Materials
No
Longer Male Nor Female
Statement of the Elders at the
Conclusion of the Gender and Faith Study
February 29, 2004
Thank you for being here tonight to participate in this wrap-up session that brings to a close our study on the topic of gender and faith.
As you may remember, at a congregational meeting in 2003, the elders indicated that we would initiate a scriptural study on gender roles in the church, partly in response to your requests. During the summer and fall, we spent considerable time on Sunday mornings examining what the Scriptures have to say about handling conflict in the church. At the same time, our Wednesday night class focused on principles of interpretation of Scripture. Because of these classes and other scheduling difficulties, the gender study was postponed until January.
A guiding principle of the Restoration Movement, of which we are a part, is that we have nothing to fear in going to the Scriptures to investigate any question. It is in this spirit of open inquiry that we have approached our study. We began with reflections from several members about their personal experiences, and then investigated passages of scripture relevant to a woman's life of faith and worship.
Admittedly, the sessions consisted mostly of arguments for an expanded role for women in the life of the church. An appeal to have someone speak from the perspective of the status quo did not result in anyone offering to do so; however, Lowell Lampkins wrote a paper which was distributed, and we hope that you have had opportunity to read and study it as well.
We did not choose a one-sided approach because it necessarily represents our own views; rather, we thought it would be helpful for you to hear a line of thinking different from our current practice. Most of us are very familiar with the role of women as taught and practiced during our lifetimes, but our aim has been to expose us to other points of view about an issue that has been widely discussed over the past 30 years.
It has been gratifying to the elders that so many have participated and made significant contributions to the discussions each Sunday evening. Even though we have disagreed, we have engaged each other with respect and consideration. We believe that the lively exchanges have been healthy and helpful; and that everyone has maintained the highest respect and regard for the scriptures, the church, and each other, as we worked our way through this study. Open and direct discussion of other viewpoints is a good thing; however, continuing together to serve God, while disagreeing about this or any issue, remains our goal.
We did not expect that we would all agree on what should be done. As a result of these studies, the elders are going to continue to study and pray about the issue. We are calling for no immediate changes in our practices, nor did we anticipate doing so when we scheduled this series of lessons. We believe that an issue of such importance should receive the elders' prayerful consideration and thoughtful study. We urge the congregation to do the same. We know that in addition to scriptural interpretation, our emotional and spiritual attitudes must also be considered. We stand ready to dialogue with you, individually or corporately, and hope that you will give us an opportunity to do so.
We will now open the floor for comments and suggestions - to be offered in the same spirit of respect and consideration that has characterized our study thus far. We will do our best to make notes of your comments for use at our future meetings.
Please remember to address your comments to us, the elders:
Clarence Hibbs
Don Lindsey
Jack McDowell
Mike Wiggins
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