Photo by Joel Muniz on Unsplash

One of the first things I remember hearing from a member of the Episcopal church that made it abundantly clear, "I'm not in Evangelicalism anymore," was a comment about Paul. The person said,

"Don't even get me started on Paul! That man is as bad as the Old Testament; he's worse than Donald Trump!"

Arguably, there is no more influential figure in Christianity, for better or worse, than the Apostle Paul. Anecdotally, in my years as a Christian, most people, men in particular, if asked, "Who is your favorite character in the Bible?" the vast majority would say Paul. Mind you, this is also over Jesus.

At the same time, no figure has been weaponized more by Christianity than Paul. Outside of maybe the book of Leviticus, Paul's writings tend to be the 'sword of truth' that Christians have used to attack each other and non-Christians alike.

Which Paul Are We Talking About?

I share all of this to make the point that Paul is imposing. Love him or hate him, every Christian has an opinion about Paul. For some, the idea that Paul treated women in the church as equals will come with a hearty, "Yes, brother!" and "Amen to that!" For others, the notion that Paul treated and advocated for equal treatment of women in the church is laughable. I get it, just look at something like 1 Timothy 2:11-12:

11 Let a woman[b] learn in silence with full submission. 12 I do not permit a woman[c] to teach or to have authority over a man;[d] she is to keep silent. (NRSVUE)

Mmm, yes, women learning in silence with full submission SCREAMS equality. Said no one ever... Like I said, I get it. However, today is not the day we walk through 'clobber' verses that seem to advocate for patriarchy and the submission of women.

However, there is essential context I need to share to ensure we are on the same page regarding which Paul I'm talking about. To understand what I mean by "which Paul I'm talking about," it's vital to know mainline scholars mostly agree that there are 3 different Pauls seen in the New Testament.

There's the Radical Paul. We know this is the historical and authentic Paul who wrote seven New Testament Letters: Romans, 1-2 Corinthians, Galatians, Philippians, 1 Thessalonians, and Philemon.
There's the Conservative Paul. This Paul is the disputed Paul, meaning they likely were not written by Paul but by someone who wrote in Paul's name. This Paul wrote: Ephesians, Colossians, and 2 Thessalonians.
The Reactionary Paul. This Paul is almost universally agreed to not be Paul. The letters attributed to the reactionary Paul are the 'Pastoral Letters': 1-2 Timothy and Titus.

Understanding the distinction between the 3 Pauls is significant because the Paul who treats and advocates for the equal treatment of women is the Radical Paul. For the remainder of this article, I will give 2 examples from the Radical Paul demonstrating how he viewed, treated, and advocated for the equal treatment of women, with no limitations, in the church.

Acts 16: The Founding of the Church of Philippi

In Acts 16:11-40, Paul enters the city of Philippi and has 3 significant encounters. He meets a wealthy businesswoman named Lydia who trades in purple cloth, heals a possessed enslaved woman, and saves the life of a prison guard by not running away from jail when given the opportunity.

Paul meets Lydia

13 On the Sabbath day we went outside the gate by the river, where we supposed[b] there was a place of prayer, and we sat down and spoke to the women who had gathered there. 14 A certain woman named Lydia, a worshiper of God, was listening to us; she was from the city of Thyatira and a dealer in purple cloth. The Lord opened her heart to listen eagerly to what was said by Paul. 15 When she and her household were baptized, she urged us, saying, "If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come and stay at my home." And she prevailed upon us. (Acts 16:13-15, NRSVUE)

Notice in this passage on how Paul meets Lydia that Paul is the one who initiates a conversation with Lydia and the "women who had gathered there." So Paul goes to a gate by the river, similar to a public park, sees some women praying, and tells the group about Jesus, and they get baptized. This woman was so appreciative and persistent that she "prevailed upon us" that she insisted Paul and his companions stay at her home.

Paul Heals, an enslaved woman

16 One day as we were going to the place of prayer, we met a female slave who had a spirit of divination and brought her owners a great deal of money by fortune-telling. 17 While she followed Paul and us, she would cry out, "These men are slaves of the Most High God, who proclaim to you[c] the way of salvation." 18 She kept doing this for many days. But Paul, very much annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, "I order you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her." And it came out that very hour. (Acts 16:16-18, NRSVUE)

Admittedly, this relationship gets off to a rough start, to say the least. Paul didn't exactly have compassion for this woman and heal her. Instead, he was 'very much annoyed' and healed her. There is no indication that his annoyance was directed at the woman; the text even specifies that Paul 'said to the spirit.'

Paul and the Jailer

27 When the jailer woke up and saw the prison doors wide open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself, since he supposed that the prisoners had escaped. 28 But Paul shouted in a loud voice, "Do not harm yourself, for we are all here." 29 The jailer[d] called for lights, and rushing in, he fell down trembling before Paul and Silas. 30 Then he brought them outside and said, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?" (Acts 16:27-29, NRSVUE)

Finally, Paul is arrested, and while in jail, an earthquake hits, giving him and Silas a chance to escape to freedom. The dilemma is if the prisoners flee the expectation would have been for the jailer to kill himself for losing his prisoners. As the text shows, Paul doesn't flee, the jailer's life is spared, and Paul leaves Philippi with 3 new Christians left in the city.

In his letter to the Philippians, Paul writes to this same group of Christians. In the letter's opening verses, he acknowledges the church's bishops and deacons. From the work of two women and a man, a church was birthed, and bishops and deacons were raised to lead the congregation. A church founded with a majority women core group is something the Radical Paul would definitely do, while the Reactionary Paul would be spinning in his grave.

Romans 16:1-16 A List of Women Deacons, Apostles, and Paul's Patron

16 I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a deacon[a] of the church at Cenchreae, 2 so that you may welcome her in the Lord, as is fitting for the saints, and help her in whatever she may require from you, for she has been a benefactor of many and of myself as well.

3 Greet Prisca and Aquila, my coworkers in Christ Jesus, 4 who risked their necks for my life, to whom not only I give thanks but also all the churches of the gentiles. 5 Greet also the church in their house. Greet my beloved Epaenetus, who was the first convert[b] in Asia for Christ. 6 Greet Mary, who has worked very hard for you. 7 Greet Andronicus and Junia,[c] my fellow Israelites who were in prison with me; they are prominent among the apostles, and they were in Christ before I was. 8 Greet Ampliatus, my beloved in the Lord. 9 Greet Urbanus, our coworker in Christ, and my beloved Stachys. 10 Greet Apelles, who is approved in Christ. Greet those who belong to the family of Aristobulus. 11 Greet my fellow Israelite Herodion. Greet those in the Lord who belong to the family of Narcissus. 12 Greet those workers in the Lord, Tryphaena and Tryphosa. Greet the beloved Persis, who has worked hard in the Lord. 13 Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord, and greet his mother—a mother to me also. 14 Greet Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermes, Patrobas, Hermas, and the brothers and sisters who are with them. 15 Greet Philologus, Julia, Nereus and his sister, and Olympas, and all the saints who are with them. 16 Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the churches of Christ greet you.

Throughout the first sixteen verses of Romans 16, Paul calls out 27 individuals. Of those 27, 17 are men, and 10 are women. What's worth noting is how Paul describes those 10 women. The 10 women are:

Phoebe
Prisc[ill]a
Mary
Junia
Tryphaena
Tryphosa
Persis
an unnamed mother
Julia
an unnamed sister

Of the 10 women Paul acknowledges, let's look at 3 of them who again demonstrate the equality we see in the ministry of the Radical Paul.

Prisca

Only two married couples are mentioned in Paul's list. Prisca, Aquila, Andronicus, and Junia (we'll talk about her in a second). Prisca is short for Priscilla; in verse 3, she is named before her husband, Aquila. Remember, this is a letter to the Romans that's the church in Rome. In Rome, women were barely a step above enslaved people. They couldn't hold leadership positions or speak in public, and if you wanted to address a married woman, you had to talk to her through her husband.

It's no small oversight or mishap that Paul names Prisca before Aquila. By putting Priscilla first, Paul makes a counter-Roman point: God's kingdom sees and treats women differently than Rome. He is also making it clear to the church that Prisca is as much, if not more, a leader in ministry than her husband, Aquila.

Junia

Here's a fun fact:

For the first millennia of Christianity, there was a consensus that Junia was a woman. However, for the second millennia of Christianity, a bunch of fragile men have done more gymnastics than Simone Biles trying to make the argument that Junia is a man.

Why has the church changed course on the gender of Junia? Marcus Borg and John Dominic Crossan explain:

"The reason for that rather desperate claim was also quite clear. If Junia were allowed to remain a female, then, since she was "prominent among the apostles," it was obviously possible for a woman to be an apostle" (Excerpt From The First Paul, Marcus J. Borg & John Dominic Crossan https://books.apple.com/us/book/the-first-paul/id360640083 )

Here's another fun fact. There is zero evidence from antiquity showing even a single example where a man was called Junia. Borg and Crossan again explain:

"Then, for the second millennium of Christianity, she was turned into a male. Junia, so the claim went, was short for the male name Junianus. That, however, was patently untrue because, although there were over 250 known cases of a female Junia in antiquity, there was not a single one of a male Junia as the abbreviation of Junianus" ((Excerpt From The First Paul, Marcus J. Borg & John Dominic Crossan, https://books.apple.com/us/book/the-first-paul/id360640083 )

Through Prisca, Paul openly acknowledges how women led in the church in contrast to Roman customs and were on equal footing with their male counterparts. Now, with Junia, Paul is recognizing a woman Apostle of Jesus. For context, an apostle participated in Jesus's earthly ministry and experienced Jesus post-resurrection.

Phoebe

Finally, is Phoebe, who is explicitly referred to as a 'deacon' uh-oh...What makes Phoebe even more unique is she is the letter bearer who delivered the letter of Romans to the Roman church. Ok, Phoebe's a deacon who drops off mail; what's the big deal?

Let me say this as gently as possible: THIS IS A VERY BIG DEAL! Not only would Phoebe be responsible for delivering the letter, but she would also be Paul's representative in answering any questions the church has about the letter. She would even defend Paul's viewpoints if challenged by the congregation.

Phoebe is no mere mail woman; she is Paul's patron. When the church asks, "Wait.. what does Paul mean by, "**26 For this reason God gave them over to dishonorable passions. Their females exchanged natural intercourse[e] for unnatural, 27 and in the same way also the males, giving up natural intercourse[f] with females, were consumed with their passionate desires for one another. Males committed shameless acts with males and received in their own persons the due penalty for their error." Phoebe is the one who would clarify what Paul is talking about.

When Paul talks about Jesus as the 'new Adam' or the Gentiles being grafted into God's olive tree, or predestination in Romans 7, all of the things that make us pause and ask, "Wait...what?" Phoebe not only understood what Paul was talking about, she understood to such a degree that Paul decided, "If anyone can represent me to this church, it's Phoebe."

This Paul empowers women to lead and start a church (Lydia and the enslaved woman). The Radical Paul acknowledges gender equality within a marriage (Prisca and Aquila). He recognizes women as Deacons and Apostles (Phoebe and Junia), and he chooses a woman of all his followers to represent him in defending the most complex letter he ever penned.

The Paul of 'women should be quiet and submissive' is nowhere to be found in Acts 16 or Romans 16. This Paul looks very similar to the Jesus we examined last week, who taught women, healed them, and invited them to participate in his ministry alongside men. The Radical Paul, very much like the Radical Jesus, understands the Kingdom of God liberates and empowers. The Kingdom of God never oppresses and silences those without power or influence. Let that sink in...

_______________________

Thanks for stopping by and reading this article! If my work has served you or you want to contribute to creating authentic faith connections, consider becoming an Authentic Faith Advocate.