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FEATUREShould the Churchordain women?This piece is part of a series providing varying perspectives on the parameters of ordination.While people are currently asking,“Should the Adventist Church ordainwomen?”, the Church itself is addressinga broader question, namely, “Should theChurch ordain anyone at all and if so, should it ordainwomen?” Assuming the results of this study mean thepresent practice of ordination is continued, consistencywould compel me to say that since the Adventist Churchis ordaining men it should ordain women too and for allthe same reasons. However, the question really deserves amore considered response than this with a look at some ofthe evidence available to us.To begin with, the church is a New Testament phenomenonthat came into being through the descent of the HolySpirit at Pentecost and continues to find its raison d’etrein the presence and activity of that same Spirit. The Spiritproduces fruit (Galatians 5:22) in the lives of all believerswithout distinction and gives spiritual gifts (1 Corinthians12:1-11 cf. Romans 12:6-8) to many to exercise for theedification and growth of the church. Though these twoactions of the Spirit provide the means whereby the churchis able to exist and function, gender is not mentioned as afactor in either of them (for a more accurate rendering ofthese references in the Greek text see the NNIV).Paul’s body parts illustration (1 Corinthians 12:12-31 cf.Romans 12:4, 5) is another case in point. He uses a humanbody model that is gender neutral to describe the variousfacets of the church and to declare their usefulness to thewhole. This is in harmony with his teaching that universalsalvation means, “There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neitherslave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are allone in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:28).The Bible avoids the limitation of belonging only to aspecific time or location in what it teaches. Rather, it majorson principles that are always applicable anywhere. It isits tendency to deal with motives and attitudes that makesScripture timeless and universally relevant.So what does this mean for male and female roles? Arethey also subject to biblical prescription?While attitudes and motives are directed by Scripture,gender roles are normally defined by the customs andculture of a given society. As such they are subject tovariation and modification as the values, knowledge andopportunities of people change over time and from groupto group. So based on custom and culture we have differentways of living and relating. These may or may notconflict with Bible principle or the teachings of the Gospel.When they do conflict the New Testament has more thanone way of dealing with them. Sometimes the answer is tocompromise for the sake of the Gospel as Paul did in faceof the practice of slavery, while the abolitionists of the 19thcentury fought against it in the name of Christ. At othertimes the answer is to confront it as Paul did in the case ofcertain unacceptable behaviours during worship on the partof some women (1 Timothy 2:11-15), while he endorsedthe worship practices of other women who preached andprayed appropriately in the congregation (1 Corinthians11:5).For the rest we can say that where culturally conditionedpractices cause no impediment to the progress ofthe Gospel they can be practised at will by believers. Thisincludes the way people eat, dress, work, relax, relate,manage their homes and run their churches.Why should the Church ordain women? It would seemto me that this question cannot be answered by a onesize-fits-allpolicy. On the basis of New Testament teachingand practice and on the expectations of custom andculture in some parts of the world, the Church should beginto ordain women immediately. This would go a long waytowards stopping the damage being done to the progressof the Gospel by failing to do so. In other parts of the worldit may be a folly to ordain women because it might harmthe progress of the Gospel to do so. Based on its intimateknowledge and understanding of its own part of the worldit would be wise for each union to make its own decisionas to whether or not to ordain women and leave the restof the unions making up the worldwide Church to do thesame.Carole Ferch-Johnson served, until recently, as the Australian Union Conference'sassociate ministerial secretary for the support of female pastors.record.net.au • June 29, 2013 13