4 replies to this topic

[Charlene]

Hi,
What does Alliance church believe about woman's role in the church. What does Jesus say about woman's role in the church and at home?

[HayleyMaye]

Hi Charlene, I'm currently investigating the same thing, funny how God works!
On light research I found this (on this website):
http://www.cmallianc...men-in-ministry

and this one is from Australia, but it has more information;
http://www.aca.act.e...n Diversity.pdf

if I find anything else that is significant, I can let you know too.

Hope it helps Hayley

[lschultz]

In my opinion, to fully understand women's various roles in the church, in marriage, in ministry, it takes alot of in depth study. Why? Simply because the culture in which the Word was given to us was steeped in prejudicial and superstitious beliefs, many directly relating to women. One has to read about not only "what it was like back then" but to study each mindset as it is presented and hold it up to a cultural background assessment.

I would recommend a book that was written by two gentleman, Loren Cunningham and David Joel Hamilton who are well known in the Christian community for they are founders of Youth With a Mission (YWAM). The book is titled, "Why Not Women?"
Be brave in study of the scriptures and of course, we all need to do this without pride and without prejudice. The point of the Bible is that we believers are ALL are heirs in Christ, ALL a Royal Priesthood. There is no male, female, slave or free and until we realized who we are individually and corporately as the inheritance of Christ we will be running in the circles of men's traditions and misunderstandings (Hebrews 9 for starters).

[Jay Turner]

This may not be directly applicable to the question that you asked, but here are some comments I made off of the Authority and Power thread. They are more looking at the relationship between what Godly Authority and Power are in a general sense.

You bring up some good points Lori. I would like to rephrase them into more general terms and add a couple of my own. Many of the principles that we see in our relationship with God can be directly translated into our other relationships and in the process may bring some things to light.

Authority - having the right to do, to govern, to make decisions and to judge.
Power - having the ability to accomplish a goal or a task.

• Godly power is an extension of the authority by which that power was given.
• Along with power comes a limited amount of authority.
• Ones authority and power will never supersede that of the authority by which it was given unless authority is given from a higher source.
• Just because someone is set into a place of authority over another, that doesn’t mean that they are better than them. It simply means that they are responsible for them. The real responsibility lies in the hands of the one in which the authority and power has been bestowed.
• One in authority is responsible to fight for, protect and provide for the needs of those in which they are over, within the bounds of their authority.

In my last post, I shared basic definitions for authority and power, and started laying out some core principles that make up the relationship between the two. This isn’t an all encompassing list, but it should be enough to get us thinking in the right direction. When reading through them, they seem very cold and lifeless. It is basic data about the topic. It is the law that governs over how this relationship is supposed to look and function, yet it is devoid of the context that gives that data life. This is the essence of what authority is.

One of the problems that we see in the idea of law is that it doesn’t always fit the situation. The problem with the law, is that laws are created with specific problems or circumstances in mind. Yet when it comes to the application of those laws, the circumstances quite often do not fit within the letter of the law. Because of this, more and more laws have to be created to fill the loopholes, and before you know it, you have a mess like you see with the legal system here in the states. The answer to this dilemma doesn’t lay in the creation of more, and stricter laws, but in the flexibility to interpret laws and standards to fit the situation.

When someone is placed into a position of power, it is to perform a specific task, with a specific set of parameters by which that task should be be accomplished. The person giving the task doesn’t know all the details or circumstances that that task will ensue. They just see how the task needs to be accomplished and the perceived outcome. When giving the task, they have the responsibility to put the tools and resources into the workers hands, so the work can be accomplished, and to address problems that may arise, so the work can continue moving forward. The closer to the workings of the project they are, the more details they will see and the better they will be able to address the needs and issues that may arise.

One indispensable part of being placed into a position of power is having the freedom to look at the parameters attached to the task and being able to interpret those parameters to best fit the circumstances that surround it. There should be a level of mutual trust where micromanagement has no place, nor the need for it.

When these things are in place, it should allow for things like creativity, innovation, diversification and the pursuit of dreams and callings at each of the various levels of authority and power. On the other hand, when they are out of balance, there will be disquiet and imbalance and eventual burnout.

[Elizabeth May]

Alliance-ordained, Dr. Paul King thoroughly researched and expounded on the history of women in the Alliance. I highly recommend the read. http://paulkingminis...onary-alliance/
Anointed Women: The Rich Heritage of Women in Ministry in the Christian and Missionary Alliance.

For another eye-opening, time-traveling perspective, may I suggest that you peruse the old issues of A-life magazine on this website? Some articles are by the Alliance-ordained women pastors who went forth into territories when there was not a man equipped or willing to go. Thank You, Jesus. So many salvations and miracles are accounted that it proves to be a high worship experience, remembering and thanking God for all He has done. It mightily strengthened me and built up the faith of God in me for greater things to come. It provided fuel for my prayers and gave me child-like faith to ask for things I had never dreamed or imagined. All the glory to God.