Women in the Life of the Church

Everywhere there are winds of change in modern culture and society. In the secular world, time-honored role patterns for men and women have undergone considerable change as women have begun to fill roles which were traditionally reserved for men. The church has not been isolated from these changes and, because of this, the church is faced with both a danger and an opportunity. On the one hand, the church faces the ever-present temptation to conform to the dictates of modern culture. This must be resisted if God's Word is to continue to speak with full authority to us. On the other hand, the church has the opportunity to reexamine issues that were long thought, perhaps wrongly, to have been settled. Through such reexamination, teachings of Scripture that have been hidden or distorted may be recovered and speak to us with a new power. This report will examine the role of women in the life of the church and the question of women serving in ordained church office.