Demand for a Public Apology from CBMW
bWe Baptist Women for Equality
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empowering men and women to speak out for Women's Equality
DEMAND FOR AN APOLOGY FROM THE
COUNCIL ON BIBLICAL MANHOOD AND BIBLICAL WOMANHOOD
At a time in our church history that the main focus should be on winning
lost souls and spreading the gospel to a hurting world, we fear for the
future because the Council on Biblical Manhood and Biblical Womanhood
has placed a greater priority on women’s submissive role rather than on
the gospel of Jesus Christ.
It is with that thought in mind that we make these statements.
1. We are concerned that men are being taught that they are god-like
in their relationship to women within the church and home. As the mothers,
wives, and daughters of these men, it is our concern that this doctrine is
setting them up for failure as Christian fathers, husbands and sons;
2. we are concerned about the sin that evangelical church leaders
commit when they deny the love of Christ fully to women simply because
they were born female;
3. we are concerned about the damage this causes to families when
husbands and fathers are told that they have Headship over their wives
and daughters;
4. we are concerned about wife abuse, girlfriend abuse, and abuse to
female children that takes place in many homes where evangelical men
are taught that they have earthly and spiritual authority over women;
5. we are concerned that the children who attend churches that
subscribe to the principles of The Danvers Statement on Biblical Manhood
and Biblical Womanhood will grow up not knowing the full redemptive
power of the blood of Jesus for both men and women;
6. we are concerned for the mental and emotional development of
girls and boys who attend churches that teach males have superiority over
females;
7. we are concerned that men who are taught that they have Male
Headship over a home and church do not feel that they are accountable for
abusive attitudes and actions towards women;
8. we are concerned about the mistranslation of the scriptures by
complementarian translation committees and by the false teachings
propagated by the Council on Biblical Manhood and Biblical Womanhood;
9. we are concerned that pastors who teach and preach male
domination/female subordination cannot relate in a loving, Christ-like
manner to female members of their congregations because they have
already judged them and found them lacking;
10. we are concerned that the issue of wifely submission, promoted so
heavily by the Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood, is more about
power and control than about love or obeying the Word of God.
It is because of these concerns that:
1. We demand that the Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood
acknowledge the harm that has been done to the church body by The
Danvers Statement on Biblical Manhood and Biblical Womanhood, confess
it as sin, and denounce it;
2. we demand that denominational leaders and all churches and
seminaries which have adopted The Danvers Statement on Biblical
Manhood and Biblical Womanhood do the same;
3. we demand a public apology from the Council on Biblical Manhood
and Biblical Womanhood, and from all heads of seminaries and Bible
colleges that have adopted The Danvers Statement on Biblical Manhood
and Biblical Womanhood, for the inestimable damage this statement has
done to all Christians whose lives have been influenced by it;
4. we demand that the Council on Biblical Manhood and Biblical
Womanhood begin to promote the Biblical design of functional equality for
all Christians, both men and women;
5. we demand that the Council on Biblical Manhood and Biblical
Womanhood begin to speak out against pastors who continue to demean
women and oppress Christians by the use of The Danvers Statement on
Biblical Manhood and Biblical Womanhood;
6. we demand that the Council on Biblical Manhood and Biblical
Womanhood chastise pastors who claim that abuse of women is
acceptable and justified because the wife is not submitting to the husband;
7. we demand that the Council on Biblical Manhood and Biblical
Womanhood make known to every boy and every girl who attend an
evangelical church, that God is their head, and that authority over another
human being can come only from God;
8. we demand that the Council on Biblical Manhood and Biblical
Womanhood teach men that they share equally in the burden of society’s
ills, and that all that is wrong with society today cannot be blamed on
women;
9. we demand that the Council on Biblical Manhood and Biblical
Womanhood do everything in their power to teach seminarians to show
the love of Christ to both men and women;
10. we demand that the Council on Biblical Manhood and Biblical
Womanhood teach pastors to be loving towards those Christian men and
women who disagree with The Danvers Statement on Biblical Manhood
and Biblical Womanhood;
11. and, finally, for the sake of all Christians, men and women, we
demand that the Council on Biblical Manhood and Biblical Womanhood,
make a public apology for the misuse of Holy Scripture as it relates to
women, and cease to publish or promote The Danvers Statement on
Biblical Manhood and Biblical Womanhood.
Shirley Taylor, bWe Baptist Women for Equality presented at the
Seneca Falls 2 Evangelical Women’s Rights Convention July 24, 2010 in
Orlando, Florida
What can I do?
Let them know that you agree with these Concerns and
Demands
•Find your voice. Start talking about the inequity of women in Southern
Baptist churches. Talk to everyone, because that person may have been a
Baptist or knows someone who is.
•Ask your friends at church how they feel about women deacons and
possibly women pastors.
•Tell your family that you have come to realize that women should be
allowed to serve as deacons and even to preach if the Lord calls her.
•Remember that you are a member of your church, and as such, have a
right to have your voice heard.
•Connect with other Southern Baptist women who want to claim their
equality in Baptist churches.
It will be harder for women in those churches that have signed
agreements with the Southern Baptist Convention saying that they will
not have a woman deacon or a woman pastor. How did we ever allow
such arrogance in our churches! Where were we when we were led down
that road?
However, that agreement like any other signed agreement in these United
States, can be changed. When enough women decide that enough is
enough, then it will be changed.
Why do I need to speak out if so many people are already
doing so?
You need to speak out because it is the only way women can be taken
seriously. If we choose to allow the Pastors to do all the standing up for
us, then we present to the Southern Baptist Convention that we are weak
and not yet ready to lead.
Stand up, speak up. Equality is not the Southern Baptist Convention’s to
give to us. It is for us to claim. They do not have the power from God to
make us equals. Jesus has already done that for us. We have to claim it.
How do Pastors feel about women in leadership roles?
It might surprise you to learn that there are many pastors who feel that
women are getting a bad deal with the Southern Baptist Convention. You
can read what they have to say on many websites.
Then why aren't there more women deacons and women pastors? There
are not more because women themselves have not taken a stand. We
have sat back and accepted this as the way it has always been. Or we
have decided that we can’t do anything about it. Or maybe we are afraid
we will break up our church.
Or maybe deep down in our hearts we think that women are not as
qualified as a man to serve a piece of bread and cup of juice.
It is demeaning to a woman to argue over whether or not she is
scripturally qualified to be a deacon or pastor.
Let them know that you agree with these Concerns and
Demands
•Find your voice. Start talking about the inequity of women in Southern
Baptist churches. Talk to everyone, because that person may have been a
Baptist or knows someone who is.
•Ask your friends at church how they feel about women deacons and
possibly women pastors.
•Tell your family that you have come to realize that women should be
allowed to serve as deacons and even to preach if the Lord calls her.
•Remember that you are a member of your church, and as such, have a
right to have your voice heard.
•Connect with other Southern Baptist women who want to claim their
equality in Baptist churches.
It will be harder for women in those churches that have signed
agreements with the Southern Baptist Convention saying that they will
not have a woman deacon or a woman pastor. How did we ever allow
such arrogance in our churches! Where were we when we were led down
that road?
However, that agreement like any other signed agreement in these United
States, can be changed. When enough women decide that enough is
enough, then it will be changed.
Why do I need to speak out if so many people are already
doing so?
You need to speak out because it is the only way women can be taken
seriously. If we choose to allow the Pastors to do all the standing up for
us, then we present to the Southern Baptist Convention that we are weak
and not yet ready to lead.
Stand up, speak up. Equality is not the Southern Baptist Convention’s to
give to us. It is for us to claim. They do not have the power from God to
make us equals. Jesus has already done that for us. We have to claim it.
How do Pastors feel about women in leadership roles?
It might surprise you to learn that there are many pastors who feel that
women are getting a bad deal with the Southern Baptist Convention. You
can read what they have to say on many websites.
Then why aren't there more women deacons and women pastors? There
are not more because women themselves have not taken a stand. We
have sat back and accepted this as the way it has always been. Or we
have decided that we can’t do anything about it. Or maybe we are afraid
we will break up our church.
Or maybe deep down in our hearts we think that women are not as
qualified as a man to serve a piece of bread and cup of juice.
It is demeaning to a woman to argue over whether or not she is
scripturally qualified to be a deacon or pastor.
| It is demeaning for a woman to be argued over whether or not she is scripturally qualified to be a deacon or a pastor |
| The goal is not to change your particular church, but to change the whole attitude about women in the Southern Baptist Convention |
| I want to be able to walk into my church and not feel that my church holds it against me that I am a woman |