I honestly don’t understand why this is still an issue in the NAD.  We have had women’s suffrage for quite some time now and other denominations have openly welcomed full privileges to female clergy.  Women are proving to be vital to any and every part of society, and women are, at times, even having higher salaries than their husbands.  I do not claim myself to be fully knowledgable about Biblical support for or against this issue, nor do I fully understand the Adventist history behind this concern, but it has been brought up time and time again to only be dismissed for “further study.” 

It is shameful that women are not properly represented in the higher echelons of the Adventist church.  It is shameful that probably the unions and conferences that are deciding against women’s ordination probably have absolutely no female representation on their boards.  It is shameful that my home church cannot even accept female elders, let alone female pastors.  It is shameful that my very own uncle once said “better female elders than female pastors.”

Why?  Tell me straight to my face that I am not fit for God’s blessing for an elder or pastoral role.  Compliment me on my longtime youth leadership in Sabbath School, Pathfinders, and Music Ministry, but tell me that I cannot have the same privileges as my fiancee, a soon-to-be minister.  Tell me that the legal title is all I need, not the spiritually-minded acceptance of such a position.

We cannot say that God loves us all equally if we say that God only chooses men to lead the church.  We cannot say that we are really a body of Christ, that we are all one in Christ, if we cannot fully acknowledge women and their vital roles in every position in the church.  The body is made up of many parts, as Paul said, but women can only be certain organs.

If “ordination” is just a title, that women can have all the same privileges as their male counterparts as “commissioned” clergy, then what is stopping the world-wide church from switching their terminology over?  What does this decision really say about their view of women?  Using “commissioned” and denying women of the “ordained” title creates an extremely apparent glass ceiling in the Adventist church.

If anything, it is shameful that most of the discussion about this issue is being stirred up by men, both for and against the issue at hand.  Why is that?  Where are the women? I know there are women far more educated on the matter than I am; what actions are they taking to propel this issue?

What’s especially disgusting is how certain unions in the NAD (namely, the Southern Union) have said that they continue their “commitment to supporting, encouraging, empowering, and celebrating the involvement of women in ministry” but they cannot ordain them.  In support of this statement, a Pastor Kevin Paulson says, “Praise God that the region of this country which once spawned secession is now an anchor of loyalty.” 

An anchor of loyalty? To whom? The general conference? Scripture? God?  The region of the country that once spawned secession is now an anchor to bias and backward thinking.

Let’s be truly loyal to the Scriptures with an understanding of their application to present times.  Let the church who was against slavery now despise the continual belittling of women’s efforts and privileges in the church.  Let’s end all hinderances to actualizing God’s kingdom in this world.  Let’s take a stand to fully affirm the role of women in both clergy and lay positions in our church.  Let’s ordain women.

(Originally from my Blogspot)