Translation Matters: The Generic Use of ἀυτος/autos This is going to be another post that engages with why Bible translations should be gender inclusive (when the Greek text requires it), and where and why some translations get it wrong. Again, I am going to focus on the ESV because of its popularity. The following gets a little technical. Sorry, occupational hazard. What is autos? This Greek word is a pronoun that can mean he, she, or it. Pronouns refer back to... Read more

Should Women Be Silent and Submissive in Church? (1 Cor 14:26-40) There are, I would say, two primary texts that people use to prevent women from preaching and teaching over men in the church. One of them is 1 Timothy 2, the other is 1 Corinthians 14 (esp vv. 34-35). Here we will address 1 Corinthians 14. The focus of our attention will be on these matters: Are women really not allowed to speak? Why? (14:34) Does the silencing of women... Read more

Women in the Ancient Jewish Synagogue When we address the matter of women in ministry in the New Testament, the focus tends to be on evidence for women in leadership roles in the church—and for good reason. But if we zoom out, it is helpful to look at roles that women played in other religious institutions of the time, especially the Jewish synagogues. Most scholars agree that the nature and structure of the Jewish synagogue influenced the formation of the... Read more

Is “Headship” Relevant to Women in Ministry Leadership? (1 Cor 11:2-16) In these blog posts, my overall focus is on why I support women as church leaders, including preaching and teaching for the whole body. I don’t think 1 Corinthians 11 has much to say one way or another about women as pastors and preachers, but it comes up enough in conversations about “headship” and “submission” that I thought it deserves discussion. What is Headship? It is important to acknowledge... Read more

Why Translation Matters (ἀνθρωπος/anthropos doesn’t mean “man/men”) Periodically, I will offer some translation notes in this blog series. Today, I want to point out how many modern translations default to androcentrism (a “male” orientation where it is unnecessary). I will focus my concern on the ESV, because of its popularity and its dominance in many evangelical churches. According to most reputable lexicons, anthropos means “person/human,” without any specific assumption of gender. I would guess that 99% of the time, anthropos is used... Read more

Wise Priscilla Priscilla and Aquila connected with Paul via their shared occupation of tent-making (Acts 18:1-3). Not only does this couple appear in Luke’s Acts, but they are also mentioned by Paul in Romans. He calls them “co-workers in Christ Jesus,” which was his way of designating ministry colleagues. Paul goes as far as saying they (both of them) “risked their lives for me” such that all Gentile Christians are in their debt (Rom 16:4). I hear from theologians and... Read more

Mary Magdalene: Equal to the Apostles In the last post, I talked about marvelous Mary. There is another important Mary (or Miriam): Mary Magdalene. Contrary to popular assumptions, she was not a prostitute or woman of ill repute. (see HERE for more information on that.) According to Luke, she was someone Jesus cured from the oppression of seven demons (8:2). Presumably, she was also one of the many women disciples who travelled with Jesus and financially supported his ministry out of... Read more

Marvelous Mary I’m not Catholic, but I have learned to pay close attention to Mary in the Gospels from my Catholic friends. She should be respected as the mother of Jesus, but she is also an example of great faith in the Gospels, a disciple in her own right, and she even becomes a matriarch of the early church (I will explain that one later). Yes, Jesus had an earthly father, but the spotlight of the Gospels tends to be... Read more