Women's Silence in the Church

"Let your women keep silent in the churches, for they are not permitted to speak; but they are to be submissive, as the law also says. And if they want to learn something, let them ask their own husbands at home; for it is shameful for women to speak in church" (1 Cor. 14:34-35).

In churches today, this seems to be an extremely controversial subject. This scripture is often explained as applying only to the Corinthian church. We are told that the women in Corinth were noisy, shouting across the aisle to their husbands and making a commotion. Thus, Paul was seeking to bring order to that assembly, but his instruction does not really apply to us today.

However, we have another instruction from Paul in his letter to Timothy: "Let a woman learn in silence with all submission. And I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man, but to be in silence. For Adam was formed first, then Eve. And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived, fell into transgression. Nevertheless she will be saved in childbearing if they continue in faith, love, and holiness, with self-control" (1 Tim. 2:11-15).

When facing subjects like this, I think one of our mistakes is to focus on a specific verse that says either something we like or something we don't like, without going back to the foundation to try to understand God's mind in it. We end up arguing about something that seems unreasonable to us, trying to resolve the question with logic, history, or arguments from the scriptures and other resources. This can lead us into confusion or even serious error, and we may miss God's pathway for us, along with its corresponding blessings. So in considering this question, I would like to begin in Genesis for a foundation.

Next: God's Design in Creation