She Liked To Fish

    The church needed a new pastor, so the Bishop decided to assign a
new woman minister to replace the retiring former pastor.  Several of
the men in the congregation, however, were very opposed to the
Bishop's assignment.

    On her first Sunday, wanting to put the people at ease, she
explained that she was just an ordinary type of person and liked to do
the same type of things that they did like fishing or whatever.  Since
the men were planning to go on a fishing trip the next Saturday, they
decided to give her a chance by taking her along.  To their surprise
she accepted their invitation.

    After driving to the lake and launching their boat, they rowed out
to the middle of the lake and started to get their tackle ready to
fish.  It was then they noticed that they had left all the bait back
in the truck.  They were pretty disgruntled as they now had to row all
the way back to shore before they could start.

    The new minister suggested, "No reason to row all the way back, I
will get the bait."  She then proceeded to step out of the boat and
walk upon the top of the water towards the bank.  One fella then said
to the other, "Isn't that just like a woman preacher, doesn't even
know how to swim".

    I have heard some who criticized the Apostle Paul because of his
teaching in I Timothy 2:11,12 that women are not to teach or usurp
authority in the church over the men, that he must have thought that
women were inferior.  They seem to feel that since he was a single
man, that he was down on women.  I suppose that some might feel the
same about me as I am single even though we have long had a ministry
to woman in need.  But such is not the case.

    I think rather that what Paul is saying here is that in the church
it is not a matter of an inferior/superior relationship between men
and women but rather one of each recognizing the proper place in which
God has placed us and being thankful for His wisdom in the matter. 
Nothing is gained by resenting that which we had no control over nor
should we allow our pride and ambitions to color our thinking.  Isn't
it better for us to be ourselves and let God make us into what he
wants us to be.

    While I most certainly agree with Paul as I do with the rest of
scripture, it also seems a shame that there is not more opportunities
in the work of the ministry for women to serve full time other than
marrying a preacher and getting the M.R.S.  degree.  This system is
evident in that seminaries oftentimes have more women enrolled than
men even though they mostly do not receive pastorates.

    A few churches have made some strides in this area of service for
women, but by and large, evangelical protestant christianity has not. 
To be forced to take the un-scriptural role of teaching when the
scriptural roles of women's ministry to the needy and the sick go
undone and un-rewarded, is in itself a testimony to our times.

Frank Cooke