That is simply not true, 'true womanhood' is defined by God on the pages of scripture, not by other women. Jude 3 calls all believers to proclaim the truth of scripture thus all believers should be able to define 'a lady' biblically. If you work through scripture there are 15 re-occurring principles that define womanhood.
THE 15 HALLMARKS OF BIBLICAL WOMANHOOD
SHE WILL:
in Conduct:
1) Abstain from gossip (Titus 2:3)
2) Stay pure from sexual immorality (Proverbs 31:5, Titus 2:5)
3) Operate on principle, not impulse (proverbs 31:26, Titus 2:5)
4) Teach other women (Proverbs 30:31)
in Marriage:
5) Speak well of her husband (proverbs 12:4)
6) Be Gentle (1 Peter 3:4)
7) Be submissive (1 Peter 3:6, Ephesians 5:24, Proverbs 25:24. Esther 1:20)
8) Be passionate for her husband (Song of Solomon 5:10-16)
In Parenthood
9) Work at home (Proverbs 31:15, Titus 2:5)
10) Be loving (Titus 2:5)
11) Work hard (Proverbs 31)
12) Discipline (Proverbs 13:24)
In Appearance:
13) Be distinctively feminine: (Song of Solomon 1:10-12, Deuteronomy 22:5)
In Church
14) Learn and not teach (1 Timothy 2:12, 1 Corinthians 14:34)
But mostly, and above all, she will:
15) FEAR THE LORD
Sean,
It is great that you are using scripture to support your viewpoint. More people should do that. I would l ike toadd that it is also important to examine the context of the verses you are quoting to get the bigger picture. Sometimes it is necessary, sometimes it is not.
For example, my interpretation of these scriptures you have quoted is not: women should never operate in church leadership nor should they ever teach men in church. That is not what these verses say. This confusion has caused alot of unecessary oppression, division and descention in the body.
If you will reread all of 1 Timothy 2 you will see that your reference to 1Tim 2:12 is about when people should speak out when someone is addressing the whole congregation. It is also important to understand the culture of the time to understand the point being made here. Jewish men and women were taught differently. Jewish boys from the time they are 3 were taught in a group of boys only by men and the girls stayed home with their moms. The women didn't have the benefit of this study in the church and therefore were eagerly wanting to talk about it when they were in church. And they had many urgent questions.
In this context you could see why this needed to be addressed, Paul was talking about
order; it is about women interrupting the service. He was speaking about order in the church, about who should be speaking publically for the benefit of
all. Then he tells the women if they have questions they should ask their husbands at home (because the men have gone to school and have more knowledge). In this context it makes sense that women should not teach things they don't
know.
We have all been in bible studies or in a church service when a pastor or teacher has given the floor to someone who is a new Christian who thinks they know it all and proceeds to try and tell everyone else (their elders included) what the TRUE meaning of the scriptures entail. Or they take up everyone's time by asking countless questions. When Paul is referring to 1Tim 2:12 "...suffer a woman not to teach, nor to usurp authority over a man, but to be in silence" this is what he means.
Again this same principle is reiterated in your reference to (1Cor14:34)
Let your women keep silence in the churches: for it is not permitted unto them to speak; but [they are commanded] to be under obedience, as also saith the law.
but followed by....(1Cor14:35-36)which talks about when you should speak out in a public forum without knowledge exhalting yourself above the leaders (who, at the time, were exclusively male)
And if they will learn any thing, let them ask their husbands at home: for it is a shame for women to speak in the church
What? came the word of God out from you? or came it unto you only?
Can anyone imagine if we never learned anything from women what would happen to our world? our families? Our schools? Mother's are the first and most important teachers of children. And some of them are male. Boys don't stop learning from their parents when they become adults. Boys don't learn only from their Dad's. And neither do men. Jesus himself amazed the synagog elders with his scriptural knowledge at a young age. Who taught him these scriptures? His mom.
The only evidence I can find in the bible for women coming under a man's authority is in the home as his wife. And I whole-heartedly agree with that. Men need to be in charge in their own homes. Unfortunately, much of this is being distorted now with the fallout from divorce and broken homes. It is very confusing for women too.
My point is: oppressing women was never God's intention. And not speaking or teaching in church is as it says in scripture accoridng to the LAW. As christians we are no longer under the old testament man-made laws. Every good leader knows that oppressing the people who are created to love and support is a
very bad idea. Men and women are very different and I, for one, am very happy about the differences. But men and women were designed to also be teammates. Squishing your teammate makes the whole team weaker.
