The Oppression of Women
in Early Christianity:

Is Paul Responsible?

Chapter 24

I. Paul's Genuine Epistles: Female Colleagues

Romans 16 - Women Not Inferior to Their Male Counterparts

1-2 Phoebe the Deaconess
3-4 Prisca is Paul's "fellow-worker" who risked her neck for him
6 Mary worked hard among the Romans
7 Junias is Paul's relative, fellow-prisoner,
    whom he describes as outstanding among the apostles
    and as being in Christ before him
12 Tryphaena and Tryphosa worked in the Lord,
    and the beloved Persis worked hard in the Lord

*Note the difference in the translations of Romans 16:7 in the King James Version, the Revised Standard Version, and the New Revised Standard Version.
The KJV and RSV present Junias as a man. The NRSV is more faithful to the original Greek and corrects the error of the earlier versions.

KJV 16:7 Salute Andronicus and Junia, my kinsmen, and my fellow-prisoners, who are of note among the apostles, who also were in Christ before me.

RSV 16:7 Greet Androni'cus and Ju'nias, my kinsmen and my fellow prisoners;
they are men of note among the apostles, and they were in Christ before me.

NRSV 16:7 Greet Andronicus and Junia, my relatives who were in prison with me;
they are prominent among the apostles, and they were in Christ before I was.

1 Corinthians 11:4-5 - Women Pray/Prophecy Alongside Men

But in verses 3-16 Still Must Be Distinguished as Women

Philippians 4:2-3 - Women are Prominent in the Community

• Euodia and Syntyche labored side-by-side with Paul in the Gospel

• Their names are in the book of life

• Paul is concerned that they are in disagreement with each other

Acts 16:1-15 - A Woman Head of Her Household Converts

• Lydia and her household is Baptized and takes Paul in

• But Note the "We" Passages

• And Would Paul Circumcise Timothy?

II. Women in the Aftermath of Paul

Later Christians Split over Women's Roles in the Church

(Who Won? Whose books Made it into the New Testament Canon?)

• Some Urged Equality Between Men and Women

Example of Thecla (Acts of Paul and Thecla)
    (Pseudepigraphical according to Tertullian's De Baptismo 17)

Paul is presented as encouraging women to join him in an ascetic lifestyle dedicated to the Gospel, thus breaking the bonds of Patriarchal marriage by renouncing sexual relations and the laws and customs that compelled them to serve the desires and dictates of their husbands. Paul is presented as saying: "blessed are they that have kept the flesh chaste   . . .they that control themselves. .they that have kept aloof from this world. . .they that have wives as not having them. . .blessed are the bodies of the virgins, for they shall be well pleasing to God, and shall not lose the reward of their chastity. . ." (Ehrman, p. 345)

• Others Wanted Women to Remain in Submission to Men

The Pastoral Epistles: 1 Timothy; Titus (Forgeries?)

Letters allegedly written by Paul to two male colleagues authorizing them to address problems in their churches, including leadership and women's issues. Paul urges these "pastors" to appoint married male leaders bishops, priests, and deacons known for keeping their households in submission (1 Tim. 3:2-5, 12). These leaders are to:

"train the young women to love their husbands and children, to be sensible, chaste, domestic, kind, and submissive to their husbands, that the word of God may not be discredited" (Titus 2:4-5) "woman will be saved through bearing children, if she continues in faith and love and holiness, with modesty" (2:15)

"refuse to enroll younger widows; for when they grow wanton against Christ they desire to marry, and so they incur condemnation for having violated their first pledge. Besides that, they learn to be idlers, gadding about from house to house, and not only idlers but gossips and busybodies, saying what they should not. So I would have the younger widows marry, bear, children, rule their households, and give the enemy no occasion to revile us. For some have already strayed after Satan." (1 Tim. 5:11-15)

"command and teach" against those "who forbid marriage and enjoin abstinence from foods" and follow "godless and silly myths" (1Tim. 4:3, 7)

Did Paul Want Women Silent in Church?

Compare the Active Women in the Churches in Paul's Genuine Letters (above) with the Roles of Women Described in the Pseudepigraphical Pastoral Epistles, especially 1 Timothy 2:11-13:

"Let a woman learn in silence with all submissiveness. I permit no woman to teach or to have authority over men; she is to keep silent. For Adam was formed first, then Eve; and Adam was not deceived, but the woman was deceived and became a transgressor."

The Genuine Pauline Letters seem to be More Favorable towards Women than the Pastoral Forgeries. However, Paul appears to make a Misogynistic Statement in his Genuine Letter 1 Corinthians 14:34-35:

This Would Lead to the Conclusion that Paul is Actually Responsible for the Oppression of Women in Christianity and that the Later Forger of the Pseudo-Pauline Letters was Merely Following Paul's Lead. But Why would Paul Talk so Frequently Elsewhere in his Genuine Letters about Women Church Leaders without Saying that they should be Silent?

Scholarship May have Found a Solution to this Problem . . .

As Ehrman (p. 346) states concerning "the harsh words of 1 Corinthians 14:34-35. Indeed, this passage is so similar to that of 1 Timothy 2:11-15, and so unlike what Paul says elsewhere, that many scholars are convinced that these too are words that Paul himself never wrote; rather they were later inserted into the letter of 1 Corinthians by a scribe who wanted to make Paul's views conform to those of the Pastoral epistles."

The Arguments (Ehrman 346-347):

1) The remarkable similarity between 1 Timothy 2:11-15 and 1 Corinthians 14:34-35.

2) Paul allows women to prophesy in 1 Corinthians 11:5;
why would he forbid women to speak in 1 Corinthians 14:34-35?

3) "The harsh words against women in 1 Corinthians 14:34-35 interrupt the flow of what Paul has been saying in the context. Up to verse 34 he has been speaking about prophecy and he does so again in verse 37.

14:1 Make love your aim, and earnestly desire the spiritual gifts, especially that you may prophesy. 14:2 For one who speaks in a tongue speaks not to men but to God; for no one understands him, but he utters mysteries in the Spirit. 14:3 On the other hand, he who prophesies speaks to men for their upbuilding and encouragement and consolation. 14:4 He who speaks in a tongue edifies himself, but he who prophesies edifies the church. 14:5 Now I want you all to speak in tongues, but even more to prophesy. He who prophesies is greater than he who speaks in tongues, unless some one interprets, so that the church may be edified. 14:6 Now, brethren, if I come to you speaking in tongues, how shall I benefit you unless I bring you some revelation or knowledge or prophecy or teaching? 14:7 If even lifeless instruments, such as the flute or the harp, do not give distinct notes, how will any one know what is played? 14:8 And if the bugle gives an indistinct sound, who will get ready for battle? 14:9 So with yourselves; if you in a tongue utter speech that is not intelligible, how will any one know what is said? For you will be speaking into the air. 14:10 There are doubtless many different languages in the world, and none is without meaning; 14:11 but if I do not know the meaning of the language, I shall be a foreigner to the speaker and the speaker a foreigner to me. 14:12 So with yourselves; since you are eager for manifestations of the Spirit, strive to excel in building up the church. 14:13 Therefore, he who speaks in a tongue should pray for the power to interpret. 14:14 For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays but my mind is unfruitful. 14:15 What am I to do? I will pray with the spirit and I will pray with the mind also; I will sing with the spirit and I will sing with the mind also. 14:16 Otherwise, if you bless with the spirit, how can any one in the position of an outsider say the "Amen" to your thanksgiving when he does not know what you are saying? 14:17 For you may give thanks well enough, but the other man is not edified. 14:18 I thank God that I speak in tongues more than you all; 14:19 nevertheless, in church I would rather speak five words with my mind, in order to instruct others, than ten thousand words in a tongue. 14:20 Brethren, do not be children in your thinking; be babes in evil, but in thinking be mature. 14:21 In the law it is written, "By men of strange tongues and by the lips of foreigners will I speak to this people, and even then they will not listen to me, says the Lord." 14:22 Thus, tongues are a sign not for believers but for unbelievers, while prophecy is not for unbelievers but for believers. 14:23 If, therefore, the whole church assembles and all speak in tongues, and outsiders or unbelievers enter, will they not say that you are mad? 14:24 But if all prophesy, and an unbeliever or outsider enters, he is convicted by all, he is called to account by all, 14:25 the secrets of his heart are disclosed; and so, falling on his face, he will worship God and declare that God is really among you. 14:26 What then, brethren? When you come together, each one has a hymn, a lesson, a revelation, a tongue, or an interpretation. Let all things be done for edification. 14:27 If any speak in a tongue, let there be only two or at most three, and each in turn; and let one interpret. 14:28 But if there is no one to interpret, let each of them keep silence in church and speak to himself and to God. 14:29 Let two or three prophets speak, and let the others weigh what is said. 14:29 Let two or three prophets speak, and let the others weigh what is said. 14:30 If a revelation is made to another sitting by, let the first be silent. 14:31 For you can all prophesy one by one, so that all may learn and all be encouraged; 14:32 and the spirits of prophets are subject to prophets. 14:33 For God is not a God of confusion but of peace.  As in all the churches of the saints, 14:34 the women should keep silence in the churches. For they are not permitted to speak, but should be subordinate, as even the law says. 14:35 If there is anything they desire to know, let them ask their husbands at home. For it is shameful for a woman to speak in church. 14:36 What! Did the word of God originate with you, or are you the only ones it has reached? 14:37 If any one thinks that he is a prophet, or spiritual, he should acknowledge that what I am writing to you is a command of the Lord. 14:38 If any one does not recognize this, he is not recognized. 14:39 So, my brethren, earnestly desire to prophesy, and do not forbid speaking in tongues; 14:40 but all things should be done decently and in order.

Bart Ehrman, the foremost New Testament Textual Critic in the U.S., concludes:

"It may be, then, that the intervening verses were not part of the text of 1 Corinthians but originated as a marginal note that later copyists inserted into the text after verse 33 (others inserted it after verse 40). However the verses came to be placed into the text, it does not appear that they were written by Paul. Evidently, they were written by someone living later, who was familiar with and sympathetic toward the views of women advanced by the author of the Pastoral epistles.

In Paul's own churches, there may not have been an absolute equality between men and women. women were to cover their heads when praying and prophesying, showing that as females they were still subject to males. But there was a clear movement toward equality that reflected the movement evident in the ministry of Jesus himself." (Ehrman, pp. 346-347)

The Question for Debate:

Has Scholarship found Paul to be Innocent of the Charge of Misogyny and Responsibility for Misogyny and the Oppression of Women in the Subsequent History of the Christian Church?