Ecclesial Hierarchy and Subordination Between Regenerate Men and Women in Public Worship: A Renewed Look at 1 Corinthians 11:2–16 and 14:33b–36

Abstract

The role of regenerate men and women in the church remains an ongoing, intensely-debated subject within evangelical faith communities. The  preceding also includes the narrower issue of church services involving the dynamic relational tension between the genders centred around ecclesial  hierarchy and subordination. Pivotal to the preceding disputation is Paul’s discourse in 1 Corinthians 11:2–16 and 14:33b–36 regarding male and female believers in congregational gatherings. My disquisition takes a renewed look at these two passages to discern what they do and do not teach on the topic  mentioned above. A key premise is that when these texts are examined within the context of their first-century AD, Greco-Roman setting, Paul  taught Christians to observe common cultural conventions of the time regarding the practice of wearing head coverings and maintaining decorum within  public worship. A corresponding premise is that the apostle was not mandating a corporate practice that is directly applicable to 21st-century  believers, regardless of whether they reside in the global north or the majority world.