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What I’ve learned from 10 years of blogging on mutuality

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10 years of Blogging on Equality and Mutuality

July this year (2019) marked the tenth anniversary of when I began my blog. When I first started, I simply expected to post my discoveries and my thoughts on God and on various Bible passages. I had no big vision and I had no narrow focus. I had no plan at all. I just wanted to share my views on faith and following Jesus.

My first blog post, posted on the 5th of July 2009, was about communion. It wasn’t until four months later, in October, that I wrote my first article on a subject related to equality. The article was called Women Church Leaders in the New Testament and my quiet website started to receive some attention. In November of 2009, I wrote an article on the meaning of “helper” used of Eve in Genesis 2, but I continued to write on other topics and I wrote some Bible studies as well.

My third “biblical equality” article, originally with the title Junia and the ESV, was posted in March 2010. In this article, I looked at who Junia was (a woman mentioned in Romans 16) and I critiqued the language that the ESV translation uses to describe her and her partner Andronicus. Ten years down the track, the women associated with Paul’s mission have proven to be my favourite subject and I remain passionate that we have Bible translations that are accurate and are readily understood by both the ploughboy and the ploughgirl, to borrow a metaphor from Tyndale.[1] I am also passionate that we have Bible translations that don’t minimise or exclude women either intentionally or unintentionally.

In August 2010, I posted an article about the qualifications for church leaders that are given in 1 Timothy 3. CBE International published this article on their website, and Scot McKnight, a well-known New Testament professor and author in America, reposted it on his website. I remember the absolute dread I felt, even panic, when I saw that Dr McKnight had posted it and that hundreds of people were reading what I’d written. I’m a shy person. But the feeling of dread was compounded when I quickly discovered that there was a badly worded, misleading statement in my article which has since been fixed on the CBE International website and on my website.

In fact, I’m always tweaking my articles. I’m always adding information to older ones when I learn something new, and I frequently edit to clarify or correct statements that are vague or awkward or not quite right. My writing was not good in the early days.

Back then I didn’t regard myself as a writer, and I never planned on or even hoped for a biggish audience. But the success of the article on 1 Timothy 3 must have inspired me, and in the following month, September 2010, I wrote an article on Priscilla and one on Catherine of Siena. Almost every month since then, I’ve posted at least one article about a woman in the Bible, or about a verse that affects women, or about a  woman in church history. There are plenty of remarkable women in church history.

For many months, I had no real idea about how many people were visiting my website each week. But when accurate statistics became available, I saw that my articles on biblical equality were much, much more popular than my other articles. I didn’t want to restrict myself to writing on one topic, so I continued to write about whatever was important to me, but I was aware that there seemed to be a need, or an interest at least, for articles on equality. And as I kept studying the Bible, I was personally becoming more interested in, and more convinced of, the equality and mutuality of men and women in Christ. So I kept blogging . . .

Fast forward to June of 2017. This is when I changed the name and the look of my website, and I narrowed its focus. And I’m now pretty much devoted to writing on topics related to Christian egalitarianism. (I prefer the term Christian egalitarianism, or mutualism, to biblical equality, as there is not much equality or mutuality in the Bible between the Fall and Pentecost, even if there are a few hopeful signs.)

In some ways, it was an obvious decision to deliberately narrow my focus; my focus had been narrowing for a while. Still, it was not a decision I took lightly. But I’ve come to realise that the full inclusion and full participation of women in the church, and the shared leadership of both men and women in the church, is important. It is not an issue we can ignore. The full inclusion of all redeemed Jesus followers, regardless of ethnicity, social status, or sex, is at the heart of the gospel. I often say, “Equality is a fruit of the Spirit.”

Comments on 1 Timothy 2:12

As I kept writing and kept posting articles on my website, more and more people approached me on Facebook, on Twitter, or via my website to ask me questions. All kinds of questions! Many Christians, mainly women but some men too, are agonising over the place of women and men in the home and in the church. They truly want to find out God’s will on these issues. And some people have been given terrible and hurtful information by their pastors.

I receive questions and comments each and every day. Some are brief messages, others are long letters expressing deep pain and confusion. Many are from Americans, but I receive messages from people in other countries on all continents. These questions and comments have helped me to see what Christians think and feel about men and women in the church and in marriage, and what their concerns are. Most comments I receive are about how to understand certain Bible verses.

The verse that comes up the most in comments is 1 Timothy 2:12: “I do not allow a woman (or, wife) to teach or to domineer a man (or, husband); instead she is to be quiet.” Most people, it seems, are confident in their interpretation of this verse, especially those people who hold to views that exclude women from leadership ministries. I often hear, “1 Timothy 2:12 is clear …” This verse does seem straightforward in English, but there are several hermeneutical challenges in the Greek.

One annoying thing that happens frequently is that someone, or a few people, will respond to a post where I discuss, often in some length, women in the Bible who were involved in ministry, or I discuss Paul’s theology of ministry, and these people seemingly ignore the information I’ve laid out—they often don’t interact with my article at all—and they just say something like, “Yeah, but what about 1 Timothy 2:12?” Or they simply quote 1 Timothy 2:12 as though this one verse overrides the examples of female leaders, prophets, and advisors in the Old Testament and the examples of female apostles, prophets, ministers, patrons and house church leaders in the New Testament.

One verse is used to sweep aside the examples of these Bible women. And this one verse is used to taint and skew and downplay verses about ministry, including Paul’s teachings on ministry in other letters that do not in any way discriminate against women. In verses such as Romans 12:6-8, 1 Corinthians chapter 12, Ephesians 4:11, and also 1 Corinthians 14:26 and Colossians 3:16, Paul encourages participation and contributions of ministries in church meetings with no hint that they women are excluded.

To date, I’ve written over two dozen articles on 1 Timothy 2:12. I’ve looked at the language and its historical context. I’ve looked at it from various angles. And even though this verse is frequently brought up, it is not the one that most people struggle with. As I said, most Christians seem confident in their interpretation of this one verse which many believe prohibits all women for all time from having spiritual authority over all men or where men are present. This is usually teased out to mean that women can’t be pastors or elders in the church, even though this was never Paul’s meaning or intention with 1 Timothy 2:12. (More about 1 Timothy 2:12 here.)

I won’t discuss this verse here, but allow me to point out that just as Paul addresses the problem of men with anger issues in 1 Timothy 2:8 and then the problem of overdressed, rich women in 1 Timothy 2:9-10, in the following verses, Paul is addressing the problem of a woman in the Ephesian church who was not ready to teach (she needed to learn, as it says in verse 11) and who was acting in a domineering manner towards a man, most likely her husband (possibly because of some concern about salvation). All these verses—1 Timothy 2:8, 2:9-10 and 2:11-15—are about specific people and specific problems in the Ephesian church. And Paul offers corrective advice on these particular issues. 1 Timothy 2:12 is not Paul’s general teaching on women in ministry and it does not represent the overall message of the Bible concerning women leaders and ministers.

Questions on Ephesians 5:22-33

Without a doubt, Ephesians 5:22-24, a few verses addressed to wives, is the text that most people are struggling with.

22 Wives, [submit yourselves][2] to your own husbands as to the Lord, 23 because the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church. He is the Saviour of the body. 24 Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives [are to submit] to their husbands in everything.

In the last ten years, I’ve seen numerous wives and would-be, future wives agonise over what it means to be submissive to their husbands and what the parameters or limits of this submission might be. And “agonise” is the right word. These verses are, to many Christian women, not just philosophical or theoretical ideas. These verses have an impact on their very being. And they want to know: Do I submit to foolishness? Do I submit to an abusive husband? When can I say “no”? And what does the word “submit” actually mean? By contrast, I’ve only ever had one person contact me who was agonising over Ephesians 5:21, the previous verse, where it says we are to mutually submit to one another. This person, like the wives, wanted to know what it really means to be submissive and what the limits are.

Why is there such a difference in numbers? Hundreds and hundreds of women, that I know of, deeply concerned with how to understand and how to apply Ephesians 5:22-24―and I used to be one of them―compared with one person concerned with how to understand and apply verse 21? Why aren’t we all deeply concerned with how to apply the first half of Ephesians 5? And why have so many Christians become obsessed with the second half of this chapter? There is something wrong here.

The problem is that many Christians have made Ephesians 5:22-24 about identity. They believe that these three verses define what it means to be a woman and that submitting to husbands is a defining gender role. Some take it further. Teachers such as John Piper say that all women need to be submissive to all men, without the mutual element that Paul mentions in verse 21. Let me be clear: this is an unwarranted distortion of Paul’s teaching; Paul’s words in Ephesians 5:22 down to verse 33 are (mostly) about marriage, not male-female roles more broadly. Ephesians 5:22-24 does not define womanhood. The Bible makes no attempt to define what it means to be a woman or what it means to be a man.

There is nothing especially remarkable in Paul’s words to the Greco-Roman wives in Ephesians 5:22-24 except that he reframes the cultural expectation of wifely submission in Christian terms, as he does in Colossian 3:18 and in the one other instance where he mentions wifely submission, Titus 2:5. The really remarkable stuff is what Paul says to husbands. It’s these words that would have brought joy to the Greco-Roman wives.

In Ephesians 5:25-33 which is primarily addressed to husbands, Paul uses the word “love” six times (twice in 5:25, three times in 5:28, and once in 5:33). He never uses any word that might mean “lead” or “have authority” when speaking to husbands. Paul wanted husbands to love their wives, give themselves up for their wives, nurture them, and be in a close, unified relationship with them. Now that was good news for Greco-Roman wives!

Paul’s household codes in Ephesians 5-6 and Colossians 3-4―where the apostle also gives instructions to (grown) children and parents, and to slaves and masters―were a concession to culture including the social expectation of wifely submission and the institution of slavery. The codes were not about gender or gender roles but about power. After all, what part did gender play in the socially-sanctioned power of a female master over her male slaves? And what part did gender play in the obedience of sons, including grown men, towards their mothers? (More about this here.) The household codes were not about gender roles but about power, which Paul wanted to minimise within the prevailing culture.

Mistrust, and Power Over Women

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­The questions I’ve been asked over the years have caused me to look deeply into many Bible passages, and I’ve learned a lot by doing this. But perhaps the most important thing I’ve learned from listening to comments and questions from people who read my blog has nothing to do with the meaning of Bible passages.

When I first started listening to questions, especially to questions from people who have a problem with the egalitarian ethos, I quickly got the niggling feeling that the real issue wasn’t with 1 Timothy 2:12, Ephesians 5, or any other Bible verse, but with deeply-held, negative beliefs about women. Some expressions of this belief have been more overt than others, but I could often detect a mistrust of the intrinsic nature and capabilities of women.

Ten years later, this niggling feeling has been confirmed many times. I continue to observe that the reluctance for people, both men and women, to accept that the biblical case for disallowing women to be church leaders is flimsy at best, has more to do with how they see women and how they feel about women than with what the Bible says about women.

After all, if the majority of Christians whole-heartedly believed that some women, just like some men, can be mature, capable, reliable leaders and talented expositors of scripture, and that women have important insights and valuable perspectives which are indispensable to the well-being of the church and vital to its mission, I doubt 1 Timothy 2:12 would be understood as a timeless injunction that hinders women from using their talents and gifts. Rather, 1 Timothy 2:12 would be understood as referring to a specific situation in the Ephesian church which was the case.

Poor attitudes about women also affect the issue of women in marriage. Some Christians believe that chaos will result if women are not governed and led by their husbands and that the family or household will suffer. What does this say about their view of women? That women need to be governed by men otherwise things will fall apart?

These same Christians are usually not pedantic about other aspects of the household codes in Ephesians 5-6 and Colossians 3-4. They are not especially concerned about (grown) children obeying their parents, and most think that slavery is abhorrent, yet they continue to insist that the husband being the leader of his wife is crucial for the wife’s well-being and for marital and family stability. Again, what does this say about their view of women?

Others tell me that the real issue is about power rather than distrust. They’ve observed a profound reluctance, and even a fear, that stops some men from relinquishing authority and sharing leadership with women. I think it’s probably both: (1) a distrust of the nature and capabilities of women and (2) an aversion to sharing leadership with women.

What I have learned from 10 years of blogging on equality and mutuality is that we are living with the legacy of some terrible interpretations of scripture that have been produced by, exacerbated by, and supported by a legacy of poor attitudes towards women, attitudes that have nothing to do with how the Bible portrays women. But this is changing, slowly, as more women are being educated and are gaining more opportunities in society and in the church. Women are proving that they, as well as their brothers, are smart and resourceful and have gifts, talents and meaningful insights to contribute. We dare not squander these gifts.

I am grateful to be part of a movement that is helping to create a new legacy. It is a legacy of appreciation for one another and of the God-given gifts of individuals, as well as of mutual service and submission, regardless of gender.


Footnotes

The blog post is an abbreviated version of a talk I recently gave at a Christians for Biblical Equality (CBE) conference in Melbourne. I’ve removed most of a discussion on the household codes in Ephesians 5-6 and Colossians 3-4 as this was largely based on my article The Household Codes are about Power, not Gender which can be read here. And I’ve removed a discussion on four texts in the Hebrew Bible that are sometimes used to diminish women which I’ve posted in a separate blog post here.

[1] Tyndale, who was the first person to translate the New Testament from Greek into English, once retorted to an arrogant professor, “I will cause the boy that driveth the plough to know more of the Bible than thou doest.” Tyndale wanted his English translation to be accessible and understood by even the uneducated.

[2] The Greek behind the words in square brackets in Ephesians 5:22 is absent in several, but not all, ancient Greek manuscripts of Ephesians, but it does not affect the meaning of this verse. I know that a few people make a big deal over the fact that “submit” words are not stated in verse 22 and also in the second half of verse 24, but this is not significant. It’s not at all uncommon in ancient Greek for a verbal idea not to be restated, but for the meaning to carry over from previous statements. Paul does this a few times in his letters. (See the note on eliding verbs in this article. I’ve written about the grammar of Ephesians 5:21-22 here.)

Photo is courtesy of Brugel Creative.


Further Reading

Articles on women in church history, here.
Articles on 1 Timothy 2:11-15, here.
Articles on Ephesians 5:21-33, here.
Articles on 1 Corinthians 14:34-35, here.
4 obscure OT passages sometimes used to diminish women
The Portrayal of Women in the Bible and Biblical Inspiration
Paul’s Female Coworkers
Paul’s Theology of Ministry

artigos em portugues sobre igualdade entre homens e mulheres no lar e na igreja

28 thoughts on “What I’ve learned from 10 years of blogging on mutuality

  1. Your insights continue to amaze me, Marg.

    1. I’m honoured, Ally.

  2. I’m so grateful for your wisdom, scholarship and grace, together with your dedication to the cause of mutuality. You are a true gift to the church, and I’m proud to call you my friend.

    1. Thanks, Bronwen. Your friendship means a lot to me.

  3. I love your work. It takes courage to stand on a view that can be so divisive. When I read how the plan of the Holy Spirit is to unite Christians in faith , To make us one … I wonder how on earth that can happen – it could only be God, it feels so distant on this topic alone , let alone the others that divide. But hey thank God for God. Thank you for keeping on with this despite the various critics that come your way.

    1. Hi Helen, I try hard not to be divisive. I’m reading 1 Corinthians at the moment and I’m taking to heart Paul’s concern that factionalism might destroy the church (1 Cor. 3:16-17). Yes, thank God for God who can bless our clumsy efforts.

  4. A wonderful blog. I came to the similar conclusions from study without your scholarship. As Family Therapist and believing Christian the equality of persons seems like a no brainer. I have not seen you exegete Joel 2:28 but that was key for me as well.
    I also argue that the Early Church was more gift driven than power hierarchy than we see it now. As a TX with Group Dynamics training it just fits the scripture better to see how 1Co is a dynamic group that must have every group working together.
    Bravo to your kind scholarship and wisdom.

    1. It’s a no-brainer for me now. But for years I really believed God had given the important jobs to the guys and the women in their lives were supposed to support the men. That’s what I was taught. But, thankfully, that’s not what God or the Bible says.

      The churches that Paul was associated with seem to be gift-driven. Sadly, a hierarchical structure was quickly adopted by some churches. Ignatius, for example, writing around 110, pushed for a three-tiered hierarchical leadership structure.

  5. Thank you, Marg!

  6. Your words give me courage to face another day. After years in institutions that teach and spread the idea that women must be subordinate to men (in spite of the great harm this teaching does to women), my soul has been crushed. My attempts to address this with male professors and deans have been met with rage, being patronized, and brushed aside in complete indifference. Thank you for sharing your knowledge and keeping the light of hope burning.

  7. It’s so important that you continue to write posts like this, and revisit what must feel, by now, like well-worn Biblical passages. Because, as more and more people exit the bubble that encased them, they come with questions, and don’t know how to find the answers except to read what’s recently been posted.

    It’s why I decided to start writing about 1 Timothy 2:12, even though you (and others) have done such an excellent and exhaustive job of it. Yet, I have friends who may feel more comfortable opening up with others they know, to ask the questions they’ve been afraid to ask, and to be willing to listen to answers they had shut their ears to before. Also, they know me, and they know I am a student of this, I am learning, so it makes it feel, possibly, a little more accessible.

    Next week, I hope to highlight a really wonderful post you did on authentein. It isn’t everything there is to be said, but it is good, clear, accurate writing (best I can tell, as a student reading voraciously).

    That all said, I, too, think the issues swirling around this whole question of mutuality and equality stem from cultural and societal perceptions. It is so ironic to me that certain well-known complementarian theologians stentoriously warn against the eisegesis of reading scriptures (they mean specific passages, of course) with cultural interpretations, when, in fact, that is exactly what -they’ve- done, having been thoroughly Hellenized along with the rest of us.

    I also think, by the way, along with warped core beliefs about women, our Christian culture also has embraced warped views about power and hierarchy. Do you have posts on that?

  8. The real reason behind whatever excuse is given to continue teaching that women are secondary is simple. SIN. After the Man willingly ate the fruit, his whole thinking about the Woman and their relationship changed. I do not understand why so may Christians insist on codifying the results of sin. It’s really a pretty bad statement on the lack of Christians to submit to anyone, especially Christ.

    I have been teaching about whatever you want to call it – egalitarianism, mutualism, etc. – for almost 30 years now. I still get the same responses. I find it very discouraging, but I won’t give up.

    Thank you for persevering. It isn’t easy sometimes. Love you, sister.

  9. I’ve been gifted by our Lord with your writings and studies. They have a depth rich in imagery and satisfying in substance to nurture my walk. Well designed ‘meals’ on the pilgrimage of my life in Him. Thank you, so much.

  10. Marg, congratulations on 10 years of blogging on the topic of scripture and egalitarianism. I so appreciate you and your writings because they have been so informative and helpful to me as I work with the women in the church I am a member. My life and perspectives have changed a lot because of your care and research. The women in the church I am a member appreciate them as well. I am continually amazed at how the male writers and interpreters have abused the written word of God by transcribing it only from a male point of view. They certainly have opted to not follow Jesus’ leadership when it comes to women in general and in ministry. Thank you so much for giving us insight into the correct way to understand what the male writers have damaged. God bless you and keep you and may the wisdom of the Holy Spirit continue to grow in you. Margaret “Meg’ Gloger

  11. I discovered your blog through your posts on the Christian Biblical Egalitarians group on Facebook. I can’t express how much I appreciate your work. More than perhaps any other scholar/writer you have been instrumental in helping me find a solid biblical perspective on gender mutuality. Even in that Facebook group, a majority of the posts are not about the bible at all. In fact, they seem to emanate primarily from a place of feminist ideology. I have not found it profitable to bring that up in the group — but I am so appreciative of the work that you do precisely because it is so firmly rooted in biblical scholarship and interpretation.

    I am pastor of a small American Baptist congregation in northern New England USA. I have a strong network of friends in my ministry, many of whom are convinced complementarians and I love them as brothers. I am disturbed by the way they link complementarianism as the necessary result of a high view of scripture, and even with the gospel itself. And how they assume the converse is also true. I am convinced that the ONLY way we will be able to begin breaking down the barriers they have put up will be to attack their presuppositions from a standpoint of bible interpretation. It is the only view they will respect.

    On the other hand, I think you are spot on, that the issue behind the issue is a low view of women and an incipient desire for power and control. Nevertheless, I don’t believe that my friends will be able to see this in themselves until they see the cracks in their fortress of biblical interpretation. Biblical arguments open the way for confession and repentance.

    All that is to say, my dear sister in Christ, you are a gift to the Church and to me. Although we live a world apart, you have been enormously helpful to me. Please keep doing what you are doing. I need your work. May the Spirit of our Lord Jesus Christ fill your life with every kind of spiritual blessing, as he shows himself faithful, abundantly supplying you with his grace, his peace, and his power.

  12. Thank you for teaching equality with a deep respect for the scriptures. This perspective needs all the clarity and substance you give it. Hopefully, this kind of teaching will displace more and more of the combative discourse that hinders the gospel.

  13. Thank you, Marg, for your scholarship and wisdom. I’m so blessed by your blogs!

  14. Thanks for your encouraging comments, everyone!

  15. Marg, congrats on 10 years of consistent, thought-provoking writing! Initially, I was drawn to your articles because of your writing style and the topic, egalitarianism. (I smiled when you wrote that you didn’t think your writing was great in the beginning 🙂 We’re our harshest critics. Your writing is concise and articulate.

    More recently, I’ve been drawn to you by your compassion for people who disagree with you. And I have found myself praying for those who I disagree with, especially John Piper. And also friends of mine. Not necessarily praying that they’ll think like me, but that I’ll have love and compassion for them, and an attitude that wants to worship God vs. be right.

    Really, egalitarianism / gift of the Holy Spirit / church leadership…it boils down to a Holy Spirit issue. When I’m wrestling with how to interpret something, I think, “What would the evil one want?” Then I chose the opposite 🙂 If half the church is silenced or restricted because of their gender, wouldn’t the evil one be happy that it only has to deal with half a people group?

    Anyhow, I appreciate you, Marg. I think of you as a church mother down under 🙂

  16. Thank you for sharing your journey of blogging. I can relate, and you are encouraging to me, a beginning blogger, and woman pastor, and student of the Word. Thank you for being a truth seeker.

  17. Hi Marg!

    I may have already asked this question before in the past, but I was just wondering again, why are women in the Old Testament sometimes described by their physical characteristics but this doesn’t occur in the New Testament? Why did this change? I know the Holy Spirit was in people after believing that Christ died in the New Testament, which helped people see each other the correct way, but I thought that the people who wrote the Old Testament also had to have the Holy Spirit in them in order to write scripture? If all scripture is God-breathed, then didn’t those who wrote the Old Testament also have the Holy Spirit in them, not only after believing in Christ?

    It doesn’t make sense to say that the Holy Spirit was now in those in the New Testament, and therefore, that’s why women in the New Testament were no longer described by their physical beauty, because the Holy Spirit had to be in those of the Old Testament too. I’m not sure if the way I’ve stated my question makes sense but hopefully it does!

    1. In the Old Testament, the most important thing was that God’s people survive, and to do that men and women had to get married and have babies. Beauty and fertility in women helped this happen.
      In the New Testament, the most important thing is that people hear the good news about Jesus. So the faith and ministry of both men and women are highlighted.
      The Holy Spirit didn’t change, but the priorities of God’s people changed.

    2. It became too tempting to insert a remark here.

      I have started to read Suzanne McCarthy’s book, which Marg talked about in a previous post: https://margmowczko.com/valiant-or-virtuous-suzanne-mccarthy/. One thing she says is that beauty in the OT is also attributed to men, although this may not be apparent in english translations. Also, according to McCarthy, this is isn’t just a purposeless description. The beauty of various people plays a decisive role in the events that happen.

      Also, there are other views on the Bible’s inspiration, but perhaps I dare not say too much about that.

      Anyway, several people in the OT are also described as having the Holy Spirit, but in the NT there is a wider outpouring.

  18. Ok thank you so much for your help! I’m currently taking some Bible courses in college and this is going to be discussion topic coming up so this helps a lot! Thank you!

  19. Thank you so much for your work! I’m a college student who started looking into the “woman issue” last year.I’m in a campus ministry with a female pastor, and my brain was kinda confused because I was led to believe growing up that it was a blatant sin for women to be pastors or have a visible role in the kindgdom, but the ministry and connected church are a part of a denomination that believes in equality of believers, and both seemed very biblical and blessed by God, so I really had to try to see if there wasn’t more than what I was told growing up. I now feel confident in my egalitarian position,
    And you honestly helped me a ton (BTW, this is also my first time commenting) While the CBE is helpful, the comments section honestly triggers my anxiety and existential fears (I have a disability that makes me very nervous at times) They don’t monitor their comments as closely as you do, so there’s a lot of men basically hating on women and sticking their fingers in their ears going “lalala” when people politely try to discuss with them. Oh, and saying that we are selfish and buying into flesh-gratifying lies made by satanWhich I’ve already gotten from my elderly relatives for going to a minestry led by a woman and digging into this issue.There’s also just a lot of hate from some egalitarians there whenever people genuinely question them with a desire to understand, and some even slam each other by saying that they aren’t really egalitarian because they don’t support LGBT people or abortion “rights”. At first, it just made my worries worse because, not only did I think that God hated women, I thought that my only other option was a perverse God. While most of the there people do genuinely love God, it still can be triggering for me to read certain CBE articles, depending on the day,so I’ve gone to just looking at works by specific bloggers and scholars. I love your work because it is very gentle and loving and presented in a way that honesty helps calm my fears. You and Lee Grady are probably my favorite writers on this topic; I now consider myself a Christian feminist because of his explanation of how feminism is Christian and the mainstream “movement” is a counterfeit that bulldozed everything that the movements (Christian) mothers stood and fought for, in addition to discrediting and demonizing it in the eyes of the church. Oops, sorry; I tend to go on tangents when I write anything. Anyway, thank you SO MUCH for doing what you do and how it’s helped me and so many others. Please stay strong in the Lord and keep it up!

    1. Thanks Bre, I really appreciate your comment. 🙂
      You’ve made some excellent observations and points, and I like how you’ve expressed them. I’ve also noticed “a lot of men basically hating on women and sticking their fingers in their ears going “lalala” when people politely try to discuss with them.”

  20. I’m a long-time reader (and an egalitarian in a complementarian church) and yours was one of the first egalitarian resources I discovered years ago…words will not adequately express how grateful I am to you for your scholarship and your writing. Thank you for all you do!

    1. Thanks for leaving a comment, Sarah. It’s always lovely to hear from previously anonymous readers.

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