BUC Women's Ministries Director Sharon Platt-McDonald reflects on female experiences of church life and presents a mandate for supporting women.
Women and the church
"I don't listen to women preachers, but I'm glad I stayed to hear you speak. You preached a wonderful sermon. It's a pity you're a woman!" That was the comment I received from a gentleman one Sabbath morning as the worshippers exited the church at the close of the service. I opened my mouth to answer with a counter comment but promptly remembered that I was made in God's image and chose to smile and resolve to pray for the man instead.
Gender-based mindsets and attitudes like these are harmful because they create adverse environments and isolate the people who come to our churches to seek acceptance, nurture, and love.
In an article captioned – 'Not Neutral: How Gender Hierarchy Harms Women in the Church', Gertrude Osei Tutu writes:
"Aside from overt acts of sexism and misogyny, and the deprivation of certain rights, little things like insensitive comments and unfair expectations are enough to reinforce this kind of demeaning attitude that throughout church history took precedence over weightier issues like biblical truth, justice, and equity."*1
What we believe
Over the centuries, the role of women has been challenged and debated on diverse platforms. However, the following statement from our General Conference highlights what Seventh-day Adventists believe:
"…that all people, male and female, are created equal, in the image of a loving God. We believe that both men and women are called to fill a significant role in accomplishing the primary mission of the Adventist Church: working together for the benefit of humanity. Yet we are painfully aware that throughout the world, in developing and developed nations, adverse societal conditions often inhibit women from fulfilling their God-given potential.
"Women are entitled to the God-given privileges and opportunities intended for every human being – the right to literacy, education, adequate health care, decision-making, and to freedom from mental, physical, or sexual abuse."*2
The lived experience
In an article published by Christian Today, (19/01/2016) commenting on a poll of 8,000 people (reported by The Fawcett Society), journalist Hannah Mudge writes:
"…it could be said that in some churches, an outward commitment to equality isn't necessarily reflected in appointments and attitudes – something that needs work if, as 68 per cent of women polled believe, that more needs to be done to bring about equality."*3
The prevailing views on women's roles continue to prove divisive. A workshop I undertook on women in leadership positions in the church yielded some interesting comments. One respondent reflected that they firmly believed that a woman's place was still in the home, and therefore, they were against women in leadership positions.
Acknowledging that discriminatory views and practices still exist, we need to confront them without being confrontational but with a resolve to model what equality and equity look like.
Declaration of intent
While our church continues to debate the parameters of women in ministry, individuals are waiting to receive ministry from us, regardless of leadership gender.
E G White states:
"When a great and decisive work is to be done, God chooses men and women to do this work, and it will see the loss if the talents of both are not combined."Evangelism, p. 469.
The BUC Women's Ministries department applauds the stance that the General Conference Women's Ministries department has taken to create and provide an array of resources and programmes to enhance the nurture, empowerment, and outreach to women from all walks of life. We also acknowledge the positive impact that initiatives such as enditnow have made on countless lives in standing against abuse and disseminating awareness training to combat this evil.
In so doing, we pause to reflect on how far we have come and what is yet to be achieved. And so, as we look with hope at what is ahead of us, we want to move from reflection to action, from rhetoric to results, from incidental to intentional, seeking purposefully for measurable visible and lasting change. This includes:
- Change that enables women to not only take up leadership positions but thrive in them.
- Change that protects women in leadership so that they will not feel forced to leave their positions prematurely due to the way they have been treated.
- Change that preserves the wellbeing of women in leadership so that they will not have to retire or step down on the grounds of ill health brought on by stress, lack of respect and poor support.
Therefore, our BUC Women's Ministries department is establishing an advisory body to address these issues.
The future we wish to see
Our BUC Women's Ministries department is creating resources to help women thrive. One such resource is: 'Divine HOPE for Women' – a Reflecting Hope ('Europe for Christ') series. This covers the following aspects: Help and Healing, Opportunities and Obstacles, Prayer and Purpose, Endurance and Encouragement.
We welcome new publications that speak to the challenges women face around equality. One book about to be published is – Justice For Women by Dr Jude Jeanville, which calls for positive action to redress discriminatory practices.
At creation, God made both male and female in His image (Genesis 1:27). That makes us 'equal' in His eyes.
Does God differentiate regarding gender importance or hierarchy? The Apostle Paul, in Galatians 3:28, provides a fitting summation response:
"There is neither Jew nor Gentile, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus." I say amen to that.
*2 https://www.adventist.org/official-statements/womens-issues/
*3 https://www.christiantoday.com/article/5-ways-the-church-can-tackle-gender-inequality/76965.htm
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