Slaves, Women, & Homosexuals:   exploring the Hermeneutics of Cultural Analysis

            by William J. Webb

    This book is a "must read" for anyone interested in the hermeneutic principles of these particular issues.  Too many people just simply lump these three groups together and say they all use the same hermeneutic approach.  I have heard many men who are against women being "allowed" to do what they are gifted to do by God say "if you open the door to women in the church being equal to men, then you open the door to allowing and recognizing homosexuals in the church."  That just is not true and this book masterfully takes a deep look at the hermeneutics of these issues.  If you just want to read a book to reinforce your views that these three areas are the same hermeneutical principles, this is not the book to read, because you will be very disappointed.  If you wish to understand the hermeneutical principles and understand why the the homosexual issue cannot ever be lumped into the women's issue, then this is an excellent book.

Men and Women in the Church

 

        by Sarah Sumner, Ph.D.

Chair of the Department  of Ministry and Associate Professor of Ministry and Theology, Haggard School of Theology, Azusa Pacific.  Published by University Intervarsity Press, Downers Grove, Ill.  This is a very well written book.  Although she says she is neither an egalitarian nor a feminist, her views are solid and scriptural.  Some are somewhat unique but very well thought out.

 

Paul, Women, and Wives: Marriage and Women's Ministry in the Letters of Paul

 

        by Craig Keener Ph.D. 

Keener mines the historical, lexical, cultural, and exegetical details behind Paul's words about women in the home and in ministry to give us one of the most insightful expositions of the key Pauline passages in years.  This study is considered one of the best ever done on this subject.

I Suffer Not A Woman: Rethinking 1 Tim 2:11-15 In Light of Ancient Evidence

 

            by Richard Clark Kroeger & Catherine Clark Kroeger

 

        The following is a review of this book that I wrote for Amazon.com

 

An Excellent Study of 1 Tim 2:11-15, November 28, 2005
 
Reviewer: Wiley Clarkson (Walnut Springs, Texas) -
(REAL NAME)   

The study this book takes on is one of the most difficult in Scripture regarding gender and one of the most difficult for most churches in general. All of the restrictions placed on women in most Christian churches originate from just two places in the NT: 1 Cor 14:32-35 and 1 Tim 2:11-15. Those two sets of verses have resulted in a theological position over 1900 years that has restricted women to the point that in some "ultra-conservative churches" they cannot even read aloud from the Bible in a class room setting in the presence of men. Understanding the issues and problems along with a basic understanding of Greek word useage, the Roman/Greek customs and laws, and the outside influences on the Christian churches of the 1st Century is an absolute necessity in order to be 1st Century Christians in a 21st Century environment. It is a diffucult undertaking to say the least. The Kroeger's have done an excellent job in this book of researching the background of 1 Tim 2:11-15 and have shown that there are many misconceptions, misunderstandings, and a general lack of knowledge and historical perspective regarding the Greek language of 2000 years ago and how it changed over time, the customs of the Roman empire at the time the Apostle Paul wrote 1 Timothy, the problems that the church in Ephesus was facing with pagan religions and Gnosticism taking hold of the Christians at Ephesus, and why the women were more prone to be misled by Gnostic beliefs and then try to pass on those erroneous beliefs. Those women had to be silenced for a time to prevent the church in Ephesus from falling totally into the Gnostic beliefs that were prevelent in Ephesus at the time.

This book will also enlighten the reader in the history of the pagan beliefs in Ephesus, Gnosticism, and how Gnosticism grew out of these beliefs. That part of the study alone makes this book worth purchasing. Also, the study of the Greek word "authentien" makes this book an exceptional value for the money and a permanent addition to any library. "Authentien" is probably the key word in 1 Tim 2:11-15, and without a good understanding of all of its various useages and meanings and how its useage changed over time, one cannot come close to understanding the problems that have risen over the years regarding the proper translation of the sentence in which the Apostle Paul used the word, the only time it is used in the entire NT.

I highly recommend this book! It should be a must read for anyone who really wants to do in-depth study on 1 Tim 2:11-15 and it is especially valuable for anyone interested in studying gender issues in the modern church. It is very well written, very well researched, and very well documented. The Kroegers have published one of the best studies I have ever read on this subject.

Along with this book, I would highly recommend reading the following books: "Paul, Women, and Wives: Marriage and Women's Ministry in the Letters of Paul" by Craig S. Keener, "Slaves, Women, and Homosexuals: Exploring the Hermeneutics of Cultural Analysis" by William J. Webb, "Women in the Church: Reclaiming the Ideal" by Carroll Osburn, "Deacons: Male and Female" by J. Stephen Sandifer, and "Men and Women in the Church" by Sarah Sumner.