The throne was reserved for men, so there was never a Empress of the Holy Roman Empire, although women such as Theophanu and Maria Theresa of Austria, ruled the power of government and served as the de facto Empress. A liberal-minded autocrat, he is the protector of science and education and seeks to alleviate the suffering of slaves. He kept the Catholic obedience in the palace and frowned on Judaism and Protestantism. He reigned for 40 years, and raised 16 children including Marie-Antoinette, the poor French Queen. Together with her husband he founded the Habsburg-Lorraine Catholic Dynasty that remained a central player in European politics until the twentieth century. One of the effects of the Protestant Reformation in some of the countries in which it is rooted is to end the long tradition of female monasteries already existing in Roman Catholicism, and which the Reformers see as slavery. [7] By closing the female monasteries within the movement, Protestantism effectively closed the choice of full-time religious roles for Protestant women, and also has given some women lives in academic studies. Among the many nuns who abandoned monastic life were Martin Luther's wife, Katherine von Bora. Although Calvin, Luther and several other Protestant Reformers were open to the idea of ​​female preaching, the majority of Protestant churches upheld the traditional position, and restricted the ruling and preaching role in the Church to men until the twentieth century, although there were early exceptions among some such groups Quakers and in some Pentecostal sacred movements. John Knox (1510-1572) also denied women the right to rule in the civil realm, as he stated in his First Explosion of Trumpet Against the Terrible Regime of Women. Baptist Theologian John Gill (1690-1771) commented on 1Ã, CorinthiansÃ, 14: 34-35 , declaring
( Genesis 3:16 ) "Your wish is for your husband, and he will rule over you". By this the apostle will signify, that the reason why women do not speak in church, or preach and teach openly, or worry in the function of ministries, is, because this is an act of power, and authority; government and government, and in stark contrast to that conquest which God in law obliges women to men. Extraordinary examples of Deborah, Huldah, and Anna, should not be drawn into rules or examples in such cases.
The Methodist Founder John Wesley (1703-1791) and Methodist theologian Adam Clarke (1762-1832) both uphold male leadership, but allow that spiritually Christian women can speak publicly in church meetings if they are "under encouragement The extraordinary spirit "(Wesley), and the like must obey that influence, and that" the apostle lays down the clues in chapter 11 to regulate his personal appearance when used. " (Clarke) The puritanical theologian Matthew Poole (1624-1679) agrees with Wesley, adding,
But ruling out the extraordinary case of the special afflatus, that strong divine influence, undoubtedly, breaks the law for a woman to speak in church.
Matthew Henry (1662-1714) in his commentary, entertaining allows "to pray, and utter hymns inspired" by women, therefore "not teaching". In the Church of England, the dissolution of the religious houses of King Henry VIII wiped out the monasteries that had characterized Christianity in Britain for centuries. The Anglican religious order and the Sisterhood were later reshaped within the Anglican tradition. In Europe, Portugal and Spain remain Catholic and are at the top of building a global empire. As the sponsor of Christopher Columbus's 1492 mission to cross the Atlantic, the Queen of Spain Isabella I (Isabella the Catholic) of Castille was an important figure in the growth of Catholicism as a global religion, for Spain and Portugal following Columbus's route to building the Empire in the Americas. His marriage to Ferdinand II of Aragon has ensured the unity of the Kingdom of Spain and the royal couples agree to hold the same authority. The Spanish pontiff Alexander VI conferred on them a "Catholic" title. The Catholic Encyclopedia Isabella's credit as a very capable ruler and one who "cultivates learning not only in universities and among nobles, but also among women". From Isabella and Ferdinand, he says: "The good governance of the Catholic rulers brings Spanish prosperity to the top, and inaugurates the Golden Age of the country." In the seventeenth century of Massachusetts, Anne Hutchison, a successful preacher and teacher were exiled because he seized male authority.
Modern time
Amidst the backdrop of the Industrial Revolution and the expansion of the European Empire during the 17th-19th centuries, Christian women play a role in developing and operating many of the modern world's health and education systems. However, women "still have to work under the nominal control of a man" for missionary work at the end of the 19th century. Beyond this position, "women are denied another influential public role in the churches". The role that began to be taken began to be expanded by women. Catholic religious order like the Mercy Sisters of the Little Sisters of the Poor Sisters of St. Joseph of the Sacred Heart was established all over the world and formed a vast network of hospitals and schools. The Anglican Florence Nightingale is influential in the development of modern nursing. While most Christian denominations do not allow women to preach during the nineteenth century, some evangelical Protestant denominations allow more female sermons. In the early nineteenth century England, Bible and Methodist Primitive Christians permitted female sermons, and had a large number of female preachers, especially among the rural population and the working class. Some of them emigrated to the British colonies, and preached to settlers in the early Canadian colonies. In the second half of the nineteenth century these denominations became more institutionalized, and therefore less open to female preaching, although some women continued to preach in these denominations until the early 20th century. Later in the nineteenth century England, Salvation Army was formed, and from the outset it was permitted women to preach in the same terms as men. This "Hallelujah Lasses", many of whom are working class, are very popular, often attracting large crowds in England as well as in North America. Nevertheless, these denominations remain a minority, and in most Christian churches women are still banned from entering the 20th century. For much of the early twentieth century, Catholic women continued to join religious orders in large numbers, where their influence and control were strong in carrying out basic education for children, high school for girls, and in nursing, hospitals, orphanages and elderly care facilities. The Second Vatican Council of the 1960s liberalized the pressures of Catholic religious life, especially for women in the sacred order. However, in the second half of the 20th century, calls for women in the West experienced a sharp decline. Regardless, the Catholic Church does a great number of beatified and canonized Catholic women from all over the world: St. Josephine Bakhita is a Sudanese slave girl who became a Canossian nun; St. Katharine Drexel (1858-1955) works for indigenous and African Americans; Mystic Maria St. Maria Faustina Kowalska (1905-1938) wrote her influential spiritual diary; and German nun Edith Stein was killed by the Nazis at Auschwitz. Three Catholic women declared as Doctors of the Church, showing a reassessment of the role of women in the life of the Church: 16th century Spanish mystic, St. Teresa of ÃÆ' vila; 14th century mystic Italy St. Catherine of Siena and 19th century French nuns ThÃÆ' Â © rÃÆ'¨se de Lisieux (called Amorian Doctor or Doctor of Love). The 19th century saw women begin to push back the role of traditional women in the church. One of them is Elizabeth Cady Stanton (1815-1902) who works to "liberate women from their traditional fetters":
"[O] well of his first project is the Women's Bible in which parts used by men to keep women in subjection are highlighted and criticized.Although some of the early campaigns for women's emancipation belonged to the churches, and although some movements were related with the church helping to foster the entrance of women to the public stage, the activists who embrace the feminist goals wholeheartedly almost always make the pause of the Church and Biblical Christianity. "
While Catholics and Orthodoxans adhere to traditional gender restrictions on ordination to the priesthood, the ordination of women in Protestant churches in recent decades is becoming increasingly common. The Salvation Army chose Evangeline Booth as the first female general (world leader) in 1934. Penny New Zealand Penny Jamieson became the first woman in the world to be ordained as a bishop of the Anglican Church in 1990 (though the queen of England has for centuries inherited the position of the Supreme Governor of the Church England on their ascension to the throne). In developing countries, people are constantly converting to Christianity. Among the most famous and influential female missionaries of the time was the Catholic nun Mother Teresa of Calcutta, who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979 for her work in "bringing aid to suffering humanity". Widely admired by Pope John Paul II, he was beatified in 2003, just six years after his death. Many Christian and religious women have been a major supporter of social policy debates - such as American nun Helen Prejean, a Sister of Saint Joseph of Medaille, a campaigner against the Death Penalty and an inspiration for the Hollywood film Dead Man Walking .
Modern look
Linda Woodhead stated that, "Of the many threats that Christianity has to face in modern times, gender equality is one of the most serious." Some Christian writers of the nineteenth century began to challenge the traditional view of women both in church and in society. Only since the 1970s has a more diverse view of being formal. In addition to non-Christian perspectives, the four main views in Christianity about the role of women are Christian feminism, Christian Egalitarianism, Complementarianism, and Biblical patriarchy.
Secular Criticism
Representing an atheist perspective, author Joshua Kelly argues that the Christian Bible, in this view, is the creation of ancient authors and medieval editors who reflect their own culture and opinions and not the declarations of supernatural beings, portray and support sexist norms, which should be rejected by modern people. Kelly points to the requirement for women to subordinate themselves to their husbands adopted in the New Testament book of Ephesians, the classification of women as property together with oxen and slaves throughout the Torah, and permission given by the Book of Exodus for a man to sell his daughter as a slave.
Christian Feminism
Christian feminists take an active feminist position from a Christian perspective. New generations have experienced a resurgence of what some have labeled as "Christian feminism" - a movement that has had a profound impact on all life, challenging some of the traditional basic Christian interpretations of Scripture with regard to roles for women. However, Christian feminism symbolizes the view of the more liberal theological end of the spectrum in Christianity. Unlike the more socially conservative egalitarian Christians, Christian feminists tend to support LGBT rights and pro-choice attitudes toward abortion. The Evangelical and Ecumenical Caucus of Women, a prominent international Christian feminist organization, appreciates the "image and inclusive language for God".
Egalitary Views
The Egalitical Christian interpretation of Scripture leads them to the conclusion that the ways and teachings of Jesus, affirmed by the Apostle Paul, erased the gender-specific role of both church and marriage.
- Official Statement
Men, Women, and Biblical Equality have been prepared in 1989 by some evangelical leaders to be the official statement of Christians for Biblical Equality (CBE). The statement lays out their biblical reasons for equality and its application in the community of believers and in families. They advocate for ministry-based Christian ministries, rather than gender-based, of all ages, ethnicities, and socioeconomic classes. The Egalitarians support the ordination of women and the same role in marriage, and are more conservative both theologically and morally than Christian feminists.
- Egalitarian Christian Belief
- Women and men are created equal by God [Gen. 1:27]
- Both the man and the woman were cursed by God in the Fall of Man [Gen. 3:16] - "So the Lord God said to the serpent, 'Because you have done this, you are cursed above all the cattle and all the wild animals You will crawl in your stomach and you will eat dust all the days in your life. '[Gen. 3:14] The human spouse is warned by God in the sense of what prophecy will be the natural consequence of sin upon entering the human race. The natural consequences of sin mentioned by God in the Creation story includes an increase in pain in childbirth, and the husband will rule you.
- The radical view of Jesus' "New Testament" was correctly articulated by the Apostle Paul when he wrote that "... there is neither male nor female, for ye are all one in Christ." [Gal. 3:28]
The scripture passages they deem key to the advocacy of equality of responsibility and authority both for women and men are contained in Pauline's polemic containing three antitheses:
There is no Jew or Greek, slave or free man, man or woman, because you are all one in Christ Jesus.
The Egalitarian Christians interpret this passage as claiming that the comprehensive teaching of the New Testament is that all are "one in Christ." Three distinctions, which are important in Jewish life, are expressed by Paul as invalid in Christ. Therefore, among those "in Christ" there can be no discrimination based on race or national origin, social level, or gender. They respect the natural biological uniqueness of each sex, not seeing it as requiring a dominant gender application/subject to either marriage or church leadership. David Scholer, New Testament scholar at Fuller Theological Seminary, confirmed this view. He believes that Galatians 3:28 is "Paul's fundamental theological basis for including women and men as equal and reciprocal partners in all ministries of the church." Galatians 3:28 represents "the sum of Paul's theological vision," according to Pamela Eisenbaum, professor at Iliff School of Theology, who is one of four Jewish New Testament scholars who teach in Christian theology schools. Christian Egalitarianism holds that the surrender of women in marriage and the limitation of women in Christian service is inconsistent with the true picture of biblical equality. The same but different doctrines taught by Complement are considered by them as a contradiction.
Linda Woodhead claims that it is modern
"The egalitarian emphasis contradicts the symbolic framework that elevates men to women, and by the organizational arrangements that make masculine dominion a reality in the life of the church.The theological statements about the position of women from the centuries testify not only with the assumption that it is men who have the authority to define women, but for precautions that have been taken to ensure that women do not claim too much real equality with men - in this life at least ".
In their book, Woman in the World of Jesus, Evelyn Stagg (classical) and Frank Stagg show that in the Bible the only restriction set by God against sex is that "only men can produce, and only women can bear it ".
Gilbert Bilezikian, in his book Beyond Sex Roles - What the Bible Says About Women's Place in Church and Family, argues that the New Testament contains evidence of female apostles, prophets, teachers, deacons, and administrators.
Baptist theologian Roger Nicole, who is considered an expert in Calvinism, is an Egalitarian Christian and a Biblical Initiator. He recognizes that biblical egalitarianism
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