The CBE Scroll

Hi everyone

Rob is working on finding out what is happening with the posts so please be patient and refrain from blame. We first alerted Rob to this 2 days ago and it’s still occurring so there’s obviously not an easy solution. We have been away for 2 days and my first look at the site showed 2 more replicated posts. We will continue to delete any bogus comments as soon as they appear.

Please continue to comment…….

Liz & Trevor

Soon afterwards [Jesus] went on through cities and villages, proclaiming and bringing the good news of the kingdom of God. The twelve were with him, as well as some women who had been cured of evil spirits and infirmities: Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out, and Joanna, the wife of Herod’s steward Chuza, and Susanna, and many others, who provided for them out of their resources (Luke 8:1-3, NRSV).

One of the arguments that complementarians make for women staying at home is that it is God’s plan for men to work and financially support the family. As long as I’ve been on the other side of the argument, pointing out that women have always worked and supported their families monetarily, it was only last week when it hit me what these verses were saying. I’ve used these verses to show that women were disciples and followed Jesus in his travels just as the 12 did. But last week it hit me between the eyes: Mary Magdalene, Joanna, and Susanna plus other women “provided for them out of their resources.”  The Greek word translated as resources can mean property, possessions, resources, or means. These women financially supported Jesus and his ministry from their own finances.

I’m sure some would say that what they gave Jesus was really the money their husbands made. This could be true for Joanna, but she is the only one with a husband in this passage. Mary Magdalene had no husband, and Susanna is not paired with a husband in these verses. This means their money was theirs. We don’t know how they had these resources. Maybe they were business women like Lydia and Priscilla. Maybe they were widows. But neither woman, nor her resources, is tied to a husband.

It’s a little thing. A little thing that can be easily overlooked. But I think that we should pay attention to this little thing. Women who weren’t tied to a husband, and a married woman who isn’t tied to her home, are following Jesus all over the countryside and supporting him. These little things start adding up to show that roles women played in the Bible are much broader than mother and wife. It also shows the freedom Jesus allowed women to have in his own ministry. He didn’t tell these women to go back home and take care of their husbands and children (and he didn’t tell them to go home, get married, and start having kids). He welcomed them and accepted their support.

These three verses in Luke give us a glimpse of the broader role of women in Jesus’ ministry beyond the home.

The upcoming issue of Mutuality is on the subject of ‘Dating’ and there are several posts which will be linked to that issue.

Because of this, there will be at least 4 posts published within a few days of each other, and not with at least a week between as is the usual pattern. Please bear this in mind and read back to and including the one entitled “Letter to a Friend”

Don’t miss reading one of these excellent articles by a variety of writers.

Liz & Trevor Sykes

By Ryan and Anna Snyder

In the most recent edition of Mutuality, we wrote an article titled “When We Said ‘I Do,’” which discussed how we tried to tell an egalitarian story with our wedding.  From the making of mutual decisions while planning the ceremony, to the symbol of equality we provided by having both sets of parents walk us down the aisle, to the promise we each made to love, respect, and submit to the other in our vows, we tried to put our beliefs about the equality of women and men on display.  However, as we noted in the article, often we followed more traditional ways of doing things.  Sometimes we wanted to – but often we knew of no other option.

Thus, in the spirit of encouraging conversation, we wanted to discuss a few of the more firmly-entrenched traditions we followed, and ask for feedback about how others might choose differently. We aren’t saying we regret our choices, or criticizing people who choose these paths. We simply want to provide a forum to discuss new ideas, options, and resources for those who want them.

The Proposal

Traditionally, the man enjoys the privilege (or bears the burden, depending on his viewpoint) of planning the proposal – often without any input from the woman at all.  This places sole responsibility for the leading of the relationship with the man while requiring the woman to sit and wait patiently (or not so patiently, depending on her viewpoint), for the man to make one of the biggest decisions of their relationship on his own.  If a couple were so inclined, what would it look like for both him and her to be involved in this decision?  Would it be possible for a couple to sit down together and collectively make the decision to move forward into engagement? Would this method ruin the “surprise” factor of a proposal, and if so, is it a sacrifice worth making?

Talking to Parents

Many men approach the woman’s father (and sometimes both parents) to ask permission to propose. This custom developed because people viewed the daughter as property. The man’s parents and the woman herself are left out of the conversation.  How could the woman and the man honor all of their parents at this stage of the relationship? What would it look like to get away from the stereotype that requires a woman to get her father’s permission to get married, while a man needs none?

Engagement Ring(s)

As in a traditional engagement, Ryan purchased an engagement ring which he presented to me (Anna) when he asked me to marry him. My acceptance and wearing of the ring indicated my commitment to future marriage, which was visible to all. So why, I now wonder, do men not also wear a sign of their commitment? I’ve done some research and found evidence of the growing popularity of male engagement rings, along with other tokens of commitment such as watches. I find giving Ryan gifts highly enjoyable and if I could go back I would have presented Ryan with an engagement ring of sorts, whether at the time of his proposal to me, or another time. What do you think of the tradition of only the woman receiving a sign of the future marriage? What are your thoughts of men wearing a ring? How could a couple better show their mutual commitment to one another?

This list is by no means exhaustive. What other subtle signs of hierarchy do couples face? How could a couple put a belief in equality into practice in those areas?