Monday, August 21, 2006

Woman 'Fired' from Church

Here is another proof that proper theological education is crucial for the health of the church. Mary Lambert, 81, who have been teaching Sunday School faithfully at her church was suddenly fired from her church simply because her pastor interpreted the First Epistle to Timothy, "I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man; she is to keep silent.".

Read more about it here.

Certainly, if this verse is interpreted to the letter, we have to grapple with how the word teaching is to be defined. Not all men is learned enough to teach all women. There are women who are more knowledgeable and better teachers than men. It will be a shame for any church, no matter how well-intentioned, to foolishly apply this verse to the letter without considering the context.

kianseng

3 comments:

Pinkling said...

for the record, I'm egalitarian.
but, what i want to know is why did she go to the press? and what he's referring to here: LaBouf added Lambert's sex was only one reason she was fired, and that "Christian courtesy" prevents him from saying any more than that.
There has to be a reason other than sex unless there's been a turn over in leadership. Otherwise, it's simply ludicrous.

Conrade Yap, (Dr) said...

That's a good point. Another factor is the sensational factor which the press thrives on. So much that whatever the press publishes, we should take 50% off it from the start. Afterall, the press is an interpretation of an interpretation.

Anyway, I think a lot of people in that town will be up in arms over this issue against the church. The Church there is in for a rough ride. Another situation where everyone loses.

Hoodlum said...

Just curious, how does one sort dueling interpretations of the Bible? As far as I can tell, the pastor's interpretation is the correct one. Paul clearly stated his orders, which are without any exceptions, qualifiers, or time limits.

What is happening here is people are caving to the PC crowd's demands for things like equality for women, human rights, and equal treatment under the law. We should stick strickly to scripture, for if God wanted any changes, he'd tell us.

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