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    Ten Reasons Why Men Should Not Be Ordained For Ministry

    Comments (24)

    From the extended syllabus of Systematic Theology 3:

    10. A man’s place is in the army.
    9. The pastoral duties of men who have children might distract them from the responsibility of being a parent.
    8. The physique of men indicates that they are more suited to such tasks as chopping down trees and wrestling mountain lions. It would be “unnatural” for them to do ministerial tasks.
    7. Man was created before woman, obviously as a prototype. Thus, they represent an experiment rather than the crowning achievement of creation.
    6. Men are too emotional to be priests or pastors. Their conduct at football and basketball games demonstrates this.
    5. Some men are handsome, and this will distract women worshipers.
    4. Pastors need to nurture their congregations. But this is not a traditional male role. Throughout history, women have been recognized as not only more skilled than men at nurturing, but also more fervently attracted to it. This makes them the obvious choice for ordination.
    3. Men are prone to violence. No really masculine man wants to settle disputes except by fighting about them. Thus they would be poor role models as well as dangerously unstable in positions of leadership.
    2. The New Testament tells us that Jesus was betrayed by a man. His lack of faith and ensuing punishment remind us of the subordinated position that all men should take.
    1. Men can still be involved in church activities, even without being ordained. They can sweep sidewalks, repair the church roof, and perhaps even lead the song service on Father’s Day. By confining themselves to such traditional male roles, they can still be vitally important in the life of the church.

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    Commentary:


    Comment from Tyler Watson April 25, 2008 at 8:55 am

    This is wonderful. Thanks Eddy.

    Pingback from The Margins » For fun April 25, 2008 at 10:19 am

    [...] Ten Reasons Why Men Should Not Be Ordained For Ministry 10. A man’s place is in the army. 9. The pastoral duties of men who have children might distract them from the responsibility of being a parent. 8. The physique of men indicates that they are more suited to such tasks as chopping down trees and wrestling mountain lions. It would be “unnatural” for them to do ministerial tasks. 7. Man was created before woman, obviously as a prototype. Thus, they represent an experiment rather than the crowning achievement of creation. 6. Men are too emotional to be priests or pastors. Their conduct at football and basketball games demonstrates this. 5. Some men are handsome, and this will distract women worshipers. 4. Pastors need to nurture their congregations. But this is not a traditional male role. Throughout history, women have been recognized as not only more skilled than men at nurturing, but also more fervently attracted to it. This makes them the obvious choice for ordination. 3. Men are prone to violence. No really masculine man wants to settle disputes except by fighting about them. Thus they would be poor role models as well as dangerously unstable in positions of leadership. 2. The New Testament tells us that Jesus was betrayed by a man. His lack of faith and ensuing punishment remind us of the subordinated position that all men should take. 1. Men can still be involved in church activities, even without being ordained. They can sweep sidewalks, repair the church roof, and perhaps even lead the song service on Father’s Day. By confining themselves to such traditional male roles, they can still be vitally important in the life of the church. [...]

    Trackback from THE SPACE BETWEEN MY EARS April 25, 2008 at 10:22 am

    Are Men Fit for Ministry?…

    My good friend Eddy has a funny list of “Ten Reasons Why Men Should Not Be Ordained For Ministry.” It made me laugh. Here are a few items:

    7. Man was created before woman, obviously as a prototype. Thus, they represent an experiment rath…

    Comment from Rebecca April 25, 2008 at 11:17 am

    Thanks Eddy. I linked to you from my blog today. This is fantastic.

    Comment from Kim April 25, 2008 at 11:55 am

    Hmmm…this all sounds so familiar. ;-) I sooooo linked to this!

    Pingback from Why I (Speaking in Servant-Love) Believe Men Should Not be Church Leaders « adventures in mercy April 26, 2008 at 3:45 pm

    [...] have shamelessly cut and pasted the hilarious above-quoted post from Serving Bread, and was made aware of the post by Helen from Conversation at the Edge.  We [...]

    Comment from Molly April 26, 2008 at 3:46 pm

    Ah, this post is to die for… :)

    Pingback from Todd Hiestand » Blog Archive » 10 Reasons Men Should Not Be In Ministry – Missional Living in Suburban America April 26, 2008 at 8:21 pm

    [...] a series of links I found this funny top ten list… this is hilarious [...]

    Pingback from CHARIS SHALOM » They Say Curiosity Killed the Cat April 27, 2008 at 4:00 am

    [...] I found this on one of the blogsites I love to go when I want to think about something in a new way – Adventures in Mercy, by Molly Aley. She found it at another blog I’ve never visited: Serving Bread. [...]

    Pingback from Men vs. Women in Ministry? « To Be A Fool… April 27, 2008 at 8:49 am

    [...] Ten Reasons Why Men Should Not Be Ordained [...]

    Pingback from Why men shouldn’t be ordained…huh? « To Be A Fool… April 27, 2008 at 8:50 am

    [...] Ten Reasons Why Men Should Not Be Ordained [...]

    Comment from Volpeculus April 27, 2008 at 11:46 am

    Mmm smell the wit… ^^ Quite droll, if I do say so myself.

    Comment from Unorthodoxology April 27, 2008 at 11:10 pm

    Absolutely terrific. Should be posted right next to the 10 Commandments in Alabama’s courthouses. :)

    Comment from Larissa April 28, 2008 at 1:20 am

    I love it. Particularly #7.

    Pingback from Funny & Thought Provoking « just a work in progress April 28, 2008 at 3:18 pm

    [...] April 28, 2008 at 6:18 pm (Uncategorized) 10. A man’s place is in the army. 9. The pastoral duties of men who have children might distract t… [...]

    Trackback from Beth Patterson April 28, 2008 at 9:19 pm

    10 top reasons why men should not be ordained for ministry…

    From a site called “Serving Bread” comes this great tongue in cheek (you think?) reasons why men should…

    Comment from Beth Patterson April 29, 2008 at 6:30 am

    Great post–many thanks! I posted it to my website, the Virtual Tea House yesterday, along with some other info about the ordination of women.

    http://virtualteahouse.com/blogs/beth/archive/2008/04/28/10-top-reasons-why-men-should-not-be-ordained-for-ministry.aspx

    Thanks for the great work you are doing!

    Beth

    Pingback from ApprehendingGrace.com » Top 10 Reasons Men Shouldn’t Be Pastors… May 2, 2008 at 6:40 pm

    [...] I cut and pasted it in it’s entirety from Adventures in Mercy who cut and pasted it from Serving Bread. And I think that suffices for giving credit in [...]

    Pingback from Random Acts of Linkage #59 : Subversive Influence May 3, 2008 at 7:20 am

    [...] mother always told me “turnabout” was fair play. Ten Reasons Why Men Should Not Be Ordained For Ministry [...]

    Pingback from The Boar’s Head Tavern » Ten Reasons Men Should Not Be Ordained To Ministry May 3, 2008 at 10:11 am

    [...] Via Subversive Influence Posted by: Michael Spencer @ 1:10 pm | Trackback | Permalink [...]

    Pingback from When Satire Cuts Deep… « Less is More May 3, 2008 at 7:10 pm

    [...] When Satire Cuts Deep… Posted on May 4, 2008 by andybilhorn My friend Eddy posted an interesting list the other day…you can see it here. [...]

    Pingback from The Great Debate: Men in Ministry? « May 5, 2008 at 6:52 am

    [...] 5, 2008 My coworker sent me this link, so I’m copying it here for your [...]

    Comment from Jan May 6, 2008 at 6:32 am

    This is priceless. Yes, as a woman in ministry leadership I think I have heard some similar debates. Thanks for giving us a laugh on this topic.

    Comment from Beth Patterson May 6, 2008 at 7:41 am

    Here is a comment to the post I made from this article. The comment is made by Bill Ellis, who is an Episcopal bishop in Spokane, WA.

    “As an Episcopal Priest of the male persuasion for the past twenty-six years I have long been concerned about whether or not a man can be ordained validly. The arguments listed here are of course persuasive, but not quite decisive. The decisive argument is one I witnessed before I was ever ordained, and that was a priest eight months pregnant celebrating the Eucharist.

    I realized in that instant that no man could ever provide such a profound metaphor for God’s presence among us. Of course I proceeded with my plans, on the grounds that men could also be ordained, but I must emphasize that “also.” It has stuck with me my entire career.”

    Thought you all might enjoy Bill’s humble response. Thanks again!

    Beth

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