Female Elders!
I just want to say how cool I think it is that the Journey values women in leadership positions. I know there are many Christians in America who think that women should not be in leadership positions, unless they are ministering exclusively to other women. For me and Tanya, we are still in Compare & Contrast mode, as we compare everything we experience in California with our 40 years of experience in Michigan.
At the church we were involved in before we started our cell church, the elders “wrestled” with the female-as-elder issue and ultimately, waffled by saying they couldn’t reach a clear consensus as to what scripture teaches. I think this “tabled” decision was an attempt to placate two competing camps within the church, and interestingly enough, the people who would be opposed to female elders were part of the Home church group (those who wanted a safe, internally focused church to raise their kids in) and those who were more open to a more flexible understanding of spiritual giftedness and the value of women in our society were more oriented toward an outreach posture. The elders did concede however that women could be deacons, but didn’t quite articulate why it was that a woman could be a deacon and a teacher of women, but not an elder nor a pastor.
There was much conflict within the elder board and I have occasionally wondered over the years whether the presence of women among them would’ve improved their relationships with one another.
women elders
The word “elder” brings so many things to mind…growing up in a very conservative family and church, the elders were “the men” that scared me to death on “Family Visitation Night”. I always thought these were the men who would talk directly to God and let Him know if I should go to heaven. These were also the men that for years all sat together in one row every service. Thank goodness it isn’t quite like that anymore and I have very different views of what an “elder” is now. For me it has never been about men or women but about where God has called people to serve.
When I hear about churches/denominations spending hours and hours and hours trying to determine what role men and women should be “allowed” to serve in the church, I get very frustrated and sad. Maybe I’m wrong, but when I meet God one day is He going to ask me about my views of men and women in the church or is He going to ask me if I loved Him, served Him well with the gifts He gave me and did I care for those around me.
Validating
Yes…I too am delighted to be in a denomination that has a clear record of ordaining men and women to the office of elder. I’m delighted that The Journey started from day one qualifying people for leadership roles based on their character, faith, and demonstrated faithfulness in ministry - not on biology. I have and will continue to invite men and women to all leadership roles. I believe this makes for the strongest / healthiest church possible.
This is an important discussion because of the authentic wrestling people have with the interpreting the Biblical references to males being elders and the specific ones where women are address as not permitted to teach. I want to validate people’s authentic faith journey through those verses - strong Bible believing Christians have come to both sides of this discussion. Ultimately not a salvation issue, but an important one to wrestle with.
elders
I grew up with a church that had conflicting views on where women could serve and always viewed elders as the really old men sitting up front—I had very little to do with them for the most part. Contrast that to going to a very different church in college where the elders were about 27 at the time—that was a shock (okay now their “elders” are still only in their mid 30’s or so). But I like others are so thankful that women are valued at the Journey in so many different ways. Its refreshing to have a balance of views and know that the similarities and differences are celebrated and respect as part of the whole process and journey of our church.
Shannon B