One Good Reason for Women to Remain Silent

In my previous post I offered one good reason for women to speak during church gatherings. In this post I’m offering one good reason for the ladies to keep silent.

The reason: If a woman speaks incorrectly or inappropriately, there is no good method for correcting her.

Let me explain by backing up a bit.

During a gathering of the body, a brother may offer an incorrect teaching, inappropriate rebuke, faulty application, etc. When he does this the other brothers there have the responsibility to lovingly correct him. This should be done in whatever manner is best for the health of the body. It may be publically or privately. Whatever the case, the brothers have the responsibility to take action.

Let’s now turn to the ladies. What happens if a Christian sister offers an incorrect teaching, an inappropriate rebuke, or a faulty application? She must be corrected, but who is going to do it? The other ladies present may very well feel that it is beyond their role to correct their sister in a mixed-gender assembly. The men may not feel comfortable correcting someone else’s wife (if she's married). Ideally, the husband would correct his wife, but what if he does not have the nerve to do it or simply thinks she is correct?

At that point it falls to one of the other brothers to correct his sister. The problem is that this immediately brings up complications. When the brother begins the correction, the husband may very well sense an attack on his wife and rush to her defense. Since one role of the husband is to defend his wife, he may react sharply against his brother even if the brother is attempting to speak lovingly and gently. It is a sort of no-win situation.

If women do not speak in the gathering, then this is never a problem. The men can confront the other men when needed, but the wife-defender issue never comes up. Maybe this is one of the reasons Paul wrote I Corinthians 14:33-35, “For God is not a God of confusion but of peace. As in all the churches of the saints, the women should keep silent in the churches. For they are not permitted to speak, but should be in submission, as the Law also says. If there is anything they desire to learn, let them ask their husbands at home. For it is shameful for a woman to speak in church.”

The application of the above passage is the tricky part. Does this apply to any gathering, an entire body gathering, a time of bible study, or only specifically to the judging of prophets? The debate, as we know, rages on.

To sum up, one good reason for women’s silence in gatherings is that it cuts out the possibility of an ugly scene with brother defending his wife against another brother.

What say you? Again, ladies please join in.