Comments on: Send In the Clowns

By: Millie

Millie — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 02:23:12 +0000

PS Maria….AMEN. Thanks for bringing some grace to the conversation!

By: Millie

Millie — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 02:20:06 +0000

You know, I didn’t read every single comment here, but I read alot and think I get the point. I had just a couple comments. On my team of Hands on Africa (A IMB/SBC thing) semester missionaries this fall there were 13 other girls and only 3 guys. There are not very many men engaging, at least on the mission field. There is alot of truth to get out there, and alot of people are dying because they haven’t heard truth in a way they can understand it! Who knows? Maybe the men aren’t obeying their call…or maybe God is choosing to use the weak, as He has been known to do from time to time (Gideon, Mary, Ruth, Esther, Jeremiah, Moses…the list is endless). I don’t know or really even care what a denomination or person believes about women teaching men. All I know is that when God says “say it” I’m going to say it, and not look back, or even around to see who’s watching!

…”Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge, for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard.” Acts 4:19-20

By: Aliasmoi

Aliasmoi — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 14:05:33 +0000

I would also add that I only know enough Greek to be a pain in the neck at church. But, in Latin and Spanish – if there is both male and female together – then the male form is automatically used. Hence, the desription “kinsmen” in Greek. However, English doesn’t work like that, and translators that were worth their salt should know that.

By: Aliasmoi

Aliasmoi — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 13:24:36 +0000

In the Bible, the Greek word “apostolos” is used and translated in numerous ways. There were both;
1) The twelve Apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ.
2) Paul, an Apostle of our Lord Jesus Christ to the Gentiles.
3) Messengers of the churches.

Number three is like a missionary sent by the churches. There were and are many female missionaries.>>>>>

But, in my translation (NASB) is says apostle. As a matter of fact, I think it says apostle in ALL of the translations. Most of the entirely too many articles I’ve read about this now, say apostle is what they meant. But, even supposing that it meant messenger – that would still have her being a preacher which according to a lot of these male types simply could not have been since she committed the unforgivable sin of being born with a uterus.

By: Danny

Danny — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 12:27:20 +0000

Gene nailed it. Men aren’t engaging in Bible Study. And Pastors arent engaging in preaching sermons that are part of worship.
In my particular case my time home from work is spent taking care of kids so that my wife can attend “life group”. I work 10 hour days and honestly don’t want to get up at 5 and attend a mens breakfast and hear the local millionaire speak.
We are afraid of the Bible because our baggage around Bible studies has largely been devoted to studying the metro-sexual Jesus.

By: Maria Kirby

Maria Kirby — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 02:17:14 +0000

My understanding is that Truth does not have a gender. If it did, it probably would be female, like Wisdom in Proverbs.

Authority comes from the truthfulness of what is spoken, not the gender of the speaker, or who supervises the speaker. The consistency of the speaker’s actions with the speaker’s words adds weight to the truthfulness of what is spoken.

Sometimes people will only receive the truth if it comes packaged in a particular way. People have all kinds of cultural prejudices. God’s grace sent us his love in a human package we could understand. And by God’s grace we move beyond our prejudices to experience and live in his love.

Part of living in God’s love is giving grace to those who still live within their own prejudices. In doing so, we experience God’s grace for our own prejudices.

By: iMonk

iMonk — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 22:00:56 +0000

I was saying that’s what the commenters reading of the OT demonstrates if he/she camps on that interpretation. Sorry I didn’t make that clear. But I’d still not put the view of women in Leviticus up as the standard for churches to follow.

By: HEvencense

HEvencense — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 21:08:11 +0000

“Genesis 3 tells us that the relationship that formerly witnessed to the image of God is now one where “he will rule over you.”

And that’s what the OT shows.”

Not quite. Check out “Ruby Slippers: How the Soul of a Woman Brings Her Home” (Zondervan, 2007). Author and philosopher/apologist Jonalyn Grace Fincher explodes this myth quite nicely.

For more, check out jonalynfincher.blogspot.com and http://www.soulation.com

By: HEvencense

HEvencense — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 21:03:58 +0000

If a line is going to be drawn at who, when, and where a *woman* can *teach,* then why teach women to read or write or teach anything? If their sole audience is women, can’t they just sit around in their coffee klatches and “share” verbally? And as for a college education, well. Doesn’t that violate the “Biblical imperative” of “barefoot and in the kitchen”?

The very notion that a Bible study or other material must be pre-approved by a man prior to a woman reading it is… well… I’d say “Neanderthalic,” but I’m not sure the word has been invented… yet.

By: Eclectic Christian

Eclectic Christian — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 17:57:40 +0000

Two thumbs up for the NRSV. iMonk had some great earlier posts about a month ago about the strengths and weaknesses of various versions.