Pliny: The Ruling Position Of Women

Oppenheimer (2013)10 provides opposing views to female leadership as a ruling position. He states that a woman can be ordained a deaconess if she is faithful and holy, for the ministries toward women. Furthermore, that position is one strictly of service and women can teach younger women, but is not a ruling position.10 He also referenced a letter that Pliny wrote to the Roman emperor Trajan in which he mentions deaconesses in the Eastern churches. Oppenheimer admits there are references in church history to women ruling over men. However, he insists that deacons are not a teaching or ruling position and that there were no female apostles10

In Romans 16: 7 NIV, Paul says to greet his fellow countrymen and fellow prisoners who are of outstanding …show more content…
(2013)67 states there is opposition to female clergy, but to not give up. She reports that women enrolling in seminaries has increased from 5% to 8% in all seminaries; 5% to 49% in all African American seminaries. From the 1970s, the overall increase is 100%.

In today’s world, religious institutions and leaders appear to be firmly stuck in the ruts of cannon and customs. This attitude has ramifications. Sexism has kept women out of the professional ministry and continues to do so in more than half of the major U. S. churches.88 “Sexism also victimizes those who succeed in entering the professional ministry unless we begin to root out our attitudes and prejudices that continue to devalue the gifts of more than half of the people of