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Each day this Lent we’re looking at major “turning points” in Christian history – moments or seasons in which the story of God’s people took an important and often unexpected turn.
It remains the most-watched match in tennis history.
From one perspective, it didn’t really matter. It was just an exhibition. No championship points were awarded. And the opponents never faced each other again.
From another perspective, the so-called Battle of the Sexes mattered immensely. On September 20, 1973, Billie Jean King took on Bobby Riggs in the Houston Astrodome. Riggs had been a top men’s player in the 1930s and 40s. Now, at the age of 55, the self-described male chauvinist declared that women’s tennis was so pathetic that he, although well past his prime, could whip any of the top female pros.
Then he went out and did it, obliterating Margaret Court 6-2, 6-1 – on Mother’s Day, no less.
King, who was an outspoken advocate for women’s rights and gender equality in sports, felt she had to step up. The pressure was overwhelming. The 29-year-old had been ranked #1 in her sport five times. “I thought it would set us back 50 years if I didn’t win that match. It would ruin the women’s [tennis] tour and affect all women’s self-esteem.”
Some 90 million people, including a huge worldwide audience, tuned in. King prevailed in straight sets: 6-4, 6-3, 6-3.
More than a half century later, it’s safe to conclude that the match was more than just a TV spectacle. It represented a pivotal moment in the public perception of women in sports and society.
There is no equivalent I-remember-when-that-happened turning point in the history of women’s roles when it comes to Christianity. But no one doubts that something has happened. And it’s still happening today.
It’s not controversial to say that for the better part of twenty centuries, women have been second-class ecclesiastical citizens. Until very recently, ordination has been seen as a male prerogative. Women have largely been excluded from preaching and teaching (to mixed audiences, at least) and routinely discouraged from pursuing mission work and church administration.
There are a number of reasons this has been true.
Females have been regarded as emotionally unstable – a conviction evidenced by the word “hysterical,” which is derived from the word for “womb.” Women aren’t strong enough. They’re not smart enough. They’re inherently vulnerable to temptation and evil, which is why the serpent in the Garden of Eden approached Eve instead of Adam. Women should therefore be feared as sources of trouble and pain.
Suffice it to say that truckloads of research and human experience have proved these to be nothing more than cultural biases.
Then there are those two “silence” texts in the New Testament – I Corinthians 14:34-35 and I Timothy 2:11-15 – where Paul declares women must be silent in church. Most denominations, at one time or another, have prohibited female public leadership on the basis of these texts alone.
But times are changing. In both secular and sacred contexts, women are emerging as key leaders.
What has generated this turning point?
Biblical scholarship has awakened to the realization that the case for female partnership in ministry is deep and wide. According to Scripture, women are co-bearers of God’s image (Genesis 1:27-28), co-sharers of God’s new life in Jesus (Galatians 3:28), and co-gifted by the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:17-18).
A woman plays the central role in Jesus’ birth. Women follow Jesus during his ministry and help meet his needs. Mary, the sister of Lazarus, sits at his feet (see Luke 10:39) – the classic posture of a spiritual apprentice in ancient Israel.
The “silence” verses will always be in our Bibles, but so is I Corinthians 11 – just three chapters before Paul’s prohibitions – where the apostle acknowledges the ministry of female prophets (that is, public teachers). That strongly suggests that Paul’s prohibitions are to be understood as locally contextual for Corinth and other Greek cities, and not universal.
The discussion will no doubt continue.
In the meantime, the world is reminded every year during Holy Week that the validity of the Christian narrative pivots on one crucial question:
Is Jesus alive or dead?
Did his body decay just like every other human corpse – in which case his claims to be somebody special go right out the window – or did he re-enter this world with a resurrected body on the first Easter morning?
In all four Gospel accounts – Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John – the empty tomb is discovered by women who were humbly hoping to anoint Jesus’ body with spices. The inclusion of that particular detail would have shocked first century readers.
Because females were not regarded as credible witnesses in the ancient world, their public testimony was invalid. Although Jews had a higher regard for women than Greeks and Romans, most rabbis nevertheless affirmed, “Sooner let the words of the Law be burned than delivered to women.”
It was women, however, who first experienced the most important news in human history.
Here we run headlong into what Bible scholars call the Principle of Embarrassment. Imagine that you are part of an early church public relations effort. Your task is to create the most credible possible case for the resurrection. Thoughtful people will want to know if this miracle really took place.
Besides Jesus, who should be the heroes of this story? Certainly not women. Men should be front and center. And not just any men. Key leaders like Peter, James, and John should show up first. As they stare into the empty tomb, all of their doubts and fears should vanish into thin air.
But that’s not how the Gospel accounts read.
Mary Magdalene (a woman with an apparently sketchy past) and a few other women are the first ones on the scene. The men are nowhere to be found. When Peter and John finally arrive, they have no idea what to conclude. All the disciples are fearful and confused. This is embarrassing.
Why in the world would the early church circulate such details? Here’s the simplest conclusion: That’s what actually happened.
The Principle of Embarrassment suggests that there was no ecclesiastical public relations effort. The Gospel accounts of the resurrection are vindicated because the earliest Christians didn’t doctor the facts. They were willing to risk public mockery to relate the true story.
But here’s what’s really embarrassing.
How is it possible that females are still second-class citizens in so many of the world’s Christian groups? Why has it taken two millennia for followers of Jesus to recognize the inherent dignity and worth of women?
Over the course of church history, women have always outnumbered men. More women than men attend church. It’s estimated that women outnumber men two to one on the 21st century mission field. Women consistently adhere to orthodox beliefs with greater consistency than men.
Historian Mark Noll does concede that males have always ranked first in a number of other categories. Those include heresy, power grabs, schisms, and spectacular falls from grace.
It’s true that there hasn’t been a single defining moment during the past century when Christians suddenly became aware that something important is changing – that the church at large is experiencing a transformed awareness of the kingdom impact of women.
So ask yourself this question:
Where can we find compelling evidence that Jesus is still alive?
Just look at the lives of his female followers.