women serving lord's supper

[Lev]

Does anyone recall a COC teaching about why, exactly, it was forbidden for women to serve the Lord's Supper? I'm referring specifically to the act of standing up front (silently, duh!) during the mini-sermon and prayer, then walking down the aisle, passing the plates from row to row. In all my years at the COC I never once saw a woman perform this duty. I have no idea why, even when I put myself back into COC-mode. The best I can come up with is some kind of 'slippery slope' argument where one day you're serving the Lord's Supper, the next you're in the pulpit... though I can't recall ever hearing this argument actually made.

Lev

[lvmaus]

Does anyone recall a COC teaching about why, exactly, it was forbidden for women to serve the Lord's Supper? I'm referring specifically to the act of standing up front (silently, duh!) during the mini-sermon and prayer, then walking down the aisle, passing the plates from row to row. In all my years at the COC I never once saw a woman perform this duty. I have no idea why, even when I put myself back into COC-mode. The best I can come up with is some kind of 'slippery slope' argument where one day you're serving the Lord's Supper, the next you're in the pulpit... though I can't recall ever hearing this argument actually made.

Lev

The 'slippery slope' argument is probably the primary reason a woman is barely allowed to breathe in the CoC. They believe if a woman is given an inch she'll take a mile. These churches insist on gagging and chaining their women to the pew so the men can exercise righteous control over them ... sad state of affairs!

[Porcupine]

At the church I go to women some times do "the Lords supper". It still bothers my wife.

I just knew that it was wrong for women to do this. I was told because of the public prayer during the communion. I mean they were standing up front even if they didn't pray.

http://lavistachurchofchrist.org/LVansw ... 11-05.html

And finally, while women participate in worship, such as in joining in the songs sung, they are not allowed to lead the worship. They are required to show submission by being silent and allowing the men to do the required speaking.

I think it all comes back to usurping authority

Now if only women were in the building and no men were around it would be OK.

[lvmaus]

I think it all comes back to usurping authority

Now if only women were in the building and no men were around it would be OK.

Everything would be hunky dory until a little 10 year-old boy who has been baptized happened to enter the room, at that point only silence would be acceptable for the women ... anything else would be usurping the "mans" authority.

One Sunday morning I was privy to a conversation concerning a teacher for the 10-12 year-old boys and girls who didn't show up for his Sunday school class; one of the women close to me volunteered to take the class, but an elder leaned over the pew and told her she couldn't teach the class because a couple young boys who had been baptized were in the class, and she had no authority to teach these boys ... good place for another eye roll.

[Porcupine]

I think it is OK for women to do puppets to dunked boys as long as they hide their face

L2L rules I think

[Lev]

Specifically regarding serving the Lord's Supper, not leading prayer, not "presiding" over the Lord's Supper, not teaching Bible classes, etc., I cannot come up with one good reason, even doing my best to use COC-logic, why women should not be allowed to participate. I mean, it's serving food! Isn't that the exclusive domain of women in the COC? I remember a discussion on the old board about some old biddies being incredulous that men could even cook. Why would the silent job of serving the Lord's Supper be forbidden to women? I know it has something to do with standing up front, but surely even the most die-hard COCer knows that this is a modern arrangement and that the first century church probably didn't do the Lord's Supper like we do. Any ideas?

Lev

[lvmaus]

I think it is OK for women to do puppets to dunked boys as long as they hide their face

L2L rules I think

Whether they hide their faces or not, the women puppeteers must remain silent; perhaps a mans voice could be piped into the classroom directly into the puppets mouth, while the women work the strings in the background.

[zeek]

.

[Lev]

...perhaps a mans voice could be piped into the classroom directly into the puppets mouth, while the women work the strings in the background.

Hmmm, perhaps this explains a lot!

[Lev]

I have long raised questions about how an inspired writer could emphatically declare the absolute equality of all believers regardless of race, gender or slave-free status in Gal. 3:28 then in other writings declare gender specific regulations regarding who may do what "in the church". Every time I have ever pointed this out or raised questions to the gnostics of the coC I've been quickly told that "there's no inconsistency in this". Sure looks inconsistent to me. Either we are all one (that is equal) and entitled to the same privileges and rights with in the body or we are not. It can't be both ways

I agree and have wondered the same thing. My original question here was about the prohibition against women serving the Lord's Supper, within the current COC paradigm. Still, your point is a good one: how can the same Paul say that "there is neither... male nor female" (Gal 3:28) and then prohibit women from even speaking in 1 Cor 14:34-35 and 1 Tim 2:11-15? Then, the COC goes beyond the supposed prohibition against speaking and forbids women to participate in non-speaking or non-assembly roles such as serving the Lord's Supper or participating in so-called business meetings.

The Corinthians passage can be convincingly explained as Paul quoting back to the Corinthians their own query and then responding in vv. 36-38 (sort of like I've done with zeek's point above). That would explain the rough transition ("What?!") at the beginning of v. 36. The Timothy passage is more difficult. The most convincing explanation I've seen is that the word translated "women" should be "wives" and that the word translated "man" should be "husband." This would restrict the silence command to women speaking out over their husbands.

The point is that, as zeek articulated above, if Paul was inspired he shouldn't contradict himself. Those of us who choose to believe that he was need to find a way to rectify these three seemingly contradictory passages. The explanations I've summarized here might do that, but they're obviously not convincing to everybody.

Lev