Paul has a bad rap today. Many see him as anti-woman, and, in turn, they see Christianity in the same light. Is that true? Did he hate women? First, keep in mind that women were treated badly in first century; they were seen as inferior in every way to their husbands. Let’s take a look at two passages which critics of Paul and Christianity use as evidence that he was hostile to women.

The first one is 1 Timothy 2:11-12. He sounds pretty tough here – “she must be silent.” But many people see this as Paul’s dealings with a particular church at a particular time. We see an example of this just a few verses before the passage above. Take a look at verses 8-10 in which men are told to lift up their hands in prayer and women are told not to wear braided hair or pearls. People today recognize these were cultural norms that Paul was dealing with rather than eternal truths for all people of all times. Notice too that says it is okay for a woman to learn, which was quite a change from the society around Paul. In addition, verse 12 says, “I do not permit a woman”; the correct verb form actually is “I presently do not permit.” What he seems to be saying is that women should learn first before teaching others. In the same verse Paul uses an odd word for “authority.” Many scholars believe he is saying it’s wrong for women to “usurp” authority over men. If we put this all together, we get a statement from Paul something like this: “I am not presently permitting a woman to teach in a manner of usurping authority over a man.” This seems far different from the stereotypical picture of Paul as being anti-woman.

The other passage is found in 1 Corinthians 14:34-35. It sounds like Paul wants to keep women silent in the churches. But go back just a few chapters to 1 Corinthians 11:5 where Paul says it’s okay for women to pray and prophesy. Again, this sounds like a particular problem Paul was dealing with in that church.

The same writer, Paul, also wrote Galatians 3:27-28, which many people see as a Magna Carta for women. So the attack on Paul and Christianity is not as clear-cut as some would believe.