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15 Scripture, Feminism, and Sexuality Pamela D. H. Cochran On August 5, 2003, at the national gathering of the Episcopal Church USA’s leadership, its bishops confirmed the diocese of New Hampshire’s election of the Reverend Eugene V. Robinson as its Bishop Coadjutor. This action made Rev. Robinson the first openly gay bishop in the Episcopal Church. Bishop Robinson and his supporters praised his election as a major step forward in the struggle for gay rights in America. Opponents decried the lack of biblical fidelity that Robinson’s election evidenced and predicted that it would split the Church asunder. Within months, this prediction came true, as churches renounced their denominational affiliation. Rev. Ron McCrary of Christ Church Episcopal in Overland Park, Kansas, explained the impact Bishop Robinson’s confirmation had on his congregation’s decision to secede: “It played a very small, but catalytic role. It confirmed for us our assessment that the Episcopal Church was departing from historic, biblical Anglican Christianity.”1 Although it was the election of a gay man that brought about the con- flict over homosexuality in the Episcopal Church, similar conflicts have arisen within American Christianity over lesbianism and the role of women in the Church. For example, in December 1973 the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) split from the Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A. (PCUSA) over “an unbiblical view of marriage and divorce, the ordination of women, financing of abortion . . . and numerous other nonBiblical positions . . . all traceable to a different view of Scripture from that we hold.”2 Almost twenty-five years later, the PCA severed ties with the Christian Reformed Church (CRC) for similar reasons. A leader in the PCA explained: “They [the CRC] are no longer being guided by Scripture in the ordination of women. . . . Our concern, quite honestly, is that the Christian Reformed Church has begun to move away from its historic 261 position on the authority of Scripture.” Another PCA leader commented that the CRC was “on a slippery slope” that would lead to the acceptance of homosexuality and support for evolution.3 These anecdotes illustrate what has long been known, namely that feminism and sexuality are divisive issues in American churches. In contemporary society, sexuality and women’s roles have become primary symbols for conservatives who desire to protect the traditional family dynamic in order to shore up what they believe is a crumbling civil order. As well, the definition of scriptural authority is a contested area of doctrine both within conservative Protestantism and between traditionalists and progressives .4 Thus, the questioning of biblical authority and the social issues that raise this challenge touch at raw nerves in American Christianity and culture. Feminist theologians, by addressing two contentious issues in the American church, are at the heart of struggles currently in progress. At one end of the debate are those who believe that justice is the central theme of the Bible. These individuals see the full inclusion of women, gays, and lesbians in all aspects of the Church, including leadership roles, as an issue of justice. To deny any individual access to all of the public leadership roles of the Church, for which she or he may have undeniable gifts, is to deny that person’s full humanity and, therefore, is unjust. At the other end of the spectrum are those who see feminism and issues of sexuality as issues of biblical integrity. The Bible clearly states, they argue, that women are barred from certain public leadership roles in the Church, such as teaching and the pastorate. To ignore the biblical injunctions against women in Church leadership is to succumb to contemporary cultural norms and is the first step down a “slippery slope” that includes the acceptance of homosexuality and leads to a rejection of the supremacy of biblical authority. Such diversity of opinion among Christians reveals that feminism and sexuality have been controversial in part because, at their core, they raise the question of scriptural authority: How much authority does the Bible have in the life of the Church and for individual believers? How can Christians reach a conclusion about just what it says—that is, how do we interpret it appropriately? And what conclusions can we appropriately draw? As might be expected, the answers to these questions vary among Christians , ranging from the need to restore a “true” biblical view to the necessity of rejecting traditional biblical Christianity altogether. This chapter provides an overview of the ways in...

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