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1
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-
THE ROLE & FUNCTION
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OF
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CHRISTIAN WOMEN
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IN MINISTRY
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2
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- The Apostle Paul and Women
- I am a Pharisee, the son of a Pharisee: of the hope and resurrection of
the dead I am called in question.
- But Paul said, I am a man which am a Jew of Tarsus, a city in Cilicia, a
citizen of no mean city: and, I beseech thee, suffer me to speak unto
the people.
- 25 And as they bound him
with thongs, Paul said unto the centurion that stood by, Is it lawful
for you to scourge a man that is a Roman, and uncondemned?
- 27 Then the chief captain
came, and said unto him, Tell me, art thou a Roman? He said, Yea.
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3
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- 4 My manner of life from my
youth, which was at the first among mine own nation at Jerusalem, know
all the Jews;
- 5 Which knew me from the
beginning, if they would testify, that after the most straitest sect of
our religion I lived a Pharisee.
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4
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- Paul was a Pharisee -Strict
- Paul was a legalist when converted.
- Corinth was a seaport city with temple worship with godess sexual
worship
- Vocal women were dominate in the heathern worship.
- Jewish women were culturally taught to be silent and be taught by their
husbands.
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5
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- Paul in his letter to the church in corinth gave instructions regarding
order in worship, and the gift of tongues
- I Corinthians 14
- 12 So it is with you. Since
you are eager to have spiritual gifts, try to excel in gifts that build
up the church.
- 13 For this reason anyone
who speaks in a tongue should pray that he may interpret what he says.
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6
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- 18 I thank God that I speak
in tongues more than all of you.
- 19 But in the church I would
rather speak five intelligible words to instruct others than ten
thousand words in a tongue.
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7
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- 1 Corinthians 14
- 26 What then shall we say,
brothers? When you come together, everyone has a hymn, or a word of
instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation. All of these
must be done for the strengthening of the church.
- 27 If anyone speaks in a
tongue, two--or at the most three--should speak, one at a time, and
someone must interpret.
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8
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- 1 Corinthians 14
- 28 If there is no
interpreter, the speaker should keep quiet in the church and speak to
himself and God.
- 29 Two or three prophets
should speak, and the others should weigh carefully what is said.
- 30 And if a revelation comes
to someone who is sitting down, the first speaker should stop.
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9
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- 31 For you can all prophesy
in turn so that everyone may be instructed and encouraged.
- 32 The spirits of prophets
are subject to the control of prophets.
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10
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- 1 Corinthians 14:
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33 For God is not the
author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints.
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34 Let your women
keep silence in the churches: for it is not permitted unto them to
speak; (Under Jewish Law) but they are commanded to be under obedience,
as also saith the law.
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35 And if they will
learn any thing, let them ask their husbands at home: for it is a shame
for women to speak in the church.
(Jewish cultural law)
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11
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- I Timothy 2:
- 9 In like manner also, that
women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and
sobriety;not with broided
hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly array;
- 10 But (which becometh women
professing godliness) with good works.
- 11 Let the woman learn in
silence with all subjection.
- 12 But I suffer not a woman
to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence.
- 13 For Adam was first
formed, then Eve.
- 14 And Adam was not
deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression.
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12
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- The more Paul learned the methods of Jesus, the more he realized that Jesus
was inclusive of all and that Spiritual Gifts were given by the Holy
Spirit “to whomever He wills.”
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13
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- Specific women that were associated with Jesus in His Ministry.
- Mary the Mother of Jesus
- Mary Magdalene: Became a disciple
- Johanna
- Susanna
- Mary the Mother of James
- Salome
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14
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- Specific women that were associated with Paul in His Ministry
- Apphia - Philemon 2 Priscilla - Acts/Rom.
- Euodia - Philippians 4 Syntyche - Philippians
- Lydia - Acts 16 Tryphena - Rom. 16
- Mary of Rome - Romans 16 Tryphosa - Rom. 16
- Nymphia - Colosians 4
- Persis - Romans 16
- Phoebe - Romans 16
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15
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- Philippians 4: 3
- And I entreat thee also, true yokefellow, help those women which
laboured with me in the gospel, with Clement also, and with other my
fellow labourers, whose names are in the book of life.
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16
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- Galatians 3:
- 26 For ye are all the
children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.
- 27 For as many of you as
have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. (not Jewish law)
- 28 There is neither Jew nor
Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female:
for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.
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17
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- -PT- (Australasian) Union Conference Record -DT- 03-01-01
- -AT- Work in San Francisco -PR- 14 -TEXT-
-
There are men and women whom the Lord, through peculiar
circumstances,will bring to the front in His work. These will be men and
women who have consecrated themselves to Him. As they walk before Him in
faith and trust, He will lead them to places of usefulness and honour.
To those who rely upon Him He is a present help in every time of need.
Those who honour His name He will qualify for important and perilous
service. They may not have time to obtain all the education they desire,
but the great Teacher understands. What He calls for is the willing devotion
of heart and mind. When this is given Him, He will fit the givers for His
service, in spite of apparent difficulties and obstacles. In His name
and in His strength they will go forth to conquer.
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18
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- TI- Loma Linda Messages -PR- 03 -PG- 428 -TEXT-
- Opportunities
are before you; if studious and upright,
- you may obtain an education of the highest value. Make the most
- of your privileges. Be not satisfied with ordinary attainment;
- seek to qualify yourselves to fill positions of trust in connection
- with the Lord's work in the earth. United with the God
- of wisdom and power, you may become intellectually strong, and
- increasingly capable as soul-winners. You may become men and
- women of responsibility and influence, if, by the power of your
- will, coupled with divine strength, you earnestly engage in the
- work of securing a proper training.
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19
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- TI- Manuscript Releases Volume One -CN- 62 -CT- Governing Principles in
the Remuneration of SDA Workers
-PR- 03 -PG- 263 -TEXT-
- God has
entrusted talents to His servants, and He expects them to see that
mistakes can be readily made. Make no mistake in neglecting to correct
the error of giving ministers less than they should receive. When you
see persons in necessity who have been placed in positions of trust, let
God move upon your heart to set things right. The tithe should go to
those who labor in word and doctrine, be they men or women. <SU Ms
149, 1899
- <EU,
p. 3. ("Paying Women Workers," October 24, 1899.)
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20
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- TI- Historical Sketches of the Foreign Missions of the Seventh-day
Adventists. -CN- 1 -CT- Practical Addresses -PR- 06 -PG- 124, 125
- -TEXT- "And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some,
evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; for the perfecting of the
saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of
Christ; till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge
of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature
of the fullness of Christ.”
- (Continued on next slide)
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21
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- God is seeking through his prophets and apostles to make us perfect;
- but if we would become
- perfect men and women
- in Christ, we must
- "come in the unity
- of the faith."
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22
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- TI- Manuscript Releases Volume Five -CN- 330
- -CT- Women as Workers in the Cause of God -PR- 04 -PG- 325
- -TEXT- There
are women who should labor in the gospel ministry. In many respects they
would do more good than the ministers who neglect to visit the flock of
God. Husband and wife may unite in this work, and when it is possible,
they should. The way is open for consecrated women. But the enemy would
be pleased to have the women whom God could use to help hundreds, binding up their time and
strength on one helpless little mortal, that requires constant care and
attention.
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23
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24
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- The experience thus gained will be of the greatest value to those who
are fitting themselves for the ministry. It is the
- accompaniment of the
- Holy Spirit of God that
- prepares workers, both
- men and women, to
- become pastors to the
- flock of God.
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25
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- Continued from T6 p322
- As they cherish the thought that Christ is their Companion, a holy awe,
a sacred joy, will be felt by them amid all their trying experiences and
all their tests. They will learn how to pray as they work. They will be
educated in patience, kindness, affability, and helpfulness. They will
practice true Christian courtesy, bearing in mind that Christ, their
Companion, cannot approve of harsh, unkind words or feelings…….CONTINUED
ON NEXT SLIDE
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26
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- CONTINUED
- Their words will be purified. The power of speech will be regarded as a
precious talent, lent them to do a high and holy work. The human agent
will learn how to represent the divine Companion with whom he is
associated. To that unseen Holy One he will show respect and reverence
because he is wearing His yoke and is learning His pure, holy ways.
Those who have faith in this divine Attendant will develop. They will be
gifted with power to clothe the message of truth with a sacred beauty.
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27
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- TI- The Adventist Home -CN- 17 -CT- Mutual Obligations -PR- 01 -PG- 115
- -TEXT- SB God's Instruction
to Eve. <EB--Eve was told of the sorrow and pain that must henceforth
be her portion. And the Lord said, "Thy desire shall be to thy
husband, and he shall rule over thee." In the creation, God had
made her the equal of Adam. Had they remained obedient to God--in
harmony with His great law of love--they would ever have been in harmony
with each other; but sin had brought discord, and now their union could
be maintained and harmony preserved only by submission on the part of
the one or the other.
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28
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- Eve had been the first in
transgression; and she had fallen into temptation by separating from her
companion, contrary to the divine direction. It was by her solicitation
that Adam sinned, and she was now placed in subjection to her husband. Had
the principles enjoined in the law of God been cherished by the fallen
race, this sentence, though growing out of the results of sin, would
have proved a blessing to them; but man's abuse of the supremacy thus
given him has too often rendered the lot of woman very
- bitter, and
made her life a burden.
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29
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- -DT- 06-01-80 -AT-
Influence of Woman
- -PR- 06 -TEXT-
- Woman, if
she wisely improves her time and her faculties, relying upon God for
wisdom and strength, may stand on an equality with her husband as
adviser, counselor, companion, and co-worker, and yet lose none of her
womanly grace or modesty. She may elevate her own character, and just as
she does this she is elevating and ennobling the characters of her
family, and exerting a powerful though unconscious influence upon others
around her.
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30
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- Why should not women
cultivate the intellect? Why should they not answer the purpose of God
in their existence? Why may they not understand their own
- powers, and
realizing that these powers are given of God, strive to make use of them
to the fullest extent in doing good to others, in advancing the work of
reform, of truth and real goodness, in the world? Satan knows that women
have a power of influence for good or for evil; therefore he seeks to
enlist
- them in his cause.
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31
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- -TI- The Faith I Live By -CN- 9 -CT-
- The Christ-Centered Home -PR- 03 -PG- 251
- -TEXT-
- God
Himself gave Adam a companion. He provided "an help meet for
him"--a helper corresponding to him--one who was fitted to be his
companion, and who could be one with him in love and sympathy.
- Eve was created
from a rib taken from the side of Adam, signifying that she was not to
control him as the head, nor to be trampled under his feet as an
inferior, but to stand by his side as an equal, to be loved and
protected by him.
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32
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- TI- The Acts of the Apostles -CN- 11 -CT-
- The Gospel in Samaria -PR-
03 -PG- 105
- -TEXT- Among
those to whom the Saviour had given the commission, "Go ye
therefore, and teach all nations" (Matthew 28:19), were many from
the humbler walks of life--men and women who had learned to love their
Lord and who had determined to follow His example of unselfish service.
To these lowly ones, as well as to the disciples who had been with the
Saviour during His earthly ministry, had been given a precious trust.
They were to carry to the world the glad tidings of salvation through
Christ.
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33
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- Advent Review & Sabbath Herald
7/30/1895
- The mother of one of the sisters who has now taken her position on the
truth, has been a most bitter opposer, and has threatened that if her
daughter did become a Sabbath-keeper, she would not allow her to enter
her home; for the mother would look upon her as a disgrace to the
family. Mrs. A. had often made the statement that she would never join
the Seventh-day Adventists.
- (Continued on next slide)
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34
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- She had been brought up in the Presbyterian Church, and had been
educated to think that it was very improper for women to speak in
meeting, and that for a woman to preach was altogether beyond the bounds
of propriety. (Continued
next slide)
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35
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- She enjoyed hearing Elders Daniells and Corliss, and thought them very
clever speakers, but she would not listen to a woman's preaching. Her
husband had prayed that God would so arrange matters that she might be
converted under the ministry of sister White….
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36
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- When I made the appeal,
- and urged those to
- come forward who felt
- their need of drawing
- nearer to God,to the
- surprise of all,
- these sisters came
- forward.
- (Continued on next slide)
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37
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- The sister who had lost her little one, said that she was determined
that she would not move forward, but the Spirit of the Lord so forcibly
impressed her mind that she dared not refuse. When the brethren A. saw
their wives going forward, they said they felt like leaping and praising
God. (Continuted on
Next Slide)
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38
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- They could hardly believe their own eyes. These men have proved God's
promise true; for in asking they have received, and their faith has been
greatly increased in him who has made every promise sure in Jesus
Christ.
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39
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- Women are needed in the work for the salvation of souls.--Women can be
the instruments of righteousness, rendering holy service. It was Mary
that first preached a risen Jesus. In fulfillment of the divine plan,
the Son of Man came to seek and save that which was lost. . . . Those
who engage with the Son of God in His work, be they ever so aspiring,
can have no greater, no holier work than this.
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40
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- If there were twenty women where now there is one, who would make this
holy mission their cherished work, we should see more converts to the
truth. The refining, softening influence of Christian woman is needed in
the great work of preaching the truth.
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41
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- The Lord of the vineyard is saying to many women who are now doing
nothing, "Why stand ye here all day idle?" Zealous and
continued diligence in our sisters toiling for the spread of the truth
would be wholly successful, and would astonish us with its results.
Through patience and perseverance, the work must be accomplished. . . .
We are lacking in deeds of sympathy and benevolence, in sacred and
social ministering to the needy, the oppressed, and the suffering.
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42
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- Women who can work are needed now, women who are not self-important, but
meek and lowly of heart, who will work with the meekness of Christ
wherever they can find work to do for the salvation of souls.--RH, Jan.
2, 1879. {PaM 76.1}
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43
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- Spouses may unite in work.--There are women who should labor in the
gospel ministry. In many respects they would do more good than the
ministers who neglect to visit the flock of God. Husband and wife may
unite in this work, and when it is possible, they should. The way is
open for consecrated women.--5MR 325, 326. {PaM 76.2}
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44
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- The Lord would have
ministers and their spouses closely united in the work.--The work of God
demands most earnest labor, and the Lord would have ministers and their
wives closely united in this work. The husband and wife can so blend in
labor that the wife shall be the complement of the husband.
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45
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- The Lord desires them unitedly to watch for His voice, to draw closer
and still closer unto Him, feeding upon His Word, and receiving light
and blessing to impart to others. They should be as free as possible to
attend campmeetings and other general gatherings. And the wife may
continually be a great help to her husband in visiting and other
personal labor.
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46
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- When possible, let minister
and spouse work together.--When it is possible, let the minister and his
wife go forth together. The wife can often labor by the side of her
husband, accomplishing a noble work. She can visit the homes of the
people and help the women in these families in a way that her husband
cannot.--Ev 491. {PaM 77.1}
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47
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- Some spouses should receive wages.--There are ministers' wives, Sisters
Starr, Haskell, Wilson and Robinson, who have been devoted, earnest,
whole-souled workers, giving Bible readings and praying with families,
helping along by personal efforts just as successfully as their
husbands. These women give their whole time, and are told that they
receive nothing for their labors because their husbands receive their
wages.
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48
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- I tell them to go forward and all such decisions shall be reversed. The
Word says, "The laborer is worthy of his hire." When any such
decision as this is made, I will in the name of the Lord, protest. I
will feel it in my duty to create a fund from my tithe money, to pay
these women who are accomplishing just as essential work as the
ministers are doing, and this tithe I will reserve for work in the same
line as that of the ministers, hunting for souls, fishing for souls.
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49
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- Since it is evident that Ellen White was a preacher as well as a
prophet, and since in all of her counsels to the remnant church she
never referred to the text of Paul in his letter to the Corinthians, and
since no other biblical writer established this counsel for all
churches….
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50
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- It was counsel that Paul gave to the church in Corinth because of the
unique condition of the the character of the church in that location.
The text also says that there were men who were not properly
contributing to the issue, and were counseled to be silent.
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51
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- Let us look at our materials
- The Yellow Pages
- What Does the Bible say about Ordination ?
- How did the Early SDA Church Practice Ordination ?
- Were Women Used in Ministerial Service ?
- What Does Ellen White Say About Womens’ Ordination ?
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52
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- OFFICIAL ACTIONS
- of
- The Seventh-day Adventist Church
- and
- The Role of Women
- In Ministry
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53
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- The 1973 Annual Council:
- Voted to appoint women to pastoral and evangelistic work, and that
appropriate missionary credentials/licenses be granted them.
- The 1974 Spring council: Pages 12-14.
- The greatest discretion and caution be exercised in the ordaining of
women to the office of “Local Elder .
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54
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- Since that time 100’s of churches in the NAD have ordained
1000’s of women to the office of local church Elder.
- 1984 Action of the NAD: To reaffirm the action of the GC Committee in
1975 and to advice each division that it is free to make provisions
… for the election and ordination of women as local Elders.
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55
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- The Ordination of Women to the Gospel Ministry as Pastors
- The recommendation from the North American Division to the World Church
at the General Conference Session of 1995, was to take an action to
ordain Women into the Gospel Ministry. The motion was voted Down.
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56
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- The Seventh-day Adventist Church is a very diverse family of believers.
We are a multitude of Cultures, each with its own perspective on issues
that affect the life of the church. We have agreed on a body of
doctrines that are non-negotiable.
- However, The status, position, and acceptance of women in leadership
roles differ from one culture to the other.
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57
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- Since the majority of the churches’ membership is outside of North
America in counties whose acceptance of the role of the woman is
different than that in North America, the vote of the delegates in the
“representative” form of Church governance was driven primarily by culture
rather than scripture. Inasmuch as ordination to the ministry is a world
wide credential, the issue was voted down.
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58
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- The Seventh-day Adventist Church continues to
- operate in accordance with the actions of the Annual council of 1973 in
the appointing of called and qualified women to pastoral and
evangelistic work and provide appropriate credentials and licenses to
them .
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59
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- Final Questions
- and
- wrap up
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60
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- THE END
-
THE ROLE & FUNCTION
-
OF
-
CHRISTIAN WOMEN
-
IN MINISTRY
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61
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62
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63
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Notes
