I hate the word and always have. Submission. Submitting to anything is a sign of weakness in our culture. It’s sure to create a firestorm of contention, raising fair and needed questions about the equality of women... our roles, our value. To submit yourself to anything is to become vulnerable, or worse- lorded over. Yes, I hate the word. I hate the implications. I hate the abuse of the word by misogynists, the history of the word as an excuse to abuse. I am fortunate to have grown up with a generation of young girls who were told that women are equal to men- as smart, as strong, as capable, as valuable- and I believed it. I think we all did. In fact, I still do. Which is why I think I struggle (and always have struggled) with Biblical submission.
Surely submission was a just a cultural reality necessary at the time the scriptures were written, right? Right?
Maybe submission was a cultural hierarchy created to keep women in their place by a patriarchal society. I’d like to think so, but the more I have dug into scripture, the less I can refute that submission is culturally relevant (and necessary) today.
I have come to the conclusion that Biblical submission is something our cultural desperately needs the women of the the church to model again, the question is, how?
Let me preface this with a few statements I feel are necessary:
25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her 26 to make her holy, cleansing[a] her by the washing with water through the word, 27 and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. 28 In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29 After all, no one ever hated their own body, but they feed and care for their body, just as Christ does the church— 30 for we are members of his body. 31 “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.”[b] 32 This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and the church. 33 However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.
That is only a small, minute portion about women in the Bible, their roles, and the Biblical authority of wives submitting to their husbands. Please feel free to dig deeper, as this is not the intention of this blog.
My intention is to flesh out a scripture I have been struggling with for some time now.
The scripture reads:
1 Corinthians 11: 1-16. Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ. 2I praise you for remembering me in everything and for holding to the traditions just as I passed them on to you. 3But I want you to realize that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man,a and the head of Christ is God. 4Every man who prays or prophesies with his head covered dishonors his head. 5But every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head—it is the same as having her head shaved. 6For if a woman does not cover her head, she might as well have her hair cut off; but if it is a disgrace for a woman to have her hair cut off or her head shaved, then she should cover her head.
7A man ought not to cover his head,b since he is the image and glory of God; but woman is the glory of man. 8For man did not come from woman, but woman from man; 9neither was man created for woman, but woman for man. 10It is for this reason that a woman ought to have authority over her ownc head, because of the angels. 11Nevertheless, in the Lord woman is not independent of man, nor is man independent of woman. 12For as woman came from man, so also man is born of woman. But everything comes from God.
13Judge for yourselves: Is it proper for a woman to pray to God with her head uncovered? 14Does not the very nature of things teach you that if a man has long hair, it is a disgrace to him, 15but that if a woman has long hair, it is her glory? For long hair is given to her as a covering. 16If anyone wants to be contentious about this, we have no other practice—nor do the churches of God.
As my ideas on this are still forming, think of this blog as more of an open conversation about the scripture. I’m still researching, praying, and pondering what this scripture actually means and wondering about the implications on my life. I have three main areas I’ve formed at this point- my personal conviction about the scripture, my fears, and my observations. I will attempt to flesh my ideas out as best possible, but know that I may begin rambling because I’m still working through this.
My convictions:
Just like there is nothing mystical or magical about other symbols and traditions we still partake in as the church such as communion and baptism, I believe that a symbol of submission would be a beautiful, Biblical way to honor God, obey his commands, and in a way, celebrate the truth of scriptural submission.
Many people believe that long hair itself is what is being referred to a woman’s “covering”. I am still researching this and I’m torn. Because it specifically says “When praying or prophesying” I can’t help but wonder if it is talking about a “removable covering”. I’m not a scholar in Greek, so I’ll leave those arguments for someone more well versed than I, but I have seen intelligent people on both sides of the “long hair” v. “artificial covering” argument- enough that I am unsure of exactly what is meant. I do not believe that covering my head could make me more holy or righteous, as all those who have submitted their lives to Christ are as holy and righteous as Christ through his substitution. However, I do wonder if I should cover my head as a matter of obedience. I know, at least in these moments of my uncertainty, it is certainly not sinful or wrong to wear a head covering if convicted to do so. I also have considered that having a physical symbol of my choice to submit to by husband could be a conviction that I myself need to follow through with, even if it may be a misinterpretation of scripture on my part. Because submission is something I have personally struggled with, it could be possible that this is something I need to wear as a physical reminder of my choice to submit.
4. The end of verse 10 always throws me for a loop... “because of the angels”. What on earth does that mean? It’s the part of the verse I can’t justify out as culturally irrelevant. The angels are heavenly, spiritual beings outside of our cultural timelines. What am I potentially communicating, or not communicating, by not having a covering on my head? Even if there may not be implications I see here, could there be spiritual implication I have not accounted for? I can’t shake this one.
My next blog I’ll flesh out my fears of head covering, and then wrap up with some other observations I have had the privilege of making. Please do not take me as an authority on the subject, but just dialogue with me. I am really struggling with personal conviction on the topic and will likely begin to cover my head until I am convinced one way or another because of Romans 14:
14 As for the one who is weak in faith, welcome him, but not to quarrel over opinions. 2 One person believes he may eat anything, while the weak person eats only vegetables. 3 Let not the one who eats despise the one who abstains, and let not the one who abstains pass judgment on the one who eats, for God has welcomed him. 4 Who are you to pass judgment on the servant of another? It is before his own master[a] that he stands or falls. And he will be upheld, for the Lord is able to make him stand.
5 One person esteems one day as better than another, while another esteems all days alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. 6 The one who observes the day, observes it in honor of the Lord. The one who eats, eats in honor of the Lord, since he gives thanks to God, while the one who abstains, abstains in honor of the Lord and gives thanks to God. 7 For none of us lives to himself, and none of us dies to himself. 8 For if we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord's. 9 For to this end Christ died and lived again, that he might be Lord both of the dead and of the living.
10 Why do you pass judgment on your brother? Or you, why do you despise your brother? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God; 11 for it is written,
“As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me,
and every tongue shall confess[b] to God.”
12 So then each of us will give an account of himself to God.
13 Therefore let us not pass judgment on one another any longer, but rather decide never to put a stumbling block or hindrance in the way of a brother. 14 I know and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus that nothing is unclean in itself, but it is unclean for anyone who thinks it unclean. 15 For if your brother is grieved by what you eat, you are no longer walking in love. By what you eat, do not destroy the one for whom Christ died. 16 So do not let what you regard as good be spoken of as evil. 17 For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. 18 Whoever thus serves Christ is acceptable to God and approved by men. 19 So then let us pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding.
20 Do not, for the sake of food, destroy the work of God. Everything is indeed clean, but it is wrong for anyone to make another stumble by what he eats. 21 It is good not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything that causes your brother to stumble.[c] 22 The faith that you have, keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the one who has no reason to pass judgment on himself for what he approves. 23 But whoever has doubts is condemned if he eats, because the eating is not from faith. For whatever does not proceed from faith is sin.
If you have any thoughts, encouragements, or other comments on this topic, I welcome them, as I am really struggling through this. Have you ever felt conviction on this topic? Do you or anyone you know choose to wear a head covering? Dialogue with me! As I know this can be a contentious topic, just keep it kind!
Surely submission was a just a cultural reality necessary at the time the scriptures were written, right? Right?
Maybe submission was a cultural hierarchy created to keep women in their place by a patriarchal society. I’d like to think so, but the more I have dug into scripture, the less I can refute that submission is culturally relevant (and necessary) today.
I have come to the conclusion that Biblical submission is something our cultural desperately needs the women of the the church to model again, the question is, how?
Let me preface this with a few statements I feel are necessary:
- No one has put me up to this. This is not a teaching I have been asked to give by any church, nor by my husband.
- Biblical submission does not mean being a doormat, nor does it mean all women are to submit to all men. I believe that scripture clearly indicates that Biblical submission is for a wife to her husband- a husband who submits to Jesus Christ and loves his wife as Christ loves his bride.
25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her 26 to make her holy, cleansing[a] her by the washing with water through the word, 27 and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. 28 In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29 After all, no one ever hated their own body, but they feed and care for their body, just as Christ does the church— 30 for we are members of his body. 31 “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.”[b] 32 This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and the church. 33 However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.
- Biblical submission does not mean I have no role outside of the home, nor does it dictate every detail of what I can and cannot do as a women “in a man’s world”. It does mean, however, that God has placed specific, righteous callings on both genders, each of which are important for Christ’s Kingdom, his church, and ultimately, for the glorification of God.
- Women are important, valued, and loved by God. Both men and women were created in God’s image (see Genesis 1-3). However, even from the very moment of creation, God had specific roles for each (Eve was made as a “helpmate” for Adam).
- In the gospels, Jesus loves on women in a way that was unprecedented. He kept a women caught in adultery from being stoned; Jesus also had a significant number of women disciples, many of whom are named in the scriptures. This was a profound and significant break from the social norms of the time.
- Scripture has examples of women who were powerful, intelligent, and revered. In Judges, Deborah was a prophetess and a judge. Scripture gives us an entire book about a woman who saved the people of Israel (Esther). In Hebrews, Rahab, a prostitute, is given honor for her great faith.
That is only a small, minute portion about women in the Bible, their roles, and the Biblical authority of wives submitting to their husbands. Please feel free to dig deeper, as this is not the intention of this blog.
My intention is to flesh out a scripture I have been struggling with for some time now.
The scripture reads:
1 Corinthians 11: 1-16. Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ. 2I praise you for remembering me in everything and for holding to the traditions just as I passed them on to you. 3But I want you to realize that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man,a and the head of Christ is God. 4Every man who prays or prophesies with his head covered dishonors his head. 5But every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head—it is the same as having her head shaved. 6For if a woman does not cover her head, she might as well have her hair cut off; but if it is a disgrace for a woman to have her hair cut off or her head shaved, then she should cover her head.
7A man ought not to cover his head,b since he is the image and glory of God; but woman is the glory of man. 8For man did not come from woman, but woman from man; 9neither was man created for woman, but woman for man. 10It is for this reason that a woman ought to have authority over her ownc head, because of the angels. 11Nevertheless, in the Lord woman is not independent of man, nor is man independent of woman. 12For as woman came from man, so also man is born of woman. But everything comes from God.
13Judge for yourselves: Is it proper for a woman to pray to God with her head uncovered? 14Does not the very nature of things teach you that if a man has long hair, it is a disgrace to him, 15but that if a woman has long hair, it is her glory? For long hair is given to her as a covering. 16If anyone wants to be contentious about this, we have no other practice—nor do the churches of God.
As my ideas on this are still forming, think of this blog as more of an open conversation about the scripture. I’m still researching, praying, and pondering what this scripture actually means and wondering about the implications on my life. I have three main areas I’ve formed at this point- my personal conviction about the scripture, my fears, and my observations. I will attempt to flesh my ideas out as best possible, but know that I may begin rambling because I’m still working through this.
My convictions:
- I believe that scripture is inerrant and the inspired word of God. I believe that scripture reveals who God is through His great story. I struggle with scripture sometimes- specifically Paul’s letters- some of the things the Apostle Paul says are hard to swallow; just because they are hard or because I don’t want to agree with them does not mean they are not true.
- I want my life to be consistent with my theology. I know that perfection will never be attained, but I should strive to obey the commands of God and Jesus found in the scriptures. I don’t try to follow the commands because they will save me (grace saves me, not works), but I also know that Jesus says, “If you love me, you will obey my commands”- John 14: 15. I obey because it shows that I love Christ. I think this is a way to glorify God and a living testimony to the world.
- Now to the whole “head-covering” thing. There is nothing mystical or magical about head covering. Paul himself says that it is a “tradition”. A head covering was used a symbolic representation of a woman submitting herself under a man (read, a wife submitting to her husband). And while the covering itself may have very well been cultural, submission was (and is) not. If we had a more culturally relevant symbol that demonstrated submission under my husband, I would be more than happy to partake, but we don’t. Doesn’t our cultural, as much as any, need a visual, symbolic reminder of submission? I think it probably does.
Just like there is nothing mystical or magical about other symbols and traditions we still partake in as the church such as communion and baptism, I believe that a symbol of submission would be a beautiful, Biblical way to honor God, obey his commands, and in a way, celebrate the truth of scriptural submission.
Many people believe that long hair itself is what is being referred to a woman’s “covering”. I am still researching this and I’m torn. Because it specifically says “When praying or prophesying” I can’t help but wonder if it is talking about a “removable covering”. I’m not a scholar in Greek, so I’ll leave those arguments for someone more well versed than I, but I have seen intelligent people on both sides of the “long hair” v. “artificial covering” argument- enough that I am unsure of exactly what is meant. I do not believe that covering my head could make me more holy or righteous, as all those who have submitted their lives to Christ are as holy and righteous as Christ through his substitution. However, I do wonder if I should cover my head as a matter of obedience. I know, at least in these moments of my uncertainty, it is certainly not sinful or wrong to wear a head covering if convicted to do so. I also have considered that having a physical symbol of my choice to submit to by husband could be a conviction that I myself need to follow through with, even if it may be a misinterpretation of scripture on my part. Because submission is something I have personally struggled with, it could be possible that this is something I need to wear as a physical reminder of my choice to submit.
4. The end of verse 10 always throws me for a loop... “because of the angels”. What on earth does that mean? It’s the part of the verse I can’t justify out as culturally irrelevant. The angels are heavenly, spiritual beings outside of our cultural timelines. What am I potentially communicating, or not communicating, by not having a covering on my head? Even if there may not be implications I see here, could there be spiritual implication I have not accounted for? I can’t shake this one.
My next blog I’ll flesh out my fears of head covering, and then wrap up with some other observations I have had the privilege of making. Please do not take me as an authority on the subject, but just dialogue with me. I am really struggling with personal conviction on the topic and will likely begin to cover my head until I am convinced one way or another because of Romans 14:
14 As for the one who is weak in faith, welcome him, but not to quarrel over opinions. 2 One person believes he may eat anything, while the weak person eats only vegetables. 3 Let not the one who eats despise the one who abstains, and let not the one who abstains pass judgment on the one who eats, for God has welcomed him. 4 Who are you to pass judgment on the servant of another? It is before his own master[a] that he stands or falls. And he will be upheld, for the Lord is able to make him stand.
5 One person esteems one day as better than another, while another esteems all days alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. 6 The one who observes the day, observes it in honor of the Lord. The one who eats, eats in honor of the Lord, since he gives thanks to God, while the one who abstains, abstains in honor of the Lord and gives thanks to God. 7 For none of us lives to himself, and none of us dies to himself. 8 For if we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord's. 9 For to this end Christ died and lived again, that he might be Lord both of the dead and of the living.
10 Why do you pass judgment on your brother? Or you, why do you despise your brother? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God; 11 for it is written,
“As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me,
and every tongue shall confess[b] to God.”
12 So then each of us will give an account of himself to God.
13 Therefore let us not pass judgment on one another any longer, but rather decide never to put a stumbling block or hindrance in the way of a brother. 14 I know and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus that nothing is unclean in itself, but it is unclean for anyone who thinks it unclean. 15 For if your brother is grieved by what you eat, you are no longer walking in love. By what you eat, do not destroy the one for whom Christ died. 16 So do not let what you regard as good be spoken of as evil. 17 For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. 18 Whoever thus serves Christ is acceptable to God and approved by men. 19 So then let us pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding.
20 Do not, for the sake of food, destroy the work of God. Everything is indeed clean, but it is wrong for anyone to make another stumble by what he eats. 21 It is good not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything that causes your brother to stumble.[c] 22 The faith that you have, keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the one who has no reason to pass judgment on himself for what he approves. 23 But whoever has doubts is condemned if he eats, because the eating is not from faith. For whatever does not proceed from faith is sin.
If you have any thoughts, encouragements, or other comments on this topic, I welcome them, as I am really struggling through this. Have you ever felt conviction on this topic? Do you or anyone you know choose to wear a head covering? Dialogue with me! As I know this can be a contentious topic, just keep it kind!