13. BREAKING BARRIERS IN THE CHURCH
Priscilla and Aquila
Acts 18:1-28, 1 Cor. 16:19, Rom.16:3-5
L.M. Narola
Introduction:
Through the centuries, women have been dominated and
discriminated by unjust social and cultural structures, which were
responsible for creating barriers in the church and society.
Fortunately through the efforts of many dedicated women, we have been
able to break some of the barriers. Today, we find that there are
still many limitations placed on women's ministry in the church.
There are still so many barriers which prohibit women to participate
equally with men in the ministry of the church. How can we break
these barriers in the church? is a crucial issue today. If
we turn to the scriptures, there is clear indications that women were
called to be God's messengers, prophets and disciples through both the
Old Testament and the New Testament periods. We learn of women
who took major responsibility in the New Testament church. A
notable example of this is Priscilla, who was acknowledged as a leader
and teacher of theology. She and her husband Aquila are always
mentioned together as partners in every walk of life.
Context of Priscilla and Aquila:
We find reference to Priscilla (or Prisca) and
Aquila six times in the New Testament. Two times Aquila is
mentioned first, as in Acts 18:2, and 1 Cor. 16:19. However,
contrary to the custom of that time, Priscilla, the wife, is mentioned
first in four instances: Acts 18:18, 26, Rom. 16:3, and 2 Tim.
4:19. According to Luke, Paul first met Priscilla and
Aquila when he came to Corinth. It is estimated that Priscilla
and Aquila probably came to Corinth around the year 50 C.E. They
may have been refugees from political oppression in Rome. The
names of both are of Latin origin, but Priscilla's race is not
mentioned. She may have been a Roman by birth. However, it
is clear that her husband was a Jewish Christian.
It is known that there were Christian Jews living in
Rome during the reign of the Emperor Claudius (41-54 C.E.).
Claudius published an edict forbidding Jews to assemble together
because of some rioting they were said to have been involved in.
As the practice of their religion required assembling, the only
alternative for a devout Jew was to leave the city of Rome.1 Many
scholars assume that Priscilla and Aquila were Christian who travelled
and worked together as tent-makers.2 It is quite normal for
people of the same trade to live near one another and form guilds to
meet together around the worship of a common deity. Thus, Jewish
people who worshipped the one God would have been more than happy to
have found another Jew of the same trade. It is thus possible
that Priscilla and Aquila may have invited Paul into their home,3 or we
might even assume that since Priscilla and Aquila were already living
in Corinth when Paul arrived there, Paul might have come to them
seeking employment.4
Roles of Priscilla and Aquila:
(a) Leadership:
Priscilla and Aquila were partners of Paul not only
in business but they were also co-workers in evangelism and
teaching. Wherever they lived, it seemed to be their custom to
organise congregations in their own home. Together they led a
house church in their home. They were described as fellow workers
with Paul and at some stage, they even risked their lives for his sake
(Rom. 16:4). It is clear that they were influential in the
building up of several of the New Testament churches.5 The lives
and leadership of Priscilla and Aquila seem to have motivated Paul to
trust them with the leadership of the church of Ephesus.
The leadership of Priscilla and Aquila in the church
of Ephesus was challenged by the arrival of Apollos, and it is in the
exchange of dialogue between them that Priscilla's theological skills
and Christian understanding are revealed. Apollos was a man who
possessed considerable biblical knowledge himself. In 1 Cor. 3:22
and 4:6, Paul implies that Apollos is of equal influence with himself
and Peter (Cephas) and in Acts 18:24-25, his excellent credentials are
listed. But it seems he was somehow deficient in his knowledge of
the faith. Priscilla and Aquila took up the responsibility of
teaching Apollos. There is clear indication and correction of
Apollos (Acts 18:24-26), which indicates that a woman could teach along
with her husband. The outstanding fact in this is that Priscilla,
a woman, was accepted and respected as a teacher in the early church.6
(b) Maintaining Cordial Marriage Relations:
It appears that Priscilla and Aquila had a marriage
in which each one contributed certain gifts to the relationship.
As already noted, they are mentioned six times in the New Testament,
out of which four times Priscilla's name appears first. The most
significant occasion in which she is mentioned first occurs in Acts
18:26, the instruction of the Apollos. Why her name appear first
in these four instances is still not certain. Some
scholars7 assume it could be so because Priscilla came from a
much more important family, or it may imply that she was more active
and perhaps more influential in the work of the church. Whatever
it may be, it is certainly clear that Priscilla was at least as active
as her husband and there is not the slightest hint of anything other
than an equal partnership in every aspect of their relationship.
It is even possible that Paul, who knew and loved this couple well, had
their marriage in mind when he wrote his lovely description of the
marriage relationship in Ephesians chap. 5. Margaret Wold even
goes to the extent of saying that as a theologian, Priscilla seems to
have taken precedence over her husband, and he deferred to her.8
Her reputation as a preacher and as a teacher spread throughout the
Mediterranean world. In fact, one of the oldest catacombs in
Rome, the Coemeterium Priscilla, was named for her.
(c) Model of an Equal Partnership:
Out of the New Testament there emerges the
suggestion of a new living and working style for women and men, that of
partnership in the gospel (Phil. 4:3). If we add to this idea the
gracious concept of `friends' (Jn. 15:15), the shape that emerges
begins to look like the relationship between Priscilla and Aquila.
This couple evidently functioned as a team.
They made tents together, taught together, travelled together, risked
their necks together (Rom. 16:4), and they organised and led
congregations together. If we are looking for a model of an equal
partnership marriage, Priscilla and Aquila provide one. I am sure
they probably had arguments and occasional tensions like every couple,
but they knew who their head was, their Lord Jesus Christ.
Indian Context:
In many Protestant churches in India, the number of
wife/husband clergy teams is on the increase. As more women enter
the seminaries, a natural result will be marriages between pastors, or
Christian ministers in different areas in the life of the church.
These clergy couples will join the long line of missionary couples,
teacher couples, medical couples and many other teams that modelled
dual career marriages of the Priscilla-Aquila variety. However,
equal partnership relationships are not confined to married couples
alone. They refer to every context where women and men are
working together in the ministry. For whenever and wherever women
and men work together, partnerships are on the increase.
The partnership ministry of Priscilla and Aquila
gives us a glimpse of the egalitarian church that was alive in early
Christianity. But unfortunately it fell victim to the progressive
patriarchalisation and institutionalisation of the church, as it slowly
took over the patriarchal and institutional structure of the
society.9 All these have created countless barriers in the church
which prevent women from participating equally with men in the
ministry. We are all aware of how Indian women are still excluded
from certain leadership roles in the church. In many churches,
women are still denied ordination, and the sad fact is that scripture
has been used to justify such discrimination.
It is said that in some of the Indian churches,
women are given ordination on condition that they would not ask
for promotion or rise in their salary. They are, in fact, made to
sign on these documents before being ordained. What kind of
ministry is this? Can we call it a ministry of equal
participation of women and men? In many evangelical churches, it
is said that women are the ones who go from house to house teaching and
preaching the word of God. But, as usual, their role is not
recognised. It is only the men's role that is recognised and
recorded. What about these active women? Turning to the
Catholic church, it is said that most of the work is done by women
religious or sisters, as they are popularly known. It is
estimated that there are about 70,000 Women Religious in India.
But where are they? They are not included in any decision making,
their voices are hardly heard and the issue of ordination is out of the
question. All these examples clearly indicate how women are still
discriminated against in the Indian churches. It is because of
such discrimination against women that Indian churches are not
growing. The only hope for the churches today is to recognise the
importance of team work and implement it strongly.
Reflection:
I often wonder how many Priscilla's have been
prevented from playing effective roles in the church because of
barriers such as male dominated structures, patriarchal cultures,
mis-interpretation of scriptures, and so on. These barriers in
the church limit God's sovereign freedom to choose the right person who
can be entrusted with the word of life. The women of the New
Testament like Priscilla are models for us today, who dared to develop
their abilities. Women like Priscilla also reflect what Paul must
have meant when he spoke of men and women as "equal in Christ," one
central Pauline teaching that the church has rapidly lost sight of, in
forming its attitudes towards women.10 Is there something we can
contribute towards breaking the barriers in the church?
A few suggestions for us all to reflect upon:
1. A concerted effort to re-capture the early
egalitarian model of the church which is based on the equality of all
Christians, male and female alike. For, indeed how can we, as
disciples who seek a full life for all, be content with a relationship
of inequality and domination within the very church committed to
justice and God's reign?
2. To arrange for seminars and consultations where
both women and men may participate. It seems there are very
little about programmes for partnership between women and men. I
believe that the understanding of women's issues and the changes needed
in the church can be hastened if in addition to the many programmes can
be directed to men.
3. To take seriously the small but significant
accomplishments of women and men have made so far, as they move
together towards their liberation.
As we continue to struggle against barriers of
inequality, we the women and men of the churches, who are committed to
change the present unjust situation can look forward in hope for a
future of harmonious partnership in the leadership of the church, as we
draw inspirations from the life and ministry of Priscilla and Aquila.
Questions for Discussion:
1. Do you think there are some limitations placed on
women ministry in your church? If yes - in
which areas of ministry women are not able to
participate equally with men and why?
2. Do you sincerely believe in the equal
participation of women and men in ministry?
What efforts can we contribute to make this a
reality.
Endnotes:
1. Margaret Wold, Women of Spirit: A Study of
Women in Women in Scripture, Minneapolis:
Augsburg Publishing House, 1984, p. 92.
2. Mary Evans, Women in the Bible, Downers
Grove: Inter Varsity Press, 1983, p. 123.
3. Craig S. Keener, Paul, Women, Wives: Marriage
and Women’s Ministry in the Letters of Paul,
Boston: Hendrickson Pub. 1992, p. 241.
4. Wold, p. 923
5. Evans, p. 123
6. Wold, p. 93
7. Evans p. 123
8. Wold, p. 94
9. Erne R. Camba, "Women and Men in
Church Leadership," in Partnership in God’s Mission
in Asia
and the Pacific, ed., Nyambura J.N. Joroge, Geneva:
WARC, 1996, p. 64-67.
10. By Our Lives: Stories of Women Today in the
Bible, Geneva: WCC, 1985, p. 36.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
By Our Lives: Stories of Women Today in the Bible,
Geneva: WCC, 1985.
Joroge, Nyambura J.N., ed., Partnership in God’s Mission in
Asia and the Pacific, ed., Geneva: WARC,
1996.
Evans, Mary, Women in the Bible, Downers Grove: Inter
Varsity Press, 1983.
Keener, Craig S., Paul, Women, Wives: Marriage and
Women's Ministry in the Letters of Paul, Boston:
Hendrickson Pub. 1992.
Wold, Margaret, Women of Spirit: A Study of Women in
Scripture, Minneapolis: Augsburg, 1984.