Alrighty, then. Hope everyone has enjoyed and been challenged by the reading so far. Let's begin discussion as we read instead of waiting until the end. Let's have chapter one read by Sunday and discuss as we go. Anyone find something they totally think is way off base?
Lara
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I finished Chapter one last night and started Chapter two. Although there wasn't anything that I found really off base, I hadn't really thought of any of it that much. I didn't go to a Christian school or college so I have never STUDIED the Bible.
I knew nothing about head coverings until I was in college and went to church with a friend who covered her head. I didn't even know that some people did that.
As interesting as this is, I find myself skimming over parts that don't seem important to me so I'm trying to slow down and read with my highlighter... even reading out loud so that I can recognize what is actually being said.
I will do my best to get chapter one read over the weekend. The in-laws are coming. I have started it, but haven't gotten far because I haven't felt well this week.
I think I was in collge when I actually SAW the phrase "every women who prays and prophesies . . ." Although I heard all the stuff around this phrase talked about alot, I was stunned to realize that Paul assumed women were praying and prophesying in the public assembly.
I agree with his conclusion that the headcovering issue is about gender distinction, not subordination. I get the impression, though, that Paul wasn't trying to make that point. He just assumed everyone got that. His main concern was the health of the church and the spread of the gospel.
Is this maybe the scenario he was envisioning?
"Can you believe what we saw? My husband and I visited that new church. The people were so friendly and enthusiastic. But when a women got up to speak a word from God, she didn't have her headcovering on!! Where in the world did those people get the idea they should dress like prostitutes. It was such a distraction - then men couldn't keep their eyes off of her and the women were furious! I don't think anyone heard a word she said and I didn't get a thing out of the rest of the service."
What do you think? I am trying to think of this in visual, concrete ways that my brain can wrap around. Let me know if I'm way off base.
I hope this isn't too long, but the thing that caught my eye was on page 38 about 11:10 meaning that the woman had authority over her own head. My NIV says, "For this reason, and because of the angels, the woman ought to have a sign of authority on her head." I think I always read that as she ought to wear a veil to symbolize that she was under an authority, probably her husband. Keener just put that verse in a light I had never considered before.
I also found interesting the discussion about Paul's use of head in 11:3-6. I knew that it was a word play on head, but I didn't know about the different uses of that word in Greek.
I am currently reading a book for a book club I'm in called "Snow Flower and the Secret Fan." It's set in 1800s China, which is not like Corinth in Paul's time, but some of the views of women sounded very similar. It is stated in the book this way: . . .the women's chamber; it was for us alone, where we could do our work and share our thoughts. I knew I would spend almost my entire life in a room like that. I also knew the difference between nei - the inner realm of the home - and wai - the outer realm of men - lay at the very heart of Confucian society. Whether you are rich or poor, emperor or slave, the domestic sphere is for women and the outside sphere is for men. Women should not pass beyond the inner chambers in their thought or in their actions. I also understood that two Confucian ideals ruled our lives. The first was the Three Obediences: "When a girl, obey your father; when a wife, obey your husband; when a widow, obey your son." The second was the Four Virtues, which delineate women's behavior, speech, carriage, and occupation: "Be chaste and yielding, calm and upright in attitude; be quiet and agreeable in words; be restrained and exquisite in movement; be perfect in handiwork and embroidery." If girls do not stray from these principles, they will grow into virtuous women.
In reading this book (and Paul, Women, and Wives), I have been very thankful that I live in a society where women are valued as people. I don't think we quite realize and appreciate sometimes the changes Jesus brought about in our culture and how it would be different if he had not come to us. Sorry for the novel-length comment! :-)
Laura
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