Emily Howard, Writer

Today I want to tell you about a turning point in my journey: the day my college professor told me I could not be a pastor. Because I am a woman. This professor taught a theology class I was taking in seminary, you know, so I could be a pastor.

Now, this discussion approaches thorny territory like biblical inerrancy and feminism, so be warned. I am on a growth journey right now that might make some people’s head spin, but it has been extremely inspiring and liberating, deepening my faith in a way I did not know possible. But that is a story for another day.

In September of last year, in a discussion board post regarding biblical inerrancy, I made the point that we must be very careful how we interpret scripture because it is so easy to use Bible verses in a harmful way. I used the examples of (the Bible’s approval of) slavery and (the Bible’s prohibiting of) women being pastors. It is quite obvious, I argued, that these particular verses may have been appropriate in the cultural context in which they were written, but are not relevant to the church, faith, salvation, or Christian living today. A classmate replied (in a 1,500-word post, no less) that we should indeed still follow these guidelines today. He quoted individual verses advising women to be silent and stating that women should not lead the church because, like Eve, they are easily deceived.

Have mercy.

I was honestly floored that someone would use scripture in this way. Yet another classmate wrote the following: “In the end, we should not celebrate what is contrary to the created order as revealed in the scriptures specifically that of the roles of men and women in God’s ordained social institutions. Instead, we should be mourning in sackcloth and ashes, seeking God’s face in repentance and turning back to God and his law. For a rise in egalitarianism in God’s ordained social institutions is a sign of God’s judgment upon a nation or people whose men have abdicated their roles and have failed to exercise the leadership that God requires of them.”

Shortly after, I emailed my professor with my concerns. He replied saying that he agreed with my classmates: according to scripture, God does not want me to be a pastor. My heart was simultaneously broken and lit on fire. My professor unwittingly woke the dragon.

All of the sudden I felt like a warrior.

It should be noted that up until December, I was attending Liberty University online, which is an extremely conservative Baptist institution. I chose Liberty because of its easy online program and absurdly low tuition. I had had other issues arise in previous classes that made me raise an eyebrow, but this is the first one that finally made me stand up. I have transferred to a different seminary, which I start on Monday.

I grew up knowing women pastors in the Methodist church, so this was always a non-issue for me until last year. Some of my favorite pastors are women that I have met through serving at the Walk to Emmaus and they are such wonderful role models for both girls and boys in the church. I have learned so much from them. So when this issue came up in my class, it was like an explosion in my head. I had no idea that was I was doing was subversive.

But apparently the men in my class (and the Bible, never forget) did not approve of my career choice.

Listen, I don’t know what your stance on female pastors is, and I don’t know where you are in your faith journey, or if you even have one. I can only know what I know and what I have experienced, studied, and prayed about. And what I know is that God has called me to teach people about Him. I hope no one ever tells you that what you feel is your life’s calling is not only not possible, but against God’s will. It is devastating.

I cannot fathom God putting this desire in my heart if it were not in accordance with His will. In what world would God not want me to be a preacher?

What would be God’s motivation behind that particular rule? That is a vital question we need to ask about any guideline we find in scripture.

I do not believe that God does not set arbitrary rules for us. I believe He sets guidelines for humans because we are misguided and vain and sinful and full of pride and don’t always make the best choices for ourselves. I can’t get into this subject in any detail without making this blog WAY too long, but the short answer is I can’t find any reason why, in our modern society, why God would not want women pastors. We can be compassionate and caring and smart and intuitive and slow to anger and so, so much more. I can, however, understand why the Apostle Paul advised against women leading the church in the patriarchal society of 2,000 years ago: because no one would take them seriously. It just wasn’t feasible then. And although there is still a long way to go, we have made tremendous strides in providing women with equal opportunities to be taken seriously. In Galatians 3:28 Paul says, “For there is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”

Jesus was a revolutionary. So I guess I can be too. And I guarantee you that for every scripture you quote at me saying God does not want me to preach His word, I can find three that say He is just fine with it.