Women in the Watchtower Society - an organization of Jehovah's Witnesses are placed under the headship( or authority) of their husbands , or if unmarried, they are under the headship of men in the organization.
In private life that means that a wife will fully cooperate with all husbands decisions, whether good or bad. Yes, her husband is placed as a final decision maker and leader in the family and she is to support him faithfully. Wife is allowed to speak her opinions and her view on important matters but at the end whatever the husband decides is what actually happens.
Only husbands can pray aloud before eating a meal or studying the bible. Wife can not approach God in prayer when her husband is present. If she does then it is only in the case of her husband being an unbeliever and even in this case she must put a some sort of head covering on her head. The reason for the head covering is to show that she is in subordinate position and she is performing a duty normally assigned by God only to men.
Although women are allowed and encouraged to preach to outsiders ( especially door to door), inside the congregation they can not pray, or to deliver a speech on the platform. They can not teach a doctrine to men or to women, unless it is in the bible studies outside the Kingdom Halls. If any baptized males are present on the bible studies outside Kingdom Halls, women must wear a head covering as a sign of submission to men if they are teaching a doctrine or praying.
Every week the congregations of Jehovah's Witnesses meet for so called "school" meeting. These meetings are designed by the Society to train witnesses for preaching door to door or informal witnessing at work, school etc..
Women are participating on "school" meetings giving presentations on the platforms, but they must have another sister with them and they can not "face" the audience so they do not appear to be teaching men.
Female witnesses are prohibited from baptising anyone, only witness males can perform baptism.
There is much more to say about women in Watchtower Organization, however I would like some opinions of women in other religious organizations on this issue. Many female witnesses feel that they have much more to offer for God , but their gifts are certainly halted by men in organization. Spiritual gifts of female witnesses are reduced to preaching only door to door and bringing a new members into an organization, but inside Kingdom Halls they are not allowed to pray, teach, give speeches, and their only participation in service is singing songs from a songbook and answering the watchtower questions during the watchtower study.
Women can not serve as ministerial servants either, they are never given any responsibilities such as money handling, microphone services etc.. However their cooking skills are always welcome after meetings or during parties as well as a cleaning skills when it comes to a Kingdom Hall clean ups.
It is time for the women in Watchtower Society to do more research on bible texts that touch on female submission . It is time to speak up and use spiritual gifts to the full.
3 comments:
Certainly when God created Adam and Eve they were equal partners in every way. You see God comuning with them both and at no time was she put in subjection to Adam in this case. As time went on through the history of man then this idea of subjection got completely out of place. I fully beleave though that God was intending to restore back Man and Woman as it was in the Garden of Eden as equal partners. This was what Jesus came to do even as we hear His Words when he says "...it wasn't so from the beginning..." Man trying to rule his wife or even an organization trying to rule women has fallen from the principle that God laid down in the Garden with Adam and Eve.
"Wherever two or three are gathered" describes the true Church of Jesus Christ. Therefore the first Church is the Christian family, followed by the second Church, the community of assembled believers. Besides preaching, praying, and teaching, the Church also functions as a center for fellowship through the Word of God. Therefore, the Christian home is also the first example of Christian fellowship. It is impossible to experience true fellowship outside of the Word of God because true fellowship can only come about by finding harmony and unity in the Truth of the Word of God. Marriage and the family are God's first example of the type of relationship He desires to have with His Bride and the type of relationship He desires to see in the home--as well as in the Church. You can find more regarding this topic at NurturingLifeMinistry.blogspot.com . Be Blessed!...Kay
I have to refer to Galatians 3:28. I see that as... once we are in Christ we should not be looked upon any differently. No matter who or what we are. If we do not look with judging or lustful eyes then it should not make any difference. If we do look with those eyes, then we are not truly part of the Body of Christ anyway. Besides the Greek is translated a bit biased when it says "not suffer a woman to teach" in the Greek the more appropriate word would be wives. It stands to reason that it was & still is proper for a wife to respect her husband in the Church. I believe that is why other females are referred to as daughters. They are the unmarried women. Married couples should be led by the husband, especially if they are in Christ.
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