I’ve never been a huge fan of Paul (the apostle, not the musician. I’ve always liked the musician). My lack of enthusiasm toward Paul does not necessarily spring from the things he wrote about women. In that instance, I believe Paul’s words were cherry picked, taken out of context, and used to justify the subjugation of women within the patriarchal church, and by extension, within the greater society. (Karen and I taught a class on this a few years back). The misuse of Paul’s writings in this manner continues to this day. A recent egregious example can be found in an announcement by the infamous Westboro Baptist Church that they intend to protest the Presbyterian Women’s gathering in August (think of protesting a women’s bridge club on a theological basis). Follow this link to see the text of their announcement and their heavy reliance on Paul to rationalize their actions.
http://www.godhatesfags.com/fliers/20180715_Churchwide-Gathering-Presbyterian-Women-Louisville-KY.pdf
My main argument with Paul is that he suborned the intent of Christ. Perhaps the main theme of Jesus’s teaching was negation of the legalism of his day where strength of faith was measured by adherence to the superficialities of Jewish Law. In contrast, Jesus came to show us a new way of living. In Jesus’ mind, strength of faith was measured by actions; loving neighbors, feeding the hungry, healing the sick, etc. As shown in the book of Acts, early Christians actually believed what Jesus taught and established communities built upon the way of life espoused by Jesus.
But then along came Paul, who reduced Jesus’ radical way of living to a system of beliefs.
And Christianity changed forever. A religion was born. Christendom began its reign.
Look at the website of any church you choose and what do you find? Confessions, catechisms, statements of faith, doctrinal policies, and creeds. My own church, the PCUSA, hosts a complete list of doctrinal statements, creeds, and confessions. After all, we wouldn’t want to be confused with the Methodists, now would we? But what is most disturbing about these declarations is that they are often used as a litmus test for entering into a community of believers. They say, “believe as we do and you are welcome”. If you don’t, you are encouraged to find a home somewhere else. Thankfully, the PCUSA does not use its doctrinal statements in this way.
But rarely in any of these statements will you find guidance on how we, as Christians, should LIVE. What does it mean to live the life Jesus proclaimed? What does loving your neighbor look like? How should we help the poor and the sick? How can we welcome people fleeing violence and oppression into our communities?
In my mind, the transition of Christianity from a way of life to a system of beliefs was disastrous, and today the established Church is paying through shrinking membership and wholesale abandonment by younger generations. What young people see that established Christians sometime do not is the inherent hypocrisy.
As long as we affirm the tenants of the Apostles Creed we are free to ignore the pain felt by our neighbor.
As long as we attend church every week and participate in the ritual we can turn away refugees from our borders.
As long as we believe that Christ is our personal lord and savior we are free to damage God’s creation in pursuit of material wealth.
As long as we condemn those who do not believe as we do our sins can be ignored.
In creating the system of beliefs embraced by Christendom, Paul gave us an out. He gave us the loophole of all loopholes. We can call ourselves devoted Christians without actually adhering to Jesus’ call to a new way of living.
But we will never bring about the Kingdom by belief alone. It will require work. It will require sacrifice. It demands action.
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