What does Calvary Boise believe about women in positions of leadership in the church?
This is a great question that I have heard many times over the years, and we have received several times in our Q+A. After talking this through with Pastor Tucker, I’m excited to take the opportunity to give a clear answer regarding what our church believes.
Regarding Leadership in the Church:
Calvary Boise is a complementarian church. This means that we believe the Bible is clear in delineating roles within the church, and that the roles of Pastor and Elder should be held only by men, and that they must honor specific criteria, as laid out in 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1:5-9.
The issue of leadership in the church, and who God has ordained to fill those roles, dates back to the early church. When Paul wrote to Timothy, he was dealing with conflict in the church between men and women, and Paul helped by providing a framework for leadership qualifications. In 1 Timothy 2:12, Paul says, “I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man, but to be in silence.” The silence seems to be a reference to specific unrest within the church at the time, when women hadn’t been permitted education and therefore had a lot of questions that were disrupting gatherings. So he was asking them to listen quietly while they were learning. But in the portion about authority, Paul references the order of creation as an important factor in deciding who will hold ultimate leadership positions within the church.
While we hold to a complementarian leadership structure, it is important to clarify that this does not elevate one gender above another, nor does it imply anything about value or capability. God’s Word makes clear the truth that in God’s Kingdom, there is no hierarchy of value, whether by gender, age, ethnicity, wealth, etc (Galatians 3:28). Some would assert that “not allowing” women in the ultimate roles of leadership in some way degrades women or implies a lower value. But that is simply not true. In the life of Jesus, we see Him elevating and honoring women on many occasions, and there were women in His inner circle who helped in ministry and even provided counsel and training.
We believe that God gives spiritual gifts to every person, and that we should use them (1 Peter 4:10). With that in mind, we are thankful for the many ways that women serve in our church body, including in a variety of leadership roles, as you can see on the ministry leaders page of our website.
As with many issues that come up in our modern culture, this is an issue of obedience. God has provided a framework in which we are to operate, and we trust in His wisdom and goodness, and therefore we obey.
As with any answer provided in our Q+A, please send me an email if you have any questions.
God Bless You,
Jessica Guadalupe
Communications Director
Calvary Boise
