Comments on: Guest Blogger-Jenni Catron

By: Red88

Red88 — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 17:53:34 +0000

Before doing so, we may fittingly make some comment on the foundation and general nature of the theory. ,

By: Merlin28

Merlin28 — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 00:37:32 +0000

Monbiot is clearly trying to narrow the terms of the debate unilaterally and unfairly, blah blah blah. ,

By: Women in Church Leadership .1 « Man of Depravity

Women in Church Leadership .1 « Man of Depravity — Tue, 06 May 2008 08:47:23 +0000

[...] Our focus should be on giftedness for a role. [...]

By: BN

BN — Thu, 01 May 2008 18:08:56 +0000

It seems to me that women have gained more influence in the church. Maybe that is why more men seem to be checking out of church.

By: Women in Church Leadership « Jenni Catron

Women in Church Leadership « Jenni Catron — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 18:41:10 +0000

[...] at 1:40 pm by Jenni Catron A little over a week ago I had the privilege to be a guest blogger at WithoutWax and I raised the discussion about women serving in the church and whether our roles of service [...]

By: Camilla Brown

Camilla Brown — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 19:43:00 +0000

Hi Jenni! I really enjoyed your blog, and it’s so ironic because my “youth leader” and I just talked about this issue yesterday. I, like so many others that have posted, have a hard time coming away with a definite answer. As I grew up, we were taught that women should not be pastors. I never questioned the role of women until I had been away from my home church for a while. I’m still not certain where you can draw the line, if there is a line to be drawn, but I do know this:
At my home church, since I have been apart of any organization there, I have always had a WOMAN as a leader (with the exception of choir director and pastor). The men in my church, though I love them, are pretty lame. They have become spiritually lazy! It’s so so heartbreaking.. but the fact is, because they weren’t willing to step up and take action, the ladies of the church had to. For me, because I’m a chick, I think this has helped make me the woman of God that I try so hard to be today, but for the fellows in my youth group, it’s very confusing. Women are explaining that they need to step up and act like real men, but when they look around, the men they see aren’t doing anything! I can’t imagine how confused they must be.
Thanks for the blog, and for the opportunity for me to share this with someone!

By: Heidi

Heidi — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 01:37:46 +0000

I don’t know a single topic that can lead to more lively and intense discussion than this one.

I loved what you wrote, Jenni. Looking at giftedness rather than gender.

By: All This Monotony

All This Monotony — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 20:52:26 +0000

Correction on #3 above…
“…Paul states in no uncertain terms that he does not permit a woman to teach a man.” Hopefully everyone understood. I’m sure there are more mistakes, but that one was pretty major!

Matt

By: All This Monotony

All This Monotony — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 20:50:03 +0000

Whew! A can of worms indeed!

I’ve done a number of studies on this. Each time I come away a little less certain of the answer. A few things I think we should bare in mind:

1) Pastoring/shepherding is a spiritual gift. We’ve made it into an office. A woman can be gifted in any area that a man is gifted in. Being spiritually gifted in an area doesn’t necessarily have to lead to authority for either a man or a woman.
2) Qualifications for leadership are clearly set out in Timothy and Titus. There is no need to guess Paul’s intent. It’s fairly straightforward. It is true that the qualifications eliminate most of us, but that’s kind of the idea. There is no need to rush to set up leadership where maturity does not exist.
3) Paul states in no uncertain terms in 1 Timothy 2 that he does not permit a man to teach a woman. His reasoning is not based upon culture, but on the created order. This makes arguing from a cultural perspective nearly impossible.
4) In Christ we are all equals. This muddies the water tremendously!
5) Many times we are overly concerned about authority in our culture. Christ said that whoever wants to be the greatest needs to be the most lowly servant of all. He modeled this by washing the disciples’ feet…even Judas’. Christ’s kingdom has a different perspective than the rest of the world. If we keep the concept of being a humble servant at the forefront, then who gets to lead whom will not be an issue.

May God have mercy on our souls for making a major mistake one way or another. May he grant us wisdom to make the right decision in our ministries.

Grace and Peace,
matt

By: Jason Gordon

Jason Gordon — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 18:42:36 +0000

Some of the most effective leaders I know in churches are women. We miss God ordained ministry and opportunity by restricting women from service.