Women’s Voices Matter

By Lorin Lowrie Scott, Director of Embrace Grace Ministries, North Fort Worth Baptist Church

Over the past several years in Baptist life, the debate surrounding women in ministry has been diverse and heated. Even the phrase, “women in ministry” has become so loaded with political and emotional undertones that one is wary of bringing it up in conversation in Baptist settings. As a millennial woman serving in ministry at my local church, this issue is not just a theological issue; it has been personal and even at times, hurtful. When I heard there was a panel on “Women in Ministry” at the BGCT annual convention in Waco, I made a point to drop everything and attend. I was excited to see this topic was highlighted and well-attended. However, I felt dismayed when I discovered that out of a panel of 6, there was only one woman sharing her voice and perspective on a topic that is about women. At the beginning of the event, it was communicated that the desire behind the panel was to provide ethnic and theological diversity, it was baffling to me that there were not more women that could have filled these diverse qualifications to help provide a balanced panel. On a topic where the roles of women play an integral part of the discussion, women’s voices need to be a part of that conversation.

The purpose of the panel was to provide an understanding of the various biblical interpretations on the role of women in ministry among the “Texas Baptist family.” The panel participants ranged from seminary professors, to authors, to senior pastors. And their views ranged from the conservative/complementarian approach to the egalitarian perspective with women serving as senior pastors. Miguel Lopez represented the conservative perspective stating that God ordained men and women to have different roles and only men can hold the office of pastor/elder. Perspectives affirming expanded roles for women in ministry were also well-articulated. Steve Bezner described his church’s lengthy journey of biblical and prayer-filled study which reframed their approach to women’s roles. Todd Still recited the history of women serving, prophesying, and sharing the good news throughout the New Testament.  Dwight McKissic humorously dropped his mic after stating, “…if Jesus could approve of a woman in a coed group in the New Testament, why can’t I?”.[1] A recap of the event concluded that the “Panel finds differing views on women in ministry not a barrier to collaboration in God’s mission.”[2] On the whole, however, I find that to be a sunnier response to the panel than I found. While I appreciated the messages of affirming women and their roles and desire to work together in our called kingdom work, I felt the stark absence of women’s participation in this discussion left that message almost hollow. To me, how can you say you value women and their work in ministry when women aren’t even at the table?

I do want to recognize and thank Pastor Maddie Rarick of Meadow Oaks Baptist Church in Temple for her bravery and commitment to be the sole voice for women on the panel. In what would have been a rather uncomfortable situation for many women, she carried herself beautifully and communicated her views with conviction. Her voice and representation of women at that panel mattered to many of the women present.

In response to my comment on the unfortunate lack of female participation on texasbaptist.org article about the panel, several replied that male and female perspectives aren’t relevant, only the Bible’s perspective and teachings matter. While I agree with the conviction that the Bible’s teachings matter, we cannot ignore that we do not read the Bible in a vacuum. The way we read, interpret, and resonate with scripture is impacted by our culture, our time, our worldview, and even our gender. I believe that there is value in hearing from both genders on this issue, especially regarding women’s roles in ministry. Women have the unique perspective of voicing how God’s call on their lives, ministries, and vocations can speak to their interpretation of scripture on this issue.

One of my favorite passages in the Bible is when Jesus talks to the Samaritan woman in the fourth chapter of John. When it was culturally, socially, and politically taboo for Jesus to speak to a Samaritan woman, Jesus digs in. He listens to her. He hears her pain, her beliefs, and her life experiences. Her voice matters to Jesus. Not only that, Jesus uses her voice to share with her community his Messianic revelation. According to John 4:39, “Many of the Samaritans from the town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, ‘He told me everything I ever did.’ When the Samaritans came to him, they urged him to stay with them, and he stayed for two days. And because of his words, many more became believers.” Jesus found value in the Samaritan woman’s experience, perspective, and voice and used her in mighty ways for God’s glory. Her voice matters.

In my opinion, one of the biggest lessons to be learned from the controversies over the past several years at the SBC, and even at the BGCT to a certain degree, is that Baptist women want to have their voices heard and that their experiences and expertise be valued. This panel over “Women in Ministry” could be considered a missed opportunity to give women, literally, a seat at their own table. To have their perspective heard, their experiences and expertise valued, to know that their voices matter.

[1] Calli Keener. “Texas Baptists panel discusses women in ministry.” Baptist Standard, November 13, 2024, https://www.baptiststandard.com/news/texas/texas-baptists-panel-discusses-women-in-ministry/.

[2] Bonnie Hirschfield. “Panel finds differing views on women in ministry not a barrier to collaboration in God’s mission.” Texas Baptists, November 12, 2024, https://www.texasbaptists.org/article/panel-finds-differing-views-on-women-in-ministry-not-a-barrier-to-collaboration-in-gods-mission.

*The views expressed are those solely of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the Pastor’s Common