Can Christians also Be Feminists?

by Kennedy Harless

an article originally published by Always Ready Ministries

Whatever else our Lord did, He immeasurably exalted womanhood.
—George H. Morrison¹—

Last time we talked about how Christians and their beliefs often are misunderstood by the world. We emphasized that, contrary to popular belief, Christians and the church throughout history, generally speaking, have had an extremely positive influence on society’s treatment of women. This is because the Bible teaches that men and women are equal in dignity and worth before God.

Even so, the biblical perspective still is viewed with skepticism by a watching world. Secular movements like feminism put pressure on institutions in society, including the church, to think and act according to their perspective. In light of this, some Christians may ask, Does feminism have a place in the modern evangelical church?

Let’s consider this matter against the backdrop of another question: What principles should Christians keep in mind as they engage people on the issues of women and feminism? Here are seven.

1. 1. 1. God created both men and women in His image, and both are equal in His sight. Jesus affirmed this principle in the New Testament (see Gen. 1:24-28; 5:1-5; 2:18-24; Matt. 19:1-12; Mark 10:1-12).
      2. God designed men and women complement each other, not compete with each other. The sexes were meant to balance each other out and reflect unity, not superiority (see Gen. 2:18-24.
      3. Christians are to emulate Jesus Christ, the Son of God, with God’s help and to the best of their abilities. Believers are to avoid being conformed to the world (see Matt. 16:24-27; Mark 8:34-38 Rom 12:1-2). Jesus’ treatment of women was revolutionary and gives all His adherents an example to follow. In last week’s post, we affirmed that Christianity has elevated women worldwide, especially in the West.
      4. Jesus Christ lived a perfect life. Christians believe that all people, men and women alike, are held to that same standard. In other words, Jesus is the standard by God will judge everyone. This may sound harsh, but when we understand that Christ, God’s Son, came to earth to live a holy life and then to be executed on a cross to pay the penalty to human sin, we encounter God’s great love. We can stand before God clothed in Christ’s righteousness if we only will believe His death is sufficient payment for our sins and ask God to credit His death to our accounts. Having trusted Christ for salvation, we seek to live lives that please Him. God does not look at particularities or preferences but love and obedience.
      5. Absolute truth exists, and it is reflective of God’s divine character. This is because God is infinite and is the source of all truth.
      6. As Christians, we are to love God supremely. This means that we adhere to God’s absolute rules and patterns with wisdom and discernment. In doing so we are, and should be, distinct from the rest of society;
      7. yet we also are to love others effectively without compromising our beliefs.

When Love Is Seen as Hate

This seventh directive presents a formidable challenge for modern believers. We live in a world where failing to affirm another’s perspective is seen as a show of disrespect or even hate. At the very least, it’s seen as a lack of compassion and/or love. How do you love someone effectively while simultaneously rejecting a perspective that, to that individual, rests at the core of his or her identity? This is a tall order!

We need to be sensitive and caring, of course. Even so, we also need to realize that love never participates in a lie, and that there are certain popular ideas believers in Christ simply cannot affirm without doing just that.

A Comprehensive View of Life

Christianity isn’t just a belief that takes us to heaven when we die; it’s a comprehensive worldview that interprets all of life through a biblical lens. Our infinite God is the source of truth, the foundation on which all of reality rests. Yet, our secular friends and family members are looking at life through a different lens, one that actually distorts reality. Love upholds the truth, even when doing so means risking being misunderstood.

Let’s put it another way. Just as absolute truth cannot fit into a postmodern worldview, and just as the idea of an afterlife is inconsistent with an atheistic worldview, the concept of subjective truth cannot fit into the Christian worldview. Christians cannot afford the “luxury” of preference over the absolute teachings of Scripture. Having surrendered ourselves to Christ and been crucified with Him, we’ve also surrendered our preferences as well. The truth is, if we haven’t sent these to the cross to die, we haven’t really died with Christ there either!

A Comprehensive View of Life

Yet, in surrender, we—men and women alike—find authentic freedom. When Christ cried “It is finished” on the cross and hung His head in death, He liberated us as could no other force. All are equal at the foot of the cross. As we indicated earlier, men and women are equal, but not identical. They aren’t just to tolerate each other but to prioritize unity in light of God-given differences. We especially see this in Christian marriage, where male and female differences reflect, not only the gospel of Christ, but also the unity and diversity that exists within the triune Godhead.

Conclusion

In Christianity, then, we see an affirmation of women that was foreign to the ancient world and is foreign to the modern world today. While in Scripture men are more prominent than women, they’re not more important. We see God’s effectively using women to accomplish His purposes and plan. The women God used, like the men, were sinners—imperfect human beings. Some were liars, cheaters, prostitutes. Yet they also were mothers, worship leaders, business women, military leaders, and queens. They were prayer warriors, faithful servants, and community developers all used by the same God who conquered death for the purpose of making His story known throughout His creation.

Christianity and the church need look no further than Scripture to find women affirmed—and in the Bible they are affirmed authentically and in ways consistent with reality and the natural world. Within this realm, as we already have acknowledged, men and women are of equal worth in that both are equally human. At the same time, each sex is different. This does not mean women cannot work outside the home or that men cannot ever be sensitive or nurturing. Still, innate male-female differences ought to be affirmed and celebrated, not denied or defied. We have a healthier society when we don’t try to buck the natural order of things.

Can Christians also be feminists? Let’s answer by highlighting these considerations.

• • • First consider that, as we have seen, the church doesn’t need to look to feminism to find ways to elevate women. Christianity itself does that!
    • Second, be assured that not being a feminist doesn’t mean a person is anti-female! Christians, of all people, should be affirming of women and womanhood. Jesus showed us how!
    • Third, understand that feminism embraces principles that directly contradict the Bible. Nor is feminism the only movement with a framework or set of values inappropriate within the church. All beliefs, including feminist beliefs, that stem from anything other than properly interpreted biblical texts or principles cannot coincide with Christianity. These should be rejected by believers and the church.

Especially in light of this third truth, I believe Christians should reject feminism and its teachings.

We have something far better to offer the world.

 

January 14, 2019

Access other articles published by Always Ready Ministries here.

Kennedy Harless studies Intercultural Studies at Cedarville University.

 

Copyright 2019 by Always Ready Ministries. All rights reserved.

¹George H. Morrison, quoted in Alvin J. Schmidt, How Christianity Changed the World, (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2004), 122.