A statement from Thomas L. Lemon, president of the Mid-America Union (click here to read previous press releases regarding ordination of women in the Mid-America Union):
But we did not vote to ordain a woman. When the time comes, after considerable prayerful study and discussion, we will be in a better position to discern how best to move forward.
What we do know is that we want the world church to understand that as a committee we are closely aligned in our support of this cause. We intend to work in harmony with the North American Division (NAD) of the General Conference and at such time as the NAD provides authorization, we look forward to seeing parity achieved across our union for all individuals as we, together with the world church, pursue the mission of making disciples given to us by Jesus.
We want that message of support to extend to those women who have experienced and are pursuing the call to ministry in their own lives. We further want our conferences to feel free to discuss the matter in an environment of safety and openness, and among those six entities we prayerfully desire to achieve a working consensus at our two levels of governance. And thirdly, we are also with this action encouraging the world church to respect the various mores and values expressed in the 13 world divisions. That is a major reason why the divisions were established in the first place more than a century ago.
Please keep us in your prayers as we sail in uncharted waters at this point. And, under the direction of the Scripture, may the Holy Spirit continue to reveal to us the pathway He wants us to walk in.
It is reassuring to know that the Mid-America Union will not ordain women until the NAD provides proper authorization. Our Union leadership should be commended for giving priority to church unity over advancing their own agenda.
This said, the crux of the “women’s ordination” problem is evident in the above statement, which relegates this issue to the “mores and values” of our culture. The reason the world church is reticent to approve the ordination of women in any Division is that it connects this issue with the divine order for human relationships which God established in the Beginning. That is, there are found biblical reasons for not ordaining women as pastors or elders, and to do so would go against God’s established order of authority for the human family. This order is universal and crosses all cultural boundaries. Thus, appealing to the world church on the grounds of recognizing differing “mores and values” will not be persuasive. After all, Adventism has always found its frame of reference in the Bible, not culture.
Engel makes a valuable point that the Mid-america union should focus upon in their desire to support women’s ordination. There seems to be a widely held belief that the Bible prohibits women from being ordained and that the only reason to ordain women is to be in line with popular cultural movements. I too once believed this until I actually examined the passages in question in context and with an open mind.
The truth is that there are solid Biblical arguments in favor of ordaining women. If the union is going to promote ordination of women successfully they must focus on explaining what the Bible says and doesn’t say about it. This decision must be promoted not on the basis of pop-culture but on the Bible alone.
Adventists should never, and hopefully will never, base their practices on what is popular, but on what is Biblical. GIVE THE BIBLICAL REASONS TO ORDAIN WOMEN! Most church members don’t know there are any.
God established a divine order for the human family making the husband head of the home not head of the church.Throughout the Bible we have many examples of women leading nations,prophesying, teaching and leading in church in spite of the fact that women had very little social status in those days.Fast forward today when women are heads of state, executives of major corporations,leaders in all areas of society including religious organizations,working in the labor force and even out-earning many men. Why are we trying to supress their involvement in church leadership when the Bible clearly supports equality at the foot of the cross? Let us not use the same tired,self serving arguments from the Bible that our forefathers used to justify slavery and the subjugation of minorities.It was not biblical then, just as our suppression of female clergy is not biblical today. Shame on a church founded by a woman that denies women the opportunity to serve as clergy. Was God giving us a lesson in gender equality when he used a female, Ellen White, to be the only prophetess to our church and to be one of the primary organizers of our church. Lets not ignore this clear example.
I completely agree! And WOW! I can not believe this is even an issue. The excuse I keep hearing is “We don’t want to be a stumbling block to those in other culture or our culture that believe that men should be the head of all.” What a bunch of nonsense. Really a stumbling block? If we are always concerned about being a stumbling block for another, we would never accomplish anything. Let me list off a few people that had great potential for being a stumbling block for others: Martin Luther, Martin Luther King Jr., Ellen G. White, and John the Baptist. THis list could go on for ever. If being a stumbling block means that people may question their current beliefs but in the end open their eyes to the real truth (something that everyone in theprevious list did), that is exactly what I want to be. Being completely honest, we would have to admit that even Jesus Christ was a stumbling block. He upset the current church leaders because he opened their eyes to the truth. This could have just as well turned them further from him than they already were, But look at how he was able to change things for the better. I love my church, but we have a bad habit of throwing women inder the wheels. I always find it funny that the majority of the people in the kitchen preparing for potlucks at my church seem to all be women ( yes there are some scattered men). Oh, but on Mothers Day, when the men prepare instead, that is the greatest thing ever. They get more Thank-yous and pats on the backs then 20 women would in a year. Why is there this double standard. If the women are doing the work and taking the effort to lead out the church already, How much harder is it to recognize us by ordaining women? I think this should be an individual conference vote if the general conference won’t allow it. someone needs to take a stand!
Sincerely,
A stumbling block
Your argument started out good but your argument about women being in high positions in secular society but being suppressed in the church will never win the issue for Adventists. As long as rank and file Adventists believe that the Bible is anti-women’s ordination there will be resistance to it.
Show from the Bible that there is no prohibition to women being ordained. Here’s a good example: http://secc.adventistfaith.org/assets/275673
Remember, the fact that we’re Adventist means were willing to believe and do things that are counter cultural. Therefore many Adventists will have no problem being seen as suppressing women by not allowing their ordination as long as they still believe that this is what the Bible commands them to do.
In our church you don’t win arguments based on fairness but on Scripture.
“… at such time as the NAD provides authorization ….”
According to the NAD working policy, it does not appear that it is the NAD that in this case must provide authorization:
“All organizations and institutions throughout the world will recognize the authority of the General Conference in session as the highest authority under God.”
Since it was the General Conference in session that voted down the ordination of women to the gospel ministry in 1990 and 1995, it appears that it is the General Conference in session that must authorize it, not the NAD.
Any attempt to settle the issue of women’s ordination in this forum will be futile. But thus far, it seems, it is agreed that (1) no Union can authorize the ordination of women without the authorization of its Division/GC (a Division is not independent of the GC), and (2) this is not a cultural issue but a biblical one. Thus, the church can only resolve this on the basis of Scripture.
The next logical step, then, is for the church to set forth a process for investigating the biblical authority for or against women’s ordination. And due to this subject’s controversial nature, this process must be fair, transparent, and thorough, for the consequences of getting it wrong are the consequences of going contrary to God’s will. Thankfully, this process and its timeline are already in place.
The biblical arguments in support of ordaining women are set forth in the book “Women in Ministry” (published in 1998 under the auspices of the Adventist Theological Seminary). The biblical arguments against ordaining women are set forth in the book “Prove All Things: A Response to Women in Ministry” (published in 2000 by Adventists Affirm). Both books are a compilation of articles by respected Adventist scholars.
God has led His remnant church through turbulent times before, and I, for one, am confident that He will steer His Adventist ship safely through the charted waters of seeking biblical truth. Of course, our chart is the Bible itself (e.g. 1 Thess 5:19-21).
Elder Lemon, this is not a clarification. This statement completely contradicts your previous statement: “One of our six local conferences may at some point vote the recommendation of a woman for ordination. The Mid-America Union Executive Committee will then evaluate the candidate on her own merits, without prejudice regarding gender, when deciding for or against ordination.”
I do not demand competency from my denominational leaders, only integrity. Shame on you.
I would like to apologize to Elder Lemon for the last two sentences I wrote above. They were written in frustration. What I said was rude and uncalled for. Elder Lemon, please forgive my rudeness.