One of the most highly debated ethical issues in the Christian church is the question of what restrictions, if any, God places on women in relation to teaching and preaching. What roles can and/or should women play? What is the proper placement of women in the Christian church? My intention is to trace this theme through Paul’s first letter to Timothy in reference to the church in Ephesus. Timothy was converted in Lystra during Paul’s first missionary tour. His apparent progress in his Christian walk caught Paul’s attention and he eventually decided to invite Timothy to travel with him. I Timothy is a letter written to Timothy from Paul during the later part of his life. Timothy had been instructed by Paul to stay in Ephesus to command “certain” men not to teach false doctrines or devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies, instead of God’s work, which is spurred only by faith (I Tim. 1:3-4 [show] As I urged you when I was going to Macedonia, remain at Ephesus so that you may charge certain persons not to teach any different doctrine, nor to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies, which promote speculations rather than the stewardship from God that is by faith. (ESV)
). Paul’s letter advises Timothy on worship procedures, control of unruly women, leadership standards, and policies regarding widows, slaves, and rich people.

Over the years, Paul’s writing has been the basis for argument against women holding leadership roles within the church. Paul’s writing does not discount the gifts that God has placed within us. Nowhere in his writing does he rule out women exercising the gifts God has given them for ministry. Paul mentions to Timothy that it was Eve who first sinned, eating the forbidden fruit. However; he also makes mention of a woman being saved through childbirth, which could infer that she is protected despite the declaration of suffering in childbirth, or could infer that in the same way that evil came to afflict mankind through a woman, it was also through a woman (childbirth) that the savior was born.

The relation of Paul’s letter to Timothy to the placement and restriction of women in the church comes from the following excerpt:

“I want women to show their beauty by dressing in appropriate clothes that are modest and respectable. Their beauty will be shown by what they do, not by their hair styles or the gold jewelry, pearls, or expensive clothes they wear. This is what is proper for women who claim to have reverence for God. A woman must learn in silence, in keeping with her position. I don’t allow a woman to teach or to have authority over a man. Instead, she should be quiet. After all, Adam was formed first, then Eve. Besides that, Adam was not deceived. It was the woman who was deceived and sinned. However, she and all women will be saved through the birth of the child, if they lead respectable lives in faith, love, and holiness.” (1 Timothy 2:9-15 [show] likewise also that women should adorn themselves in respectable apparel, with modesty and self-control, not with braided hair and gold or pearls or costly attire, but with what is proper for women who profess godliness--with good works. Let a woman learn quietly with all submissiveness. I do not permit a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man; rather, she is to remain quiet. For Adam was formed first, then Eve; and Adam was not deceived, but the woman was deceived and became a transgressor. Yet she will be saved through childbearing--if they continue in faith and love and holiness, with self-control. (ESV)
GW)

Paul stated very clearly, “I don’t allow a woman to teach or to have authority over a man.” There is a very drastic difference in what Paul says and what Jesus taught. If we study Jesus’ life, we find that women met with disciples in prayer (Acts 1:14 [show] All these with one accord were devoting themselves to prayer, together with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and his brothers. (ESV)
), were regarded as fellow-ministers, even by Paul (Rom. 16:3,6,12 [show] Greet Prisca and Aquila, my fellow workers in Christ Jesus, (ESV) Greet Mary, who has worked hard for you. (ESV) Greet those workers in the Lord, Tryphaena and Tryphosa. Greet the beloved Persis, who has worked hard in the Lord. (ESV)
), held positions of leadership in ministries of hospitality (Lydia- Acts 16:13-15 [show] And on the Sabbath day we went outside the gate to the riverside, where we supposed there was a place of prayer, and we sat down and spoke to the women who had come together. One who heard us was a woman named Lydia, from the city of Thyatira, a seller of purple goods, who was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to pay attention to what was said by Paul. And after she was baptized, and her household as well, she urged us, saying, "If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come to my house and stay." And she prevailed upon us. (ESV)
) and charity (Dorcas- Acts 9:36,39,41 [show] Now there was in Joppa a disciple named Tabitha, which, translated, means Dorcas. She was full of good works and acts of charity. (ESV) So Peter rose and went with them. And when he arrived, they took him to the upper room. All the widows stood beside him weeping and showing tunics and other garments that Dorcas made while she was with them. (ESV) And he gave her his hand and raised her up. Then calling the saints and widows, he presented her alive. (ESV)
), were considered prophetesses (Philip’s daughters- Acts 21:9 [show] He had four unmarried daughters, who prophesied. (ESV)
), teachers (Priscilla- Acts 18:2,18,26 [show] And he found a Jew named Aquila, a native of Pontus, recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla, because Claudius had commanded all the Jews to leave Rome. And he went to see them, (ESV) After this, Paul stayed many days longer and then took leave of the brothers and set sail for Syria, and with him Priscilla and Aquila. At Cenchreae he had cut his hair, for he was under a vow. (ESV) He began to speak boldly in the synagogue, but when Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him and explained to him the way of God more accurately. (ESV)
) and deaconesses (Phoebe- Rom. 16:1 [show] I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a servant of the church at Cenchreae, (ESV)
), and perhaps even apostles (Junia- Rom. 16:7 [show] Greet Andronicus and Junia, my kinsmen and my fellow prisoners. They are well known to the apostles, and they were in Christ before me. (ESV)
). This is not to say that what Paul preached and advised was against what Jesus instructed. On the contrary, what Paul advised was in line with Jesus’ teachings; his counsel supported the vision Jesus had for the church; his guidance was for the purpose of protecting that vision and perfecting the understanding of the Gospel without it being corrupted and mishandled. The difference in Jesus’ instruction and Paul’s instruction was that Paul’s instruction had more specific focus in that his concentration was directly related to particular situations and individual churches.

Paul’s statement of exception to Timothy seems to be directly related to the situation Timothy was facing in Ephesus; perhaps to this specific church, or perhaps in a more general sense to this type of circumstance. His prohibition was closely related to the women who acted as mediators when performing sex acts with men in representation of the goddess being worshipped (idolatry – the Greek goddess Artemis), as well as women who were uninformed and did not understand spiritual matters. Like 1 Corinthians 14:33-36 [show] For God is not a God of confusion but of peace. As in all the churches of the saints, the women should keep silent in the churches. For they are not permitted to speak, but should be in submission, as the Law also says. If there is anything they desire to learn, let them ask their husbands at home. For it is shameful for a woman to speak in church. Or was it from you that the word of God came? Or are you the only ones it has reached? (ESV)
, the passage of 1 Timothy 2:11-12 [show] Let a woman learn quietly with all submissiveness. I do not permit a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man; rather, she is to remain quiet. (ESV)
has often been construed as forbidding a woman to speak in the public gatherings of the church. However, taken strictly, it would also prevent women from sharing in the congregational singing which makes a different interpretation imperative.

Studying the first letter to Timothy from Paul allows us to develop a proper understanding of what type of woman is expected to be silent and not exercise any authority over a man. Paul refers to Eve being created for and after Adam; and also refers to her being deceived first, then persuading Adam into evil and disobedience. Unruly women; women with little spiritual knowledge and/or understanding, these were to keep silent. One inference that may be pulled out of his directive communication with Timothy is that women do possess a power of persuasion over men; therefore, we may go a step further to say that in these instances he writes to Timothy about, that it was safer to not allow these women to have a voice in the church because of the chance that the men would likely be persuaded in the wrong direction by women whose understanding of the Gospel was not an accurate depiction of what Christ taught, or even worse that their belief was in the idols that were so popular during the time of Paul.

Since there were women who taught alongside Paul, I cannot believe that he would restrict all women from utilizing the gifts that God placed within them; instead, Paul’s warnings were against the deception that would possibly (and likely) occur as a result of women in these churches where he was already fighting false doctrine; where so much of the understanding was built upon untruths… where spiritual matters were already so confused and unclear. In fact, “Priscilla preached alongside Aquilla and Paul, and she preached to men. (Acts 18:26 [show] He began to speak boldly in the synagogue, but when Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him and explained to him the way of God more accurately. (ESV)
); Priscilla taught the way more accurately to Apollos. Apollos then became an outstanding worker in the faith alongside Paul and others. Females were clearly teaching in the Gospel effort, and their students were not only other women. (Acts 18:26-28 [show] He began to speak boldly in the synagogue, but when Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him and explained to him the way of God more accurately. And when he wished to cross to Achaia, the brothers encouraged him and wrote to the disciples to welcome him. When he arrived, he greatly helped those who through grace had believed, for he powerfully refuted the Jews in public, showing by the Scriptures that the Christ was Jesus. (ESV)
).”

Euodia and Syntyche were Paul’s “co-workers” in spreading the Gospel; he even addressed his desire for them to not bicker and to get along; surely his desire for this was because of the effectiveness of their gifts together being stronger than their separate witness. He says in his letter to the church at Philippi, “I beg Euodia and Syntyche that they be of the same mind in the Lord. And I also beg you, true yoke-fellow, help those women who labored in the gospel with me and with Clement, and others of my fellow-laborers, whose names are in the Book of Life.” (Philippians 4:2-3 [show] I entreat Euodia and I entreat Syntyche to agree in the Lord. Yes, I ask you also, true companion, help these women, who have labored side by side with me in the gospel together with Clement and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the book of life. (ESV)
MKJV) Apparently, Paul’s instruction could not be universal to all women if his own efforts were co-labored with women at his side, serving as a force for the spread of the Gospel.
After Jesus’ resurrection, He first appeared to Mary Magdalene and the other Mary (Matt. 27:61 [show] Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were there, sitting opposite the tomb. (ESV)
), and sent them to be witnesses for Him to the people:

“And they quickly departed from the tomb with fear and great joy, and ran to bring His disciples word. But as they were going to report to His disciples, behold, Jesus also met them, saying, Hail! And they came and held Him by the feet and worshiped Him. Then Jesus said to them, Do not be afraid; go tell My brothers that they should go into Galilee, and there they will see Me.” -Matthew 28:8-10 [show] So they departed quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples. And behold, Jesus met them and said, "Greetings!" And they came up and took hold of his feet and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, "Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee, and there they will see me." (ESV)
MKJV

Jesus took his instruction a step further, telling His disciples, “Go, then, to all peoples everywhere and make them my disciples: baptize them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.” (Matthew 28:19 [show] Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, (ESV)
GNB) Should we believe that Jesus would make everyone disciples, baptized in His name, the name of His father, and baptized in the Holy Spirit without distinguishing a difference for what He intended them to do as far as acting on the witness, teaching, sharing, and preaching of the Gospel unless He intended no significant difference in the way men and women exemplified leadership in the areas of their gifts? Jesus, more than once, sent a woman out to share Him with the men; how can it be interpreted that He had any intention for women to share the Gospel of Him any differently than men?

Even a woman who had been married five times, and was presently living with a man in sin, not married was called by Jesus to witness to others about who He was:

“Jesus said to her, I AM, the One speaking to you. And upon this His disciples came and marveled that He talked with the woman. However, no one said, What do You seek, or why do You talk with her? The woman then left her waterpot and went into the city and said to the men, Come see a man who told me all things that I ever did. Is this One not the Christ?” (John 4:26-29 [show] Jesus said to her, "I who speak to you am he." Just then his disciples came back. They marveled that he was talking with a woman, but no one said, "What do you seek?" or, "Why are you talking with her?" So the woman left her water jar and went away into town and said to the people, "Come, see a man who told me all that I ever did. Can this be the Christ?" (ESV)
MKJV)

Jesus’ desire seemed to be for all of God’s children to bear witness; for all of God’s children to be ministers in the area(s) in which God had gifted them. There was no exception, male or female! The church is Christ’s body, the completion of him who himself completes all things everywhere. (Ephesians 1:23 [show] which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all. (ESV)
GNB) If, the church is the body of Christ, the spiritual body of which He is the head , and according to Paul’s own letter to the Roman church, “[God] is severe toward those who have fallen, but kind to you—if you continue in his kindness. But if you do not, you too will be broken off,” (Romans 11:22 [show] Note then the kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who have fallen, but God's kindness to you, provided you continue in his kindness. Otherwise you too will be cut off. (ESV)
GNB) then we understand that all who abide in Christ are a part of Him and only those who stop abiding in Him are cut off. Also, we understand that we are all called to function as a part of His body (as a part of the church of Christ), operating in whatever gift(s) have been placed within us; if we have the natural ability to be the eye, then we should function and operate as the eye. If we are the eye, we cannot function or operate as the foot or the heart; likewise, if we are called to preach or teach, we cannot (or, rather should not) separate ourselves from our purpose by falling into becoming a minister of music or serving as an usher or deacon simply because the world has confused us as to what we are allowed to do based on who we are or how we are upon Creation.

Furthermore, if we have the ability to be the eye and because of confusion, we attempt to serve as the foot or heart, we fail to perform the duties we were created to do; therefore, since the operation of the eye is not functioning properly, the rest of the body will be affected and possibly fail altogether. Some of the parts of the body, while seemingly essential, we can actually live without, such as the eye. However, if we are called to be the heart and we fail to operate in this capacity, then the rest of the body will fail because the heart is definitely essential to the success of the rest of the body. What this says is that each member of the body of Christ must operate in the abilities they are gifted with; if they do not, while the church may or may not fail altogether, it will not be as strong as it would be if each member functioned properly in its blessed place. The preceding paragraphs have demonstrated that the proper placement and/or roles that women can and/or should play in the Christian church, traced through Paul’s first letter to Timothy in reference to the church in Ephesus is not limited by the instruction of Paul, nor that of Jesus. Women are to operate in their gifts, just as men, so that the church may flourish and so that each member is obedient, abiding in Christ and functioning properly in each individual’s blessed, or anointed, place of personal calling purposed by God.