Making Room at the Table: Encouragement for the Winding Road to Equality

‘You’re not honoring the Word of God if you really believe that,’ the elderly man across the table said to me.

I sat in stunned silence.

I was teaching a Bible study on Galatians at a congregation with strong egalitarian roots. But the man “my student’ was openly insulting me in front of everyone because I dared to tell him that God made every human being equal in his sight.

At the time, I was a seminarian who had spent years studying the Bible professionally and had ministered to others diligently inside and outside of the local church. Though my accuser did not know me well, he certainly knew that I was competent in my field. Surely, he knew?

Sadly, every woman in ministry can tell some version of this story.

Though we are serving and leading with all of our soul, mind, and strength, there are those who still try to deny us a seat at the table. We spend year after year earning the trust and respect of our communities only to see an ill-experienced, less educated man get preferential treatment. It’s painful to watch it happen time and time again.

For me, the irony is that just a few years ago, I was a staunch complementarian.

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When Women Don't Speak

Groundbreaking BYU research shows what it takes for a woman to truly be heard.  

Dying for love

It is International Women’s Day on March 8^th. Has anything changed for women since last year’s International Women’s Day? I ask this question because we Australians are reeling under the shock of the horrific murder of Hannah Clarke (31) and her three young children, Aaliyah (6) Laianah (4), and Trey (3). They were killed by her husband and the children’s father, Rowan Baxter. He doused them with petrol and set them alight in the family car. They appeared to the world as a glamorous couple with three beautiful children but in the home, Rowan was, his sister in law said, “a monster.” He always wanted his own way and was controlling. Hannah lived in fear of him and went to the police for help several times and had a court order out against him. Nevertheless, she is dead and so are the three children. In her greatest time of need no one could do anything. Her husband killed her and their three children in the most appalling way. If this woman would not live with him, or recognise his authority over her, and she wanted to take his children from him, he decided to kill them all.

This is almost too much to get our heads around but to make things worse the police inspector in charge of the case, Mark Thompson, implied it was possibly all Hannah’s fault. Speaking the day after the murders, he said, “to put it bluntly,” we are “deciding which side to take.” We are “opened minded” at the moment. Which side are you on? Is this an issue of a woman suffering significant domestic violence and she and her children perishing at the hands of a violent and angry man, or is this an instance of a man being driven too far by his wife who wouldn’t do as he demanded? In other words, was this an awful, violent and wilful crime against a defenceless woman and her children, or did this woman deserve it? Had she driven her husband to do this because of her own actions?

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Jesus chooses the unlikely

 My parents met in China after travelling from opposite ends of the world for language study in preparation for mission work. Mum from Toronto and Dad from Melbourne. After clandestine "dates" in the cemetery, the only place with any privacy, they married and left for Malaysia, as the Communists closed in.

The challenge of village life was formative for Ewan and Priscilla. They countered the isolation by establishing a foundation of love, service and respect for each other and trusting the Lord Jesus. One strategy agreed upon early was to avoid complaining because they knew it would consume their energy, wear them down and distract them from their work.
The strong foundation stood them in good stead and, I wonder if it would have developed to the same extent with a more "ordinary" start to married life, we will never know.
A young girl, Dorca came to work for them doing household tasks and some childcare of my older siblings. Mum taught Dorca English and, in turn, she helped Mum with Cantonese.
Born in a low-income family, Dorca was illiterate and did not have access to school. She would not have expected to meet an educated English speaking man, let alone one who treated her with respect and courtesy. Dad treated everyone the same way and did not foresee how significant it would be for Dorca. For Dorca seeing up close how Dad treated Mum, how they cared for and helped each other, and Dad’s kindness and respect towards Dorca surprised her and led Dorca to consider the God my parents loved and spoke about. The God who had brought them far from their home to share Jesus with strangers, the God of Love who did care about people without means. Subsequently, Dorca took the step of faith in Jesus.
Following the years in Malaysia, we settled in suburban Sydney and the local Anglican parish.

Read more: Jesus chooses the unlikely