A REVIEW OF ELIZABETH H. FLOWERS’ INTO THE PULPIT: SOUTHERN BAPTIST WOMEN AND POWER SINCE WORLD WAR II
Matthew Raymond Statler
HISTORY OF THE BAPTISTS
MARCH 27, 2016
Flowers, Elizabeth Into the Pulpit. Flowers holds a Doctorate in Religion from Duke University, a Masters in Divinity from Princeton and a Bachelors degree from Millsap’s College in Jackson Mississippi. She is currently an Associate Professor of Religion at TCU. Some of her works include Into the pulpit: Southern Baptist Women and Power Since World War II, published by UNC Press, she had published articles on women in the social gospel movement, missions and the African Colonization Society, and the portrayal of the China missionary Lottie Moon. She is currently …show more content…
55) This argument started in Genesis and moved into the Pauline letters. She argued against using Galatians 3:28 as a text for allowing women to assume leadership rules. Instead, she argued that it was for salvation and not applicable to gender roles. She also addressed possible arguments against her point of view. This shows the role many Southern Baptist women played in this argument. On one hand many Southern Baptist women such as Sappington, Bryant, O’Chester and Rogers supported the traditional woman’s point of view. On the other hand, there were many women in SBC Seminaries seeking ordination. The status of the convention at this time was primarily a wait and see posture, similar to their stance on race. “At first, the denominational oligarchy attempted to treat the woman issue in the same way they had handled race, which was by cautiously following the winds of change.” (p. 58) After gaining an ally in SBC President Jimmy Allen, the moderates and progressives thought that they would be making progress on the argument of ordaining women and placing them in churches.(pg. 65) However, this was short-lived as Adrian Rogers was elected as SBC president. This began to usher in the new area of conservatism that dominated the …show more content…
Leaving many newly trained women without a place to serve. Women as accepted pastors remained to most only a dream. In conclusion, this book is helpful in understanding the “women issue” in Baptist life. This book is unapologetically from the viewpoint of women and focuses on the women who were most likely to be hurt and or affected by the change in policies of the Southern Baptist Convention. This book provides a useful lens for both conservatives and moderates to better understand the pain and suffering that this issue caused. If someone is seeking a book on balanced viewpoints of the issue, this would not be the book for them. Overall this book was intriguing and provides a valuable insight into this issue.
Bibliography
Flowers, Elizabeth Hill. Into the Pulpit: Southern Baptist Women & Power since World War II. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2012.
"TCU Department of Religion: Faculty." TCU Department of Religion: Faculty. Accessed April 22, 2016.
Matthew Raymond Statler
HISTORY OF THE BAPTISTS
MARCH 27, 2016
Flowers, Elizabeth Into the Pulpit. Flowers holds a Doctorate in Religion from Duke University, a Masters in Divinity from Princeton and a Bachelors degree from Millsap’s College in Jackson Mississippi. She is currently an Associate Professor of Religion at TCU. Some of her works include Into the pulpit: Southern Baptist Women and Power Since World War II, published by UNC Press, she had published articles on women in the social gospel movement, missions and the African Colonization Society, and the portrayal of the China missionary Lottie Moon. She is currently …show more content…
55) This argument started in Genesis and moved into the Pauline letters. She argued against using Galatians 3:28 as a text for allowing women to assume leadership rules. Instead, she argued that it was for salvation and not applicable to gender roles. She also addressed possible arguments against her point of view. This shows the role many Southern Baptist women played in this argument. On one hand many Southern Baptist women such as Sappington, Bryant, O’Chester and Rogers supported the traditional woman’s point of view. On the other hand, there were many women in SBC Seminaries seeking ordination. The status of the convention at this time was primarily a wait and see posture, similar to their stance on race. “At first, the denominational oligarchy attempted to treat the woman issue in the same way they had handled race, which was by cautiously following the winds of change.” (p. 58) After gaining an ally in SBC President Jimmy Allen, the moderates and progressives thought that they would be making progress on the argument of ordaining women and placing them in churches.(pg. 65) However, this was short-lived as Adrian Rogers was elected as SBC president. This began to usher in the new area of conservatism that dominated the …show more content…
Leaving many newly trained women without a place to serve. Women as accepted pastors remained to most only a dream. In conclusion, this book is helpful in understanding the “women issue” in Baptist life. This book is unapologetically from the viewpoint of women and focuses on the women who were most likely to be hurt and or affected by the change in policies of the Southern Baptist Convention. This book provides a useful lens for both conservatives and moderates to better understand the pain and suffering that this issue caused. If someone is seeking a book on balanced viewpoints of the issue, this would not be the book for them. Overall this book was intriguing and provides a valuable insight into this issue.
Bibliography
Flowers, Elizabeth Hill. Into the Pulpit: Southern Baptist Women & Power since World War II. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2012.
"TCU Department of Religion: Faculty." TCU Department of Religion: Faculty. Accessed April 22, 2016.