Women's contribution for expanding the Christianity.
Ac 18:24-2624 Now a certain Jew named A‧pol′los, a native of Alexandria, an eloquent man, arrived in Eph′e‧sus; and he was well versed in the Scriptures. 25 This [man] had been orally instructed in the way of the Lord and, as he was aglow with the spirit, he went speaking and teaching with correctness the things about Jesus, but being acquainted with only the baptism of John. 26 And this [man] started to speak boldly in the synagogue. When Pris‧cil′la and Aq′ui‧la heard him, they took him into their company and expounded the way of God more correctly to him.
Ro 16:12
12 Greet Try·phae′na and Try·pho′sa, [women] who are working hard in [the] Lord. Greet Per′sis our beloved one, for she performed many labors in [the] Lord.
Php 4:2-3
2 Eu·o′di·a I exhort and Syn′ty·che I exhort to be of the same mind in [the] Lord. 3 Yes, I request you too, genuine yokefellow, keep assisting these [women] who have striven side by side with me in the good news along with Clement as well as the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the book of life.
Ro 16:1-6, 12
1 I recommend to YOU Phoe′be our sister, who is a minister of the congregation that is in Cen′chre·ae, 2 that YOU may welcome her in [the] Lord in a way worthy of the holy ones, and that YOU may assist her in any matter where she may need YOU, for she herself also proved to be a defender of many, yes, of me myself.
3 Give my greetings to Pris′ca and Aq′ui·la my fellow workers in Christ Jesus, 4 who have risked their own necks for my soul, to whom not only I but also all the congregations of the nations render thanks; 5 and [greet] the congregation that is in their house. Greet my beloved E·pae′ne·tus, who is a firstfruits of Asia for Christ. 6 Greet Mary, who has performed many labors for YOU.
12 Greet Try·phae′na and Try·pho′sa, [women] who are working hard in [the] Lord. Greet Per′sis our beloved one, for she performed many labors in [the] Lord.
Women were used by God and Christ as equally as men according to their inherent position.
They prophesied, preached, taught, prayed for the congregation, and took the lead in promoting Christianity.
Ac 21:9
9 This man had four daughters, virgins, that prophesied.
Ro 16:1
1 I recommend to YOU Phoe′be our sister, who is a minister of the congregation that is in Cen′chre·ae,
Co 4:15
15 Give my greetings to the brothers at La·o·di·ce′a and to Nym′pha and to the congregation at her house.
Philemon 2
2 and to Ap′phi·a, our sister, and to Ar·chip′pus, our fellow soldier, and to the congregation that is in your house:
Christians are New Creations
Flesh is of no use at all. - Jon 6:63There is neither male nor female in the new creation, the sons of the kingdom.
Ga 3:26-29
26 YOU are all, in fact, sons of God through YOUR faith in Christ Jesus. 27 For all of YOU who were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor freeman, there is neither male nor female; for YOU are all one [person] in union with Christ Jesus. 29 Moreover, if YOU belong to Christ, YOU are really Abraham's seed, heirs with reference to a promise.
Ga 6:15-16
15 For neither is circumcision anything nor is uncircumcision, but a new creation [is something]. 16 And all those who will walk orderly by this rule of conduct, upon them be peace and mercy, even upon the Israel of God.
Ro 8:5
5 For those who are in accord with the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those in accord with the spirit on the things of the spirit.
2Co 5:16-17
16 Consequently from now on we know no man according to the flesh. Even if we have known Christ according to the flesh, certainly we now know him so no more. 17 Consequently if anyone is in union with Christ, he is a new creation; the old things passed away, look! new things have come into existence.
Questionable insertions
1Co 14:33-35 (Disputed Verses)33 . . . As in all the congregations of the holy ones, 34 let the women keep silent in the congregations, for it is not permitted for them to speak, but let them be in subjection, even as the Law says. 35 If, then, they want to learn something, let them question their own husbands at home, for it is disgraceful for a woman to speak in a congregation.
1Ti 2:11-15
11 Let a woman learn in silence with full submissiveness. 12 I do not permit a woman to teach, or to exercise authority over a man, but to be in silence. 13 For Adam was formed first, then Eve. 14 Also, Adam was not deceived, but the woman was thoroughly deceived and came to be in transgression. 15 However, she will be kept safe through childbearing, provided they continue in faith and love and sanctification along with soundness of mind.
Women Not Allowed to Speak?
The words that start in the middle of 1 Corinthians 14:33 and run through verse 35 may well be spurious additions to the Bible, for they say: 'And as [is true] in all the congregations of Holy Ones; the women should remain silent in the congregation. They shouldn't be allowed to speak out. Rather (as the Law says), they should be submissive. And if they wish to know something, let them ask their husbands [when they get] home; for it's disgraceful for a woman to speak out in a congregation.'
The reasons why we question the authenticity of these words are:
- There is no such injunction in the Law of Moses. And it would simply be out of character for Paul, who went to such lengths to tell Christians that they were not under the Law, to quote the Law as something that they should obey, and then cite the Law as saying something that it doesn't say.
- These words are not found in the same location in ancient texts of this book, which gives scholars the impression that they may have been just the added marginal notes of someone with a strong opinion on this matter.
- The injunction flies in the face of God's use of women in outstanding and prominent positions, such as judges of IsraEl and as Prophets.
Also, because the words of 1 Timothy 2:9-15 seem to reflect the same type of bias and because they simply seem out of place and inconsistent with Paul's previous words, we question their authenticity. However, we have left all the words in place for readers to judge for themselves.
On the other hand, the words at Colossians 3:18 ('Wives; Always obey your husbands, since this is proper [for those who are] in the Lord') seem to be in line with other scriptures and appear to be authentic.
First Epistle to the Corinthians
However, two passages may have been inserted at a later stage. The first passage is 1 Cor 11:2–16 dealing with praying and prophesying with head covering.[1] The second passage is 1 Cor 14:34–35 which has been hotly debated. Part of the reason for doubt is that in some manuscripts, the verses come at the end of the chapter instead of at its present location. Furthermore, Paul is here appealing to the law which is uncharacteristic of him. Lastly, the verses come into conflict with 11:5 where women are described as praying and prophesying.[2]
Christian Women airbrushed from history
women influential in early Christianity have been 'airbrushed' from history 09 August 13 by Katie Collins
Women who were highly influential in the rise of Christianity have been "airbrushed" out of history, according to book that is a result of a five-year study into the subject.
The results have been detailed by Professor Kate Cooper from the University of Manchester in Band of Angels: The Forgotten World of Early Christian Women, which claims that mainstream churches have long-neglected the contribution of women to the growth and spread of early Christianity.
"The key thing is that the earliest churches were not public formal institutions," Cooper tells Wired.co.uk. "It was really a movement among households and families [...] you have to think of it as a movement that's sparking participation by people who are [...] sharing the ideas through viral communication networks with their friends and families."
Cooper likens the early Christian movement to the Arab Spring, pointing to a wave of "enthusiasm" spreading across the region.
"They managed to do that without Twitter. We're literally talking about people travelling by donkey," she says. "It's just incredible when you think of the way these ideas were able to spread in this context where the communication structure was so pre-technology."
The relatively rapid spread of Christianity was in a large part due to the trade routes created by the Roman Empire, and was facilitated by the people that worked along these routes, says Cooper.
"I think the fact that Christianity rose in the context of the Roman Empire is not an historical accident at all," she says. In areas colonised by the Romans, much of the agricultural produce was shipped back to Rome, which on one hand created resentment, but on the other created networks of communication through which the Christian message spread.
"Those networks connecting the different provinces in the service of the roman economy, actually become networks of religious communication. For example, in the letters of St Paul in the first century, we see both male and female weavers in the cloth trade.
"These women in these business networks are actually the sponsors of the earliest Christian missionaries. They are the ones who are first carrying the word on their boats, but they are also the ones offering hospitality to the apostles as they come through. Both Lydia and Priscilla are the hosts for St Paul when he's in their respective cities."
The conversion of the Roman Emperor Constantine to Christianity in around 313 AD saw an end to Christian persecution, but it was also around the same time that the religion became institutionalised. From there emerged the structure of authority, with male government officials being made into bishops that is still evident in the church and in society -- to some extent -- today. It's hard for us to picture Christianity in its early form, when many women, such as Perpetua, who chose martyrdom over her father's wishes for marriage and whose diary written as she awaited execution in prison, were upheld and commemorated as saints.
"I think it's really hard for us in a modern context where we're used to thinking of the church as a medieval institution that's lasted for 2,000 years, even if there are lots of different branches, we think of buildings, we think of stone, we think of gilded ceilings, but none of that is what it was like in Antiquity."
There are plenty of valuable messages in early Christianity that show it to be incredibly progressive in its ideas about the roles women should be play and the way they should be treated considering how sexist the ancient world was, says Cooper. One example is Thecla of Iconium who was a disciple of Paul, famous and celebrated in early Christianity, also for disobeying her parents and refusing marriage. She became the model for chastity and virginity in Catholic theology.
Research conducted by the Religion in Numbers Project suggests that many Christians in Britain today don't feel like they identify with the church -- in all its denominations -- as an institution. This could be improved, believes Cooper, by examining more closely the role women played in the early church.
"What I see is that women were so much more important and if churches are smart, or if they're clever, they'll start honouring of all parts of the Christian community, rather than just saying the only people that have any importance are the people who played an institutional role. Who's going to be interested in a religion that's just excited about its institutional officers? I think the church would have much mores success in getting the laity involved if they would really honour the contributions of people from all walks of life."
The congregation of the sons of the kingdom shouldn't be viewed from the institutional function.
At a matter of the fact, the Christian congregation is like family arrangement.
1Ti 5:1-2
1 Do not severely criticize an older man. To the contrary, entreat him as a father, younger men as brothers, 2 older women as mothers, younger women as sisters with all chasteness.
The state registered institutionalized religions are all fake Christian congregation.
Such religious organizations are the daughters of the Babylon the Great siting on the political wild beast.
The WTS is also as such.
The true Christian congregation and Christian community are not such part of the world.
Joh 17:16
16 They are no part of the world, just as I am no part of the world.
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