Getting Biblical in Daily Life
Slavery
Okay, this topic is totally a no-brainer. Obviously, slavery is a terrible, immoral, awful idea. It's not something the Bible could support…right?
Wrong.
The Pastor actually has quite a bit to say about slavery. Sadly, none of it is good:
Let all who are under the yoke of slavery regard their masters as worthy of all honor, so that the name of God and the teaching may not be blasphemed. Those who have believing masters must not be disrespectful to them on the ground that they are members of the church; rather they must serve them all the more, since those who benefit by their service are believers and beloved. (1 Timothy 6:1-2)
Tell slaves to be submissive to their masters and to give satisfaction in every respect; they are not to talk back, not to pilfer, but to show complete and perfect fidelity, so that in everything they may be an ornament to the doctrine of God our Savior. (Titus 2:9-10)
Bottom line: the Pastor is condoning slavery. What's more, these verses put the burden on slaves to do their Christian duty by working and obeying.
What about their masters? Lots of Bible verses discuss (and endorse) human slavery, but many times, the biblical authors put restrictions on how masters could treat and deal with slaves. Israelites could be kept as slaves, but only for seven years (Exodus 21:2). They were allowed to celebrate the Sabbath. You could also get the death penalty for beating a slave to death (Exodus 21:20-21).
But here, the Pastor is only concerned with how Christian slaves should act. They should obey their masters and behave themselves; after all, that's what God wants, right? Slaves also shouldn't expect special treatment if their masters also happen to be Christian. Huh, we guess the Pastor didn't think Paul meant it when he wrote that whole "there is no longer slave of free" (Galatians 3:28) thing.
The Pastor further criticizes anyone who disagrees with him. Right after he finishes telling slaves how to behave themselves, he says:
Whoever teaches otherwise and does not agree with the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ and the teaching that is in accordance with godliness, is conceited, understanding nothing, and has a morbid craving for controversy and for disputes about words. From these come envy, dissension, slander, base suspicions, and wrangling among those who are depraved in mind and bereft of the truth, imagining that godliness is a means of gain. (1 Timothy 6:3-5)
Abolitionists, take note.
On the plus side, the Pastor does call out some practices around slavery. He specifically says that slave traders are part of the "lawless and disobedient […] godless and sinful […] unholy and profane" and that they're acting "contrary to the sound teaching" (1 Timothy 1:9-10).
If all people are loved and equal in God's eyes, how could the Pastor just give slavery a big ol' shoulder shrug? Part of it is the time he lived in. In the first century CE, slavery was just a way of life in the Roman Empire (source). Foreigners and prisoners of war were routinely kept as slaves. Sometimes Romans would even sell their children into slavery.
Remember, too, that the Pastor is all about enforcing social and cultural norms. He wants Christians to behave in a way that doesn't attract attention. If any Christians (especially slaves) started getting too lippy, disobedient, and outspoken, it would reflect really poorly on the whole community. The Pastor believes that Christians can't rock the boat if they want to have any kind of future at all.
So how have Christians handled all this mess?
Well, the Pastor's words have done tons of damage in the fight against slavery around the world. Anyone in favor of enslaving their fellow humans only had to crack open a Bible to find support for their position. Jefferson Davis, the President of the Confederate States of America said, "[Slavery] was established by decree of Almighty God [...] it is sanctioned in the Bible, in both Testaments, from Genesis to Revelation" (source). He's right that slavery was around in biblical times, but you know what? Too bad.
There were also Christians who used the Bible to support abolition efforts (source). Eventually, the majority of Christian churches would come out against slavery as well:
- In 1696, Quakers in Pennsylvania stood in opposition to the slave trade (source).
- John Wesley, the founder of Methodism and life-long opponent of slavery, declared that "liberty is the right of every human creature" (source).
- In 1839, Pope Gregory XVI issued a statement saying that slavery was "contrary to the laws of justice and humanity" (source).
- Northern and Southern Baptists even severed ties with each other over the issue of slavery (source).
Though slavery is more or less a thing of the past in developed countries around the world, there are still places where the institution lives on. Even in the United States, human trafficking, a type of slavery, is still a terrible problem. We're guessing Jesus wouldn't have been down with it.
Feminism
Women have come a long way since the Bible was written. Today, ladies around the world can go to school, vote, work outside the home, and wear really cute shoes while doing it. But a woman's place in society and the church is still a hot topic. What roles can a gal serve in the church? Who can she lead? And should we actually let people with vaginas be in charge of stuff?
The Pastor is all about ladies knowing their place: under the boot of men. For starters, they need to keep their lips zipped:
Let a woman learn in silence with full submission. I permit no woman to teach or to have authority over a man; she is to keep silent.
Um, okay, so just why is that?
For Adam was formed first, then Eve; and Adam was not deceived, but the woman was deceived and became a transgressor. Yet she will be saved through childbearing, provided they continue in faith and love and holiness, with modesty. (1 Timothy 2:11-15)
Hmmm… we don't remembering reading that in Genesis, but okay. Is there anything women are allowed to teach?
Tell the older women to be reverent in behavior, not to be slanderers or slaves to drink; they are to teach what is good, so that they may encourage the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, to be self-controlled, chaste, good managers of the household, kind, being submissive to their husbands, so that the word of God may not be discredited. (Titus 2:3-5)
The Pastor's take on women is that they should be seen not heard. Hanging around in a kitchen barefoot and pregnant seems like a pretty good start. Next, the Pastor will be telling all the gals out there in the church to make him a sandwich.
His helpful advice doesn't end there. Whatever decision you're considering making today, ladies, the Pastor has got you covered.
- How should I dress? Modestly. Braids, gold, and pearls are out. (1 Timothy 2:9)
- How should I act when my husband dies? Piously. Not like some trollop! (1 Timothy 5:11-12)
- What about hanging with friends? Ugh. Just don't sit around all day and gossip. (1 Timothy 5:13)
- How about when I'm trying to figure out spiritual matters? You're so silly! Just find a man in a position of authority and he'll tell you what to think! (2 Timothy 3:6)
See, it's easy! Just don't go around acting like a flirty, gossipy, empty-headed, one-dimensional stereotype and everything will be fine.
Ew.
Over the years, the Pastor's thoughts on women have been used to keep gals out of positions of authority in the church—it's pretty hard to lead a congregation when you're supposed to stay quiet. While there are many denominations today ordain women, Roman Catholics, Jehovah's Witnesses, Mormons, and some evangelical Christians still look to the Pastor's words as confirmation that women are just not cut out for leadership roles.
But while the Pastor specifically forbids women from teaching men, later he seems to contradict himself when he mentions a position that women can apply for. When he's giving his list of qualities that deacons should have he says:
Women likewise must be serious, not slanderers, but temperate, faithful in all things. (1 Timothy 3:11)
Yup. So, it seems that means that women were allowed to serve as deacons.
This is actually more in line with what we know of the role of women in the early church. In his letters, Paul calls out lots of influential Christian women in his letters like Phoebe, who he calls a "deacon," and Junia who he says is "prominent among the apostles" (Romans 16:1, 7). These women would have ministered to other Christians, instructed candidates for baptism, and probably also contributed financially to Paul's mission.
Looks like there was room for the ladies after all.
LGBT Issues
People have all sorts of questions about LGBT questions today, and lots of people turn to the Bible to sort it all out.
Let's look at what the Pastor adds to the debate:
The law is laid down not for the innocent but for the lawless and disobedient, for the godless and sinful, for the unholy and profane, for those who kill their father or mother, for murderers, fornicators, sodomites, slave traders, liars, perjurers, and whatever else is contrary to the sound teaching. (1 Timothy 1:9-10)
Did you catch that in there? Yup, that reference to "sodomites" is what has lots of people up in arms. The Pastor is clearly calling out something sex-related here, but what exactly?
One way to read this verse is that the Pastor, and by extension, God, is condemning all homosexual behavior when he calls out "sodomy." That means no gay rights, no gay marriage, no gay adoption—even gay brunches are out. This, along with some other verses of the Bible, has been used to affirm the idea that being gay is not okay with the Almighty.
But other folks take a different view. One of the tricky things about interpreting this verse is the word that the Pastor uses for these sinners. In the original Greek it's "arsenokoitai." This is a word that first appears in Paul's first letter to the Corinthians and that the Pastor brings out again here.
But, um, what does it mean?
Well, the word is made up of two parts: "arsen" which means "man" and "koitai" which means "beds." Huh? Exactly. Lots of different English translations of the Bible come at this word differently. Here's just a sampling:
- King James Version: "them that defile themselves with mankind."
- New International Version: "those practicing homosexuality."
- Common English Bible: "people who have intercourse with the same sex."
- Contemporary English Version: people "who live as homosexuals."
- New King James Version: "sodomites."
For starters, it's clear that the word refers to men only, so "homosexuals" wouldn't be an accurate translation (since that includes both guys and girls). Besides, if Pastor meant to call out sex between guys, he could have used the word "paiderasste," which was the standard Greek term back then.
So what does it really mean? No one actually knows. It could refer to men who abuse others sexually (rapists, pedophiles, etc.). It might refer to male prostitutes, but these could be gents with other male or female customers. Or it could even be calling out masturbation. This was a standard translation back in the 16th century, but it's fallen out of favor now that masturbation isn't generally considered a Hell-worthy offense (source).
We should also note that this verse gets a lot of attention because of the gay-factor, but lots of folks conveniently forget that the Pastor is actually calling out a whole lot of other folks for their sinful ways, too. Murdered anyone lately? Had sex with someone you weren't married to? Lied? Sorry, but you're also in big time violation of the law.