Books

Preface

In the early 1800s, Texas was a frontier territory. One historian noted that settlers believed “Indians were to be killed, African Americans were to be enslaved, and Hispanics were to be avoided.” In the 1830s these “Texicans” built a Baptist church at Independence that had two doors: one for white males and the other for “women and other creatures.”1

Female subjugation is not new—it began in the early chapters of Genesis. Serious debate about female equality is more recent. In modern history, the founding mothers of the feminist movement in this country wrote, spoke, and marched from the 1840s to the 1940s. During the last half-century, the voice of feminism has become more diverse and much louder. People are listening. Much has changed.

Religious groups often have been at the forefront of the call for female equality in American life. In contrast, perhaps nowhere has female discrimination and subordination been more obvious than in churches, especially the more conservative denominations like the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC). During the last decade a wide variety of evangelicals have organized and petitioned for female equality in both church and home life, basing their convictions on a clearer understanding of biblical equality.

In the year 2003, Baptists (especially Southern Baptists) are still ambivalent about which “doors” women should be allowed to enter! As was true in the twentieth century debate about racial segregation and discrimination, Baptists tend to be among the last to realize and admit that their beliefs are too often fashioned by the surrounding culture more than by their Christian faith. In regards to both racial and gender equality, Baptists have used selected “proof-texts” from the Bible to defend the status quo.2

The overarching purpose of this book is to provide readers (both Baptists and others) with an introduction to the present debate among Southern Baptists over female equality. This text may serve as a primer, for it is written with the understanding that many of our readers will be exploring the various aspects of female equality for the first time. We hope many laypeople and churches will discover this book to be a helpful and enlightening text.

At the same time, although some of the chapters are first-person responses to events, a majority of the articles are serious studies of the biblical, theological, and historical aspects of the debate. College and seminary students will discover these chapters do not lack in biblical, theological, or intellectual depth.

One glance at the paragraph descriptions of each author’s history and credentials will impress even the most critical reader. They are a diverse group of prolific writers: pastors, college teachers, seminary professors, editors, and renowned scholars. All are knowledgeable and responsible Baptist thinkers who understand Baptist ways. Each one brings a special understanding of the subject she or he addresses.

In the introduction, the editors provide a basic understanding of the background for the present debate, including the recent history of the feminist movement and the rise of Christian feminism. Essential to the Baptist controversy is the significant impact of the takeover of the SBC by conservative resurgents, which resulted in SBC resolutions and drastic revisions of the Baptist Faith and Message document concerning the proper place for women in church and home.

The first four chapters record personal responses to recent SBC declarations concerning the place of women in the church and home by a renowned theologian-preacher, a female pastor, a long-time Baptist educator, and a former SBC missionary.

Chapters 5 through 8 discuss biblical insights into the issue with chapters on biblical authority, women leaders in the Bible, the revolutionary example of Jesus, and the often misunderstood position of Paul the Apostle concerning women.

Chapter 9 examines a serious and complex theological question: how does our sexuality relate to the nature of God? Chapters 10 through 12 address the practical issues of authority and submission in the home, female leadership in the church, and the calling and ordination of women ministers.

Four of the chapters in this book (1, 3, 4, and 5) were originally published in the bimonthly journal Christian Ethics Today, and are reprinted by permission.3 Unless otherwise indicated, the version of the Bible quoted within is the NRSV.4 Chapter 3 also appears in Charles Wellborn’s book Grits, Grace, and Goodness (Smyth & Helwys, 2003).

A project such as this requires inspiration, outside expertise, and professional guidance. This book has been inspired by many individuals, both women and men, who have shared our vision for female equality in Baptist life. Many, like Shannon and Renate, were students at New Orleans seminary. Others, like Deborah and Oda Lisa, are members of our church and remind us weekly that Phoebe and Priscilla are still with us. We are inspired the most by a host of colleagues—teachers, missionaries, pastors, denominational workers, and a band of faithful believers—who have suffered personally and vocationally because of their refusal to compromise their beliefs about gender equality.

Ever since a chance meeting with Catherine Kroeger in New Orleans years ago, we have benefited from her rich knowledge and the vast resources of the organization she founded—Christians for Biblical Equality.5 More specifically, this book is a labor of love by the authors of each chapter, each of whom is sharing a lifetime of dedicated study and service.

Finally, we wish to thank Keith Gammons, Kelley Land, and Jessica Ellison at Smyth & Helwys Publishing for their guidance and assistance in helping us to pull it all together.

In light of the present divisions in Baptist life, our great hope is the one uttered by a Puritan divine: “There may yet be more truth to break forth from God’s Word.”