This is the final posting by Gricel Medina as chairperson of the Commission for Biblical Gender Equality. We extend our great appreciation for her leadership, her service to the CBGE, her regular contributions to this blog, and for her advocacy for women in ministry and in leadership. It is no surprise that her last post as our leader is about advocacy.

submitted by:
Gricel Medina

An advocate publicly supports. It does not hide in shame or timidity.

Advocates speak!
Advocates plead!
Advocates argue in favor of!

Advocacy is a mission of Jesus.
HE is… the Ultimate Advocate!

…we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.
1 John 2:1

In these times of change, transitions and even uncertainty… the need to advocate for Biblical Gender Equality remains stronger than ever. Women continue to need advocates at all levels of leadership. Why? One of the reasons is that we have a new generation of church planters and churches. Another reason is that we have so few visible women in positions of authority. Continue Reading »

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Author 
Mimi Haddad (PhD) is president of Christians for Biblical Equality.

This article first appeared in the April 12, 2012 issue of Arise and is reposted here with permission of CBE International.  Arise is a newsletter of the CBE and can be found at www.cbeinternational.org

Because attitudes and actions begin as an idea, Paul reminds us to “take every thought captive to Christ” (2 Cor. 10:5). What have been the attitudes and actions that have resulted from the church’s teachings on male-only authority? Few Christians today deny the equal value of females, yet when Scripture is used to justify the unilateral submission of females to males, it is hard to avoid the conclusion (conscious or unconscious) that females are less valuable and are even inferior to males. To require male authority throughout the whole of life not only devalues females, but it also places them in positions of dependence and vulnerability. To exclude women from positions of decision-making in their lives and in the lives of their children also places far too many at risk for abuse. For this reason, abuse is often an unavoidable issue in churches and Christian communities because biblical ideas regarding authority and gender have daily consequences. Continue Reading »

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Submitted by:
Kurt N. Fredrickson

I grew up in an evangelical church quite typical for the Sixties.  The pastor was male. Lay leaders were male. Ushers were male. Adult Sunday School teachers were male. Women were important in the church too, but in very defined roles. They taught children’s Sunday School. They worked in the nursery. The official role women were given was serving as a deaconess. They prepared and cleaned up the celebration of the Lord’s Supper. They visited the sick and arranged for meals. Some women did serve as teachers and church planters, but only in places like Africa and Asia.

This was the evangelical world I grew up in. I didn’t question it. This is just how it was. As I got older, I met other Christians from a variety of traditions. In those churches, women served in a wider range of ways; in fact, there was no distinction made. Women were able to fully serve the church as they were called and gifted. As I learned of this, and thought about it, this understanding simply made sense. Continue Reading »

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