Leadership
LEADERSHIP...
I want to share this with a compassionate heart, because I know what it’s like to wrestle with what we see and what we know from God’s Word.
I walked into a CME church in Eugene one Sunday. The CME church is a Black church, rich with history and pain and praise. But it was headed by a woman, and she wasn’t grounded in Oregonian politics or in the order I’ve read in Scripture. I struggled with this question: Are we ready for a progressive mix of whites and all races in that church, teaching more from experience than from the Bible?
When I was in there, I wasn’t struggling with doubt. I was experiencing visions. When you have people pray for you and you see things — you see holiness, and you see outsiders mixing in with the pain of us, with the pain of slavery — it shakes you. I felt that old pain of slavery rise up, like the Lord was letting me see how deep the wounds still go.
And in the middle of it, I held to what I know: the Bible teaches us the man is first and the woman is second. I have spoken about this before. Read your Bible. Have knowledge of how Adam was formed first, then Eve. 1 Timothy 2:13 isn’t my opinion — it’s God’s order. Women are gifted, anointed, and called to teach, but the office of headship, of pastor, was given to men.
That doesn’t mean a woman can’t love, can’t pray, can’t carry power. It means there is an order, and when we step outside of it, confusion comes. When teaching comes more from experience than from the Word, we lose our anchor. And our people — Black, white, all races — we need the anchor more than ever.
I say this with compassion, not condemnation. I know what it’s like to hunger for truth in a room full of emotion. I know what it’s like to see visions and feel the weight of history in a sanctuary. But I also know that peace comes when we line up with Scripture.
So to the next generation, to that church, to anyone listening: Go back to the Word. Love each other, all races, all backgrounds. But let the Bible lead, not just experience. Let men and women walk in the roles God gave, because that’s where the healing is.
With love and truth,
Cathryn
