Female Pastors

[debrand]

I found an interesting article on Spiritual Sounding board Tony Milano's dislike for women pastors. The article made me curious what percentage of American pastors are women. According to Hartford Institute for Religious Research:

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The Faith Communities Today 2010 national survey of a fully representative, multi-faith sample of 11,000 American congregations found that 12% of all congregations in the United States had a female as their senior or sole ordained leader. For Oldline Protestant congregations this jumps to 24%, and for Evangelical congregations it drops to 9%.

http://hirr.hartsem.edu/research/quick_question3.html

I am glad that Spiritual Sounding Board watched the Tony Milano video because it is too easy to subject myself to someone that I find annoying. This is the quote that she uses from the video.

The idea of women open air preaching again and why it is wrong is it goes against God’s design.

Uh, men are called by God in creation to lead women. God has given men and women equal dignity spiritually, but has given us distinctly different roles.

And whenever a woman stands up on a box to proclaim the gospel in the open air, or even read scripture aloud, she is taking on the role of a man. She is taking on an authoritative role over whoever is listening to her.

The mere reading of scripture is to exercise authority because scripture is the authority.

And a woman cannot help but to sacrifice femininity when she stands on a box and exercises authority over a group of people.

But that does not mean that women do not have a critically important role in evangelism in the context of the local church – whether it’s distributing tracts, engaging people in conversation, praying for those who are open air preaching, being a person of accountability especially in places like abortion clinics.

While the men should be out there doing the preaching, we need women out there to be counseling these women. It the Lord breaks them through the proclamation of the law and the gospel, it ought not be me putting my hand on a woman’s shoulder who is broken, and comforting and consoling her, it should be a woman.

And so there’s a critical need for women out on the streets being involved in evangelism, but under the authority of the men of the church, having the same level of spiritual dignity as any man out there, but fulfilling a critically important role that is not the role of a man.â€

This is probably one of the reasons why I had problems with my family's church in Iowa. The pastor there expected us to do as he said. I saw his job as someone who could make suggestions but other than listening to him preaching, I didn't view him as having any authority at all.

I wonder how Milano reacts to female police, doctors, lawyers, judges, soldiers etc. All are people who have very definite authority over others. Does his rule only apply to pastors or to all walks of life?

spiritualsoundingboard.com/2014/03/17/learn-to-discern-can-women-read-scripture-aloud-to-men/#comments

Considering that Jesus said that the last should be first in heaven, I wonder if Milano believes that women will have authority over him in the afterlife or does he believe that women will be forever subjected to men.

[debrand]

christianpost.com/news/police-arrest-us-street-preacher-in-scotland-for-calling-homosexuality-a-sin-112366/

Due to a search on his name, I found this article on Tony's arrest in Scotland.

Scottish police arrested Tony Milano, a U.S. preacher and former Los Angeles Deputy Sheriff, for breach of the peace and for using "homophobic" language in the condemnation of sin.

and

[There's nothing more loving we will do for another human being than explain to them that God's wrath abides upon them and that same God that will send them to hell is also the only that can save them from self through faith in Jesus Christ," Milano declared.

Somehow I don't see telling another person that they must change everything about themselves or they deserve to be tortured for an eternity to be very loving.

[slh12280]

I remember the first time I went a Baptist church. The sermon was about why women should not be in leadership positions. So yeah, used to hearing that stuff. My mother used to be really into that idea and I, unfortunately, was for a while until I came to my senses. Thankfully, I think I have rubbed off on her because she can now say that they sometimes treat women badly and isn't opposed to listening to a female pastor.

[Arete]

There are multiple entries on Tony Milano on SSB, including one about his arrest in Scotland and his church shopping. He doesn't seem to recognize any authority that dsagrees with him. A real piece of work.

[debrand]

There are multiple entries on Tony Milano on SSB, including one about his arrest in Scotland and his church shopping. He doesn't seem to recognize any authority that dsagrees with him. A real piece of work.

Maybe he uses the word authority in the same way we use the word, asshole. If so, I agree women shouldn't be assholes and neither should men.

It seems to me that a lot of the duties of pastors are the same that have traditionally been given to women in the western world: teacher, therapist, visiting the sick, caring for the needy etc

[salex]

Hmm. My childhood Methodist church had a woman minister in the 70s and has one now (different one) and at least one or two more in between. My liberal Presbyterian church had an associate minister who was a woman and I'd say the heart of that church. She got her own church and left, but it was too far away to follow. Her replacement was iffy at best.

So, I've never had problems with women ministers. I can question their theology as well as I can a man's, LOL.

[lilwriter85]

I know a fundie lite woman who is completely against female pastors. I know this woman because her husband worked with my dad. I haven't seen her in a couple of years and her son is also married to a high school classmate of mine. I remember about 10 years ago or little more, she talked about how she refused to attend a retreat that her church and another church were co-hosting. She said the reason she didn't want to attend that retreat was because the head pastor from the other church was a woman. She said that women shouldn't be pastors.

[Rebelwife]

Hmm. My childhood Methodist church had a woman minister in the 70s and has one now (different one) and at least one or two more in between. My liberal Presbyterian church had an associate minister who was a woman and I'd say the heart of that church. She got her own church and left, but it was too far away to follow. Her replacement was iffy at best.

So, I've never had problems with women ministers. I can question their theology as well as I can a man's, LOL.

Most of the best priests I've had were women. I wonder how he feels about the fact that the Presiding Bishop (Head Bishop) of the entire Episcopal Church in the US is a woman? I'd like to watch his head explode. 8-)

*Edited to add: Of course, we're not true Christians[tm][/tm] so I guess it's a moot point.

[ThatSnark]

It comes from that passage written by Paul about women being silent in church and asking their husbands for answers should they have any questions. A lot of misogyny has been hung off that chapter and verse.

So it makes me wonder why evangelical churches follow that edict to the letter, yet Billy Graham's daughter Anne Graham Lotz gets a pass? There are other women evangelists who get around the Bible by being ministers to women only (Beth Moore comes to mind), but Lotz is a full-on evangelist from the same cloth as her father. I don't argue that she's a gifted speaker, but if anything, she illustrates how/why women shouldn't be discouraged if they feel called to serve.

This is brought to you by a Unitarian Universalist who is just an innocent bystander. But I was raised Missouri Synod Lutheran = no women past the communion rail.

[CrazyCatLady]

My mom is a senior pastor so b I'm pretty sure I've heard it all!

[Loveday]

I've never had a female pastor at any church I attended before I became Catholic (and you know that will not happen anytime soon in THAT church! :roll: ), so whenever I think of women clergy, I think of the Vicar of Dibley. I'd be in a church pew every time the doors are open if Geraldine Grainger was my parish priest. :lol:

[ViolaSebastian]

My congregation (Episcopal) has a female priest and she is WONDERFUL. My husband and I had premarital counseling from her and she was able to offer unique insight to me on being a wife, and I thank her for that. She recently had her first child (phew--they do NOT make vestments for pregnant ladies, LOL) and I live in a fairly conservative city in the south and would get a few weird looks when I mentioned 'my priest's baby shower' or 'my priest is expecting a little boy and...'

[Jana814]

I'm Jewish & it's more & more common for women to become Rabbi's. My temple does not have one but it's conservative. But the reform one my friend's family attends does.

[SPHASH]

The church I currently attend has a female pastor. And the church I'm still a member of in name only had women pastors. And the male pastor that served between them was charged with sexual misconduct. He was counseling a female parishoner and had an affair with her. In Minnesota that is a felony. Also there were two other pastors that were accused of sexual impropriety before I became a member there. So I think I will take my chances with a female pastor.