Controversial Readings

From the book of Ephesians (5:22-25)…

Wives should be subordinate to their husbands as to the Lord.
For the husband is head of his wife
just as Christ is head of the church,
he himself the savior of the body.
As the church is subordinate to Christ,
so wives should be subordinate to their husbands in everything.
Husbands, love your wives,
even as Christ loved the church…

It bothers me that verses as clear as this can have such a broad range of interpretation. Paul sets forth here the appropriate hierarchy that should exist within a marriage: man as spiritual head, woman as subordinate. There it is. In black and white. If more marriages were aligned in such a fashion, we wouldn’t be seeing the 50% divorce rate in this country. If more men were stepping up to the plate of “spiritual head” and loving their wives “as Christ loved the church”, women would yearn to be subordinate. We wouldn’t have confused gender roles, we’d have marital clarity and we’d all be better for it.

This doesn’t mean that as my husband’s “subordinate” I cannot be an equal contributor to our marriage; that I cannot share my thoughts, feelings, and opinions about issues arising. What it means is that he inspires me, calls me closer to Christ, and ultimately, makes godly decisions for the good of our family.

My husband is the head and I am his subordinate.

I am a woman, I have a brain, and I am ok with this.