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Subsections
Head-Coverings in Public Worship
Whether Ladies have Right to Vote for Church Officers
Office of Deacon: Restricted to Males
Order of Widows & Deaconess
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Order of Contents
How Women may be Involved in Church Ministry
Historical Theology
Historical
May Women Speak in the Church?
Lady Preachers?
Women Prayer Meetings
Women Rebuking, Teaching & Exhorting Men
Latin
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How Women may be Involved in Church Ministry
Quote
Wes Bredenhof
‘Herman Bavinck on Women in the Church’ (2021)
“Bavinck… says, the church ‘cannot do without women in this work.’ This includes things like Sunday school, care for the poor and the sick, care for the elderly, the support of pregnant women, and more. He doesn’t think these activities need to be directly under the oversight of the church as an institution, but the church does have the calling to promote this kind of work where women use their gifts.”
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Historical Theology
Article
Bredenhof, Wes – ‘Herman Bavinck on Women in the Church’ (2021) 17 paragraphs
Bavinck (1854-1921) was a Dutch, reformed theologian.
“In 1918, Bavinck published his book… (Women in Contemporary Society). It’s a comprehensive look at questions Dutch society was wrestling with in the early 20th century, particularly under the influence of first-wave feminism…
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Historical
Breed, W.P. – ‘Jenny Geddes’ in Jenny Geddes: or Presbyterianism & its great Conflict with Despotism (1869)
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May Women Speak in the Church?
Articles
Warfield, B.B. – ‘Paul on Women Speaking in Church’ The Presbyterian, Oct. 30, 1919
Scott, James W. – ‘May Women Speak in Church?’ in New Horizons (OPC), Jan. 1996 26 paragraphs
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Quotes
Samuel Rutherford
A Survey of the Survey of that Sum of Church Discipline Penned by Mr. Thomas Hooker (1658), p. 257
“Nor are women, sons, servants, debarred from voicing in election because it is a Church-power, for it is no power of jurisdiction. For:
1. Their tacit [understood or implied without being stated] voices and consents are not excluded, because they must try the spirits, and not upon trust and fide implicita [implicit faith] believe every teacher more than men, or believe as the Church believes, more than their husbands, nor must they take doctrines as truth upon their husband’s word; nor are women so excluded from speaking in the Church as [that] they may upon no occasion: confess their faith,
2. profess vocally repentance,
3. depose as witnesses, [or]
4. accuse the guilty before the binding Church.”
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On Herman Bavinck
Wes Bredenhof, ‘Herman Bavinck on Women in the Church’ (2021)
“Bavinck evaluates all these developments as being unbiblical… The apostle Paul said that women are to be silent in the congregation because to do otherwise would violate the natural order grounded in creation.”
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Lady Preachers?
Article
Dabney, Robert – ‘The Public Preaching of Women’ in The Southern Presbyterian Review (Oct, 1879)
The Biblical argument against women preaching in ordinary circumstances.
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Quote
Wes Bredenhof, ‘Herman Bavinck on Women in the Church’ (2021)
“Bavinck… notes that the Salvation Army was among the first to give a prominent role to women as church leaders. This was owing especially to Catherine Booth, who co-founded the Salvation Army with her husband William. Catherine Booth argued for the right for women to be preachers alongside men. Others who pioneered women’s ordination were the Quakers, Congregationalists, Universalists, Unitarians, Methodists and, in the Netherlands the Mennonites and the Remonstrants.
Bavinck evaluates all these developments as being unbiblical. He notes that Christ entrusted the ministry of the word to men, first to the apostles, and then to pastors and teachers. The apostolic church never had any official ministry of the word and sacrament by women, nor any government of the church by women. The apostle Paul said that women are to be silent in the congregation because to do otherwise would violate the natural order grounded in creation.”
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In Extraordinary Circumstances
Female Pastors? on our page, Pastors
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On Women Prayer Meetings
Article
Bunyan argues ‘No’ at length, and gives helpful insight into the Scriptures that are sometimes brought forward for this practice. Take the time to read this treatise and assure your conscience from God’s Word.
Bunyan speaks of the view he is arguing against (that of the duty of holding women’s prayer meetings in a regular church area) as being an obscure and novel practice in his day, giving a glimpse into the majority position and practice of the puritans that he sought to defend.
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On Women Rebuking, Teaching & Exhorting Men according to their Station
Samuel Rutherford
A Survey of the Survey of that Sum of Church-Discipline Penned by Mr. Thomas Hooker… (London, 1658)
p. 260
“And though women be forbidden authoritatively to teach in the Church, 1 Tim. 2:7; 1 Cor. 14, and publicly, yet they may teach the younger women, Tit. 2:2-3, give a seasonable rebuke and counsel to men, 2 Sam. 20:16-17; 1 Sam 25:23-24, 32-33, and a woman, a sister is to labor to gain a sister, by Mt. 18, and that in a Church-way; and women, as other Church-members, are to teach, exhort, warn, according to their place, as well as men, Col. 3:16; Rom. 15:14; 1 Thess. 5:14; Heb. 3:13 & 20, 25.”
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p. 321
“2. Do not women covenant to gain the younger women in their way, by rebuking, by Mt. 18:15; Lev. 19:17; 1 Sam. 25:25-27; Tit. 2:3-4, both men and women? and do they for that rule [by the power of the Keys], as the male-Church? [No they don’t, contra congregationalists] and by what oracle? am I not to rebuke a trespassing offender of another congregation dwelling within twenty cubits to my door, and being my beloved brother in Christ?”
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pp. 465-6
“…and sure Paul’s rebuke of these at Athens, Acts 17, though it made not up the rebuke of a Church, yet Paul rebuked them not as a private man, or as a godly woman may rebuke idolaters, but formally as a pastor.”
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A Careful Review of Arminianism, trans. David C. Noe (RHB, 2023), ch. 27, ‘Synods’
“All friends, brothers, and equals that are endowed with greater grace, experience and knowledge – to the extent that they provide us with good and just counsel from God’s Word – must be acknowledged as our superiors.
If David had rejected Abigail’s advice and suggestion in pushing him away from disproportionate vengeance, he would have also rejected God’s counsel and sinned against the fifth commandment of the Decalogue no less than if the supreme priest or prophet of God had commanded that same thing, according to his prophetic authority, which Abigail had only urged privately.”
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Latin Article
1600’s
Voet, Gisbert – Ecclesiastical Politics, vol. 3 (Amsterdam, 1663-1676), pt. 2, bk. 1, tract 4, ‘On Women’
Ch. 3. Some Things which Pertain to the Spiritual & Ecclesiastical State of Women are Explained, p. 206 Section 1
1st Question, ‘Whether there may be a distinction between men and women as to their ecclesiastical state?’, p. 206, 2 conclusions: No and Yes.
2nd Question, ‘Whether women are more religious than men? I respond: Yes.’ p. 206-7 3 reasons
Voet says that there were significantly more women members in the Dutch churches than men, as well as that frequented public exercises of religion. He then evidences the same from the ancient Church.
3rd Question, ‘Whether a woman has a greater propensity to superstition? I respond: This is commonly affirmed.’, p. 207
4th Question, ‘Whether women have a greater propensity to heresies? I respond: No.’, p. 208
5th Question, ‘Whether women and men are to be equally admitted to sacred exercises, whether public, private or private-public? I respond: Yes.’ pp. 209-12
Objection, p. 210
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