My readers are going to have to excuse this diatribe, but I am so appalled by the suppression of women's right which is going on right under my nose that I simply have to vent. What better way than with the written word?
I read a message on Facebook the other day that one of the local Churches of Christ is having serious money problems, dwindling attendance and no new, young people coming into their church. I was saddened to read that they might have to disband.
Back in the early eighties, I was living in Detroit when the auto makers were in one of their many crises. Back then, many churches closed down, most of which were Catholic. Beautiful cathedrals were leveled into a pile of dust and bricks.
I kept reading one Facebook message after another until I came upon a group of women who were fighting the Churches of Christ for equal rights. Hmmm? Equal rights? What does that mean? Surely they were talking about having a woman leader. Look what happened to the Southern Baptists after they elected a black man? The gender or color (or even sexual preference) of any Church leader has NO bearing on my relationship with my God. None. Zilch. Zip. Church leaders are to me some remote entity and I pay them no heed.
Apparently, women are not allowed to speak in the Church of Christ. I have NEVER heard this openly discussed. Goodness, what a sheltered life I've led. A friend told me it was in Ecclesiastics. Women shall not be heard. The only reason I can fathom why this subject isn't openly discussed is that women are embarrassed. Who ever heard of being ashamed of the very Church that you lean on for comfort and guidance?
The thought of women sitting like meek little lambs and being treated like second class citizens because of gender is appalling to me and should be to all forward thinking women of this century. I thought only third world countries and radical fundamentalist Muslims treated their women like that.
A good number of well-educated scholars believe there are many many mistakes in translation of the Bible. Although my education is limited, I'm firm in my belief that too many hands, too many corrupt rulers, and even the early Catholic Church bent and tweaked the words for their own selfish purposes. Why else were banned books of the Bible (Gospels) and other sacred writings surreptitiously buried in the desert by desperate people hoping for more enlightened times?
Don't get me wrong. Basically, I believe in the validity of the Bible, but I do not believe that every word was transcribed through the personal, hands on guidance of God. The first compilation of books that comprise the Bible was done in three hundred years after Christ's death. Three hundred years? Man did the translations through the ages and Man can be corrupt.
Why has there been so much resistance to women serving in the clergy? I never felt any ill will toward our new rector. She's a high energy woman who's passionate about the word of God.
Stop and think about this for a moment...Jesus could not have devoted so much of his attention and energy to his holy mission, were it not for the work of the women who prepared his meals and cleaned his clothing. Women were important to Jesus. In my heart of hearts, I cannot believe that He would have forbid them to speak in His churches.
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