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The movie, The DaVinci Code, now several years old, purported to reveal hidden information regarding Jesus Christ and the early church’s development within its story-line. It repeated allegations that have circulated for centuries; that Mary Magdalene was more than a spiritual supporter of Jesus’ ministry, being his lover if not his wife, possibly bearing him a child. As a result of that relationship, she supposedly rivaled Peter’s leadership of the early church; having lost a power struggle with him she was then relegated to being a particularly vile sinner, her offense designated – by the now male dominated church – as prostitution.1 (A story-line found in Gnostic gospels combining tenets of Greek philosophy, Oriental mysticism and Christianity.)

When author Dan Brown first published his book of the same name, Newsweek Magazine covered its release in a surprisingly balanced, straightforward manner.2 Among the assurances included by leading Biblical, historical and art scholars was that the young, beardless, somewhat effeminate individual seated next to Christ in DaVinci’s portrayal of The Last Supper was indeed the disciple John – not Mary – depicted beardless and less manly to emphasize his youth. Jesus’ possible marriage to Mary is also noted as having no basis in fact or credible innuendo.3Subsequently, over the last several years, a number of books have decisively refuted the “evidence” offered by Mr. Brown and others in their attempt to question and contradict scripture.4 So why is this still important?

Contention often centers on the so-called patriarchal system in place during much of our Bible’s development and two scriptural injunctions given by Paul concerning the behavior of women in church; as well as his teaching concerning marriage. In 1 Timothy 2:12 he writes, “I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man…”, recalling man’s status as first “born” and his partner Eve’s role in bringing temptation to him and sin to mankind; while his remarks in 1 Corinthians 14:34 concern his call for women’s silence in church and their being taught in detail at home. Although this could in part be referring to the admonition for peace rather than the disorder of debate in church between couples, it probably alludes primarily to the concept of the husband “ruling” over his wife from Genesis 3:16.

However, any unbiased reading of corollary scripture reveals Paul’s call for mutual respect and submission of wills between couples (Ephesians 5:22-23 and 1 Peter 3:1,2, & 7); with a hierarchy that gives allegiance to Christ first and foremost, acknowledging husbands as head of household and wives as consenting, involved partners. (Or as some say – the husband as head, his wife the neck that turns it!) Some question the necessity of a “leader” at home but any appraisal of successful work endeavors or organizations proves the wisdom of having some form of hierarchy. I honestly believe God creates people to fulfill roles, differing in particulars but in a broad sense promoting harmony, effectiveness and happiness in our families. (Which doesn’t preclude some overlap and exchange of skills.) Women tend to be more emotion driven, spiritually sensitive, considerate, patient, instructive and enabling; these characteristics ideally empowering them for supportive “ministries” that involve training and relational skills. (see 1 Peter 3:15) Men tend to be more demanding and commanding, corrective and inspiring by action; ideal characteristics for motivating, preaching, correcting, persuading “ministries”. (see 2 Timothy 4:2) Neither set of characteristics is better than the other however different they may be; their variety allowing them to address a larger number of people and situations. (It is worth noting that, at least initially, twelve men formed the nucleus of Jesus movement, receiving a certain entitlement as a result; however it was women who were recorded as being among the last at the crucifixion and first at the empty tomb as a result of their faithfulness to the person of Jesus.)

Much of this debate revolves around the question of whether scripture was written by men for men or inspired by God for mankind’s redemption; is it the infallible word of God or a fumbling attempt by men to understand God? And honestly, we may never fully comprehend all we read in God’s word; but if He says it, we must abide by it, hoping to gain understanding and ability through obedience. (Is. 55:8) It is however, beneficial to periodically re-examine our doctrine to insure we stand on God’s word, not man’s tradition. Kenneth Woodward noting that, “The test of Biblical scholarship is not how user-friendly it makes the scriptures to groups that feel neglected. Rather it is how well it sheds new light on texts that millions hold to be authoritative.”5 Those seeking to use the women of the Bible for fulfillment of political agendas today, ultimately hurt their own cause as gains made through manipulation of facts rarely last.

Criticism is frequently leveled at the Bible’s supposed silence concerning women’s exploits, but an honest appraisal of scripture reveals the large influence many women had on the affairs of biblical man – Sarah, Esther and Deborah to name but a few from the Old Testament; Mary the mother of Jesus and Mary Magdalene, the Apostle to the Apostles – so designated for being the first to see the risen Lord and proclaiming His resurrection to the other disciples, in the New.

In particular, the man who advocated silence for women was never-the-less quick to assert his gratitude for their efforts on behalf of him and the church. He notes Phoebe, “…a servant of the church” and “…a great help to many ..”; Priscilla, who opened her home to Paul and the church in Rome and Corinth; Mary, Persis, Tryphena and Tryphosa, as working hard for the Lord; as well as others who were instrumental in advancing the gospel. (See Romans 16 where diakonos, sometimes translated as Deacon or by some as Deaconness, translated here more accurately as servant.) Yet our Bibles were never meant to be a series of biographies, lack of detailed information not denoting lack of worth. Jesus and his closest associates, along with Paul, are the only New Testament characters who are scrutinized in detail and large segments of their lives are omitted as well; most of the disciples just simply disappear from the written record – which can be terribly frustrating as we wonder why. My personal feeling is that we are given the essentials, which is often more than we can handle and that much of the personal issues we crave would be merely distractive. The non-canonical writings that claim to give detailed histories often deal in fantasy while misguided reverence resulted in the near deification of Jesus’ mother, the Apostles and the “saints” of Catholicism. Silence not indicating conspiracy so much as an intent to lessen the opportunity for us to fix our eyes on the temporal rather than the eternal; as we often become over-awed by the exploits of others or complacent in over-familiarity.

At the core of this debate (besides questioning the veracity of the Gospels and the integrity of the church’s founding fathers) is the question of women in the pulpit.6 But do women have to be preaching ministers to have worth in the church? This question will have to be dealt with by today’s youth for them to be completely connected to and supportive of the church of Jesus Christ. And therein lies the real issue. It’s His church; to rule, administer or dispose of as He sees fit – it is merely ours to obey and grow as we do. We all are gifted in different ways and suited for different purposes, but we are all expected to find our place, fill that space and support everyone else in their ministry as well. (Rom. 12:4-8,1 Corinthians 12:12-31& 13:1-8)

1Depicted in the Gnostic Gospel of Mary; other Gnostic “gospels” depicting unbelievable, non-canonical “facts” about the early church, which are being re-circulated today by those wishing to cast dispersions on the church and its mission.

2“Decoding The DaVinci Code”, Newsweek, Dec. 8,2003

3 Newsweek’s subsequent coverage of the movie rightly characterizing it as intriguing yet fantasy, using Mary as a vehicle for thinly disguised social and political agendas.

4 For example, The DaVinci Code – Fact or Fiction by Hank Henegraff and Paul Maier; The DaVinci Deception by Erwin Lutzer; Misquoting Truth by Timothy Jones – to name but a few.

5 “God’s Woman Trouble”, Newsweek, Dec. 8,2003

6 Dealt with in part by Pat Wingert and Karen Springen in, “The Bible’s Lost Stories”, Newsweek, Dec. 8,
2003

"Today's Little Lift" from Jim Bullington

Comfort in Isaiah II (12-14-10)