Women should not be allowed to serve as priests - Rayvonne P. Bourne

Here's a letter in today's Kaieteur News responding to my column "There has been yet another important victory for women" :

Women should not be allowed to serve as priests

Dear Editor,

I came across an article by columnist Ms. Stella Ramsaroop in the Kaieteur News on 22nd June, 2006, in which she mentioned that a woman was elected to lead the denomination in the Anglican Communion worldwide. It was very amazing to discover that a woman was elected to become minister in the house of the Lord.

On the other hand it leads me to believe that the Bible is no longer being used correctly in relating God's teaching in our society today.

However, this first denomination in the Anglican Communion worldwide having a woman to serve as a leader in the ministry has made this columnist Ms. Stella Ramsaroop very proud from a woman's outlook and prospective without examining God's words, principle and teaching in the Bible, and additionally wishing for the day to come for women to have equal footing in every social, political, and religious aspect of life in society and involved in decision-making in the church.

From a biblical point of view, and as a Christian, I believe it is hypocritical and dishonourable to select a woman to serve as a leader in the house of the Lord. This however, should be condemned instantaneously in upholding the true teaching of the Bible and following God's words and principles in the Bible.

God has given man the power to have control over everything on the face of the earth. God himself explain his purpose for creating mankind and besides that, God said:

Let us make man in our image, according to our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping things that creeps on the earth' (Genesis 1:26) In all of God's physical creation, he made only man in the image and likeness of himself. He gave only man dominion or rule over the creation.

Secondly, women were created for the comfort of men and not to have control over God's supreme creation, which means that they shouldn't be allowed to serve as priests and become leaders in the house of the Lord and to have control over mankind and God's creation.

However, God has never given women the power to serve as priest and leaders in church. He has given man the power to have control over the earth and its people.

Therefore, women should not be allowed to serve as priest and become leaders in the house of the Lord.

The Bible has a number of examples of women serving as leaders. Queen Esther was instrumental in saving her people from total annihilation by petitioning God through fasting and assisting in writing a decree to protect the Jews.

Other prominent women in the Bible include Ruth, Deborah, Rahab and Miriam. Although the women played major roles, none of them were ever ministers or priests.

God has chosen the male to be leader of the household and to be the spiritual leader when it comes to preaching the gospel. God inspired the Apostle Paul to write: “Let your women keep silent in the churches, for they are not permitted to speak; but they are to be submissive, as the law also says.

And if they want to learn something, let them ask their own husbands at home; for it is shameful for women to speak in church” (I Corinthians 14:34-35). The women were to learn while at church and grow spiritually along with their husbands, but God never gave them the role of preaching.

However, they were to take that spiritual knowledge and use it to serve others and also to teach their children.

Actually, the Bible is a book of history in teaching God's word, and we should use it on a daily basis as an example in following God's teaching and principles of life and by upholding and obeying his Ten Commandments.

Finally, I am very sorry to disappoint my best columnist, Ms. Stella Ramsaroop, for her aspiration, wish, and desire for women in having equal footing in every social, political, and religious aspect of life in society.

Sorry, do keep up the good work, Stella.

Rayvonne P. Bourne

MY RESPONSE