The bookcase peering over my right shoulder as I type is populated by half-finished books – books on leadership, books on spiritual discipline, books on how to be a manly man, and many books on how to read The Book.  I am the type of person who loves to visit book tables at conferences or browse through Christian book catalogs, only to turn away, hyperventilating at the staggering amount of information that I do not know.  I constantly feel that if I could only read every book ever written on how to follow God or how to pastor a church, then I would reach some invincible expert status where everything would come naturally.

 And then I hear something like this, and I wonder if I’ve got it all wrong:
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This Sunday, our church will be hosting an exciting, totally free event on Hubbard Green in Glastonbury called “Fido & Whiskers’ Big Day Out.”  You really have to check out the amazing website put together by Matt LaCroix at www.newlife-glastonbury.org/bigdayout - it took a lot of work, but really helps communicate how awesome the event will be.  The Big Day Out idea began as a way to engage the community through a ceremony known as the Blessing of the Animals that is often done by Catholic churches in honor of Saint Francis of Assisi.  My wife and I have attended a couple of these events with our dog Otis and have had a great time, so I thought it might be a fun way to engage our community and share about our God with whoever comes.  But then I thought, why stop there?  Why not invite all the pet businesses in town to come and set up booths, set up agility courses and do demonstrations, and give out free stuff?  And then I thought again, why stop there???  Why not offer some more free things from our church, like free food and drinks, free photos with your pet, with a free 4×6 printed on-site, and a Draw Your Pet booth with fun prizes?  And why not have competitions, with a celebrity judge (thank you, Rachel Lutzker) and prizes for the top three finishers in each category?

And then I thought… I’ll stop there.

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Last week I dared to disagree with 99% of the church leaders and theologians of the past 2000 years by declaring that the Bible does not teach that women are inferior to men.  For most of its history, the church went along with the prevailing attitude of the surrounding culture, convinced by reason, by nature, and by Scripture that women were created to be man’s subordinates.  I quoted such church leaders as Augustine, Ambrose, Aquinas, Tertullian, and Martin Luther to support my point; since then, I’ve found similar teachings from other church leaders and theologians, including Irenaeus, John Chrysostom, John Calvin, John Knox, and Charles Hodge.  For this reason, I believe that it is dangerous to appeal to church tradition, “the way it’s always been,” as a reason for restricting women from positions in church leadership.  If the Bible teaches such restrictions, then so be it, but the testimony of men who saw women as inferior by nature should not be treated as canon.

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It’s not often that I disagree with 99% of the church leaders and theologians of the past 2000 years.  And it is certainly a rare occurrence that I listen to the teachings of such heavyweights as Augustine, Aquinas, Tertullian, Ambrose, and Martin Luther and say without blinking, “I think you’re wrong.”  Certainly it should give anyone pause to dismiss the teachings of the pillars of the church as “misguided and unbiblical.”  But you know what?  I’m not worried.

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If men and women are truly equal in the sight of God, why are so many churches dominated by male leadership?  Is this what God intended for His church?  Or are churches with only men in leadership misreading the Bible in how they have given out leadership and teaching roles?

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