Paul’s instructions in 1 Timothy that women are to dress modestly, learn silently, and find salvation in childbearing shape Christian identities and activities, but are routinely misread and misapplied. To make sense and good use of the instructions, a reader must consider the design and provenance of Paul’s letter.
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In this lecture, Dirkey traces the beginnings of patriarchy from the fall through the patriarchal years of the Old Testament. He argues that both Jesus and Paul were against patriarchy before ending by explaining that patriarchy will be abolished in the end times.
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The church’s outreach to the world is enhanced when the gifts given to all God’s people, including laity, women and youth, are affirmed and utilized. Ministry needs to be based on gifting not gender, on witnessing not categories, on biblical teaching not status. When gifting is denied because of gender, status, or age, kingdom ministry is diminished.
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Who was Artemis Ephesia at the time of the earliest Christians, and what, if any, ramifications are there for how we understand 1 Timothy?
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Paul and the Leadership of Women: Irreconcilable or Inextricable? The Historical Context of Ephesians and Corinthians
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Sadly, those who cite Paul as an opponent of women's equality overlook the many examples of women leaders building the church beside the apostle. This workshop will show how 1 Timothy 2:11-15 and 1 Corinthians 14:34-35 are eddies off the stream of Paul’s egalitarian teachings and practices.
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