In the movement that Jesus initiated, women exercised leadership equally with men; think of Mary Magdalene, Priscilla and Phoebe, Junia the apostle, Mary of Jerusalem, Euodia and Syntyche of Philippi, Tryphosa, Julia and Olympus of Rome, and many more unnamed. The continuing prominence of women leadership in subsequent decades (much to the consternation of some prominent male leaders!) attests to the valuing of female leadership in the movement that became Christianity.
Paul demonstrated, time and time again, that he was able to work constructively with female colleagues. He commends to the Romans the leader of the church in Cenchreae, Phoebe (Rom 16:1), whom he recognises as both diakonos—the same term he uses for Timothy and himself (Phil 1:1) as well as Apollos and himself (1 Cor 3:5, 9; 4:1)—and prostatis, a term indicating leadership exercised as a patron (cf. Rom 12:8 and 1 Thess 5:12).
Paul affirms as equally important the ministries of Prisca and Aquila, (Rom 16:3; 1 Cor 16:19; also 2 Tim 4:19), affirming that they “work[ed] with me in Christ Jesus, and risked their necks for my life” (Rom 16:4)—high praise indeed. Indeed, Paul strikingly named Prisca ahead of Aquila in two of these references, an unusual order which draws particular attention to his female co-worker.
In sending greetings to the believers in Rome (where he had not yet visited), Paul affirms the leadership of “Mary, who has worked very hard among you” (Rom 16:6) and Junia, who along with Andronicus is described as “my relatives who were in prison with me; they are prominent among the apostles, and they were in Christ before I was” (Rom 16:7).
Paul also notes with approval the mother of Rufus, “a mother to me also” (Rom 16:13) and a number of other females, named amd unnamed—Tryphaena and Tryphosa (Rom 16:12), “Julia, Nereus and his sister, and Olympas, and all the saints who are with them” (Rom 16:15) and “the brothers and sisters who are with them” (Rom 16:14).
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Women in the New Testament (1): the positive practices of Jesus and the early church
So in writing to the Philippians, Paul values his colleagues Euodia (a name meaning “sweet fragrance”) and Syntyche (a name meaning “with fate”—perhaps, blessed by fortune?). They are loyal (a fine quality); they have worked alongside Paul (and that would have been no mean feat!). Their names are “in the book of life”, an ancient Israelite idea (Mal 3:16; Isa 4:3; Ps 69:28) which continues on into Christianity (see the many references in Revelation).
There appears to have been some dissension between these two women—but they are not alone on that score! Think of the “sharp disagreement” (paroxysm in Greek) that occurred between Barnabas and Paul in Antioch (Acts 15:36–39); or the antagonism from “those who unsettle you” in Galatia—the ones of whom Paul wrote, “I wish [they] would castrate themselves” (Gal 5:12); or indeed the aggression that Paul shows towards “the dogs … the evil workers … those who mutilate the flesh!” (Phil 3:2). Paul himself is no role model of irenic collegial co-operation!
In this passage, Paul prays for joy, gentleness, and peace amongst the community in Philippi (4:5–7), and then exhorts them all to model in their lives “what you have learned and received and heard and seen” (4:9). Wise words for all of us, indeed.
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Years ago, when I was immersed in studying the letters of Paul, in the original Greek and in the context of relevant Hellenistic literature of the time, I came across a fine Greek word, parrhesia. This noun, and its related verb, appear 40 times in the New Testament (most often in the Gospel attributed to John). I studied it. It was an intriguing word.
Ten of these New Testament occurrences of parrhesia are in letters written by, or attributed to, Paul, and most of these are places where Paul refers to this concept with great admiration. Indeed, he explicitly applies it to his own way of operating (1 Thess 2:2; 2 Cor 3:12, 7:4; Phil 1:20).
Parrhesia seems a most suitable and fitting word for Paul to use to describe his modus operandi. It is variously translated as boldness, frankness, courage, assurance, a fearless freedom in expression, an unreserved style of speaking … or, perhaps most simply, “plain speaking”.
Sound like Paul? Yep, I reckon it does. A common picture of Paul is just this: he told it like it was, he stood tall and let it rip, proclaiming for all to hear exactly what he thought, how he saw things. Paul made regular use of parrhesia. And rightly so, for it was a quality in public speaking which had been valued, long before his time, and would continue to be valued, after his own lifetime.
Parrhesia—boldness, frankness, sheer unvarnished honesty—was a moral virtue, prized amongst philosophers and rhetoricians, and regularly used by Jewish and Christian orators. Even into our own time. Christian preachers who are famous in history are revered and honoured for their fine public speaking skills—Jonathan Edwards, Charles Spurgeon, William Wilberforce, Martin Luther King, Billy Graham, Nelson Mandela all spring to mind.
(Yikes, all men … shows my bias and the bias of public speaking throughout history … with apologies. Then again, such boldness and frankness has long been a very masculine characteristic in public discourse.)
No doubt you have encountered a preacher or pastor who exemplifies parrhesia. Who tells it like it is. Who does not hold back. Indeed, I have encountered such people, right throughout my adult life. Even up into the present. Even in the last few days. Even as my church continues to debate and argue about how we understand marriage and how we might (or should) ((or must!!)) practice it. My goodness, there have been instances of this very recently.
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But in the midst of this noisy discussion, I came across a comment by a colleague about another verse in one of Paul’s letters … another word, another late praised by Paul, another quality which had long been valued and honoured and promoted within the Hellenistic literature.
The verse is a short one in this passage in Philippians 4, where Paul is addressing the believers in the Roman colony of Philippi in Macedonia. There had been some tensions amongst this group of believers; Paul exhorts them to express unity of purpose, to support one another, and to live in a way that honours the faith they share together. He explicitly encourages them to support two women, Eudoia and Synthche, who are especially beloved of Paul.
He instructs them to “rejoice in the Lord”. Then, he says, “let your gentleness be known to everyone” (Phil 4:5). That instruction is striking for two reasons. First, it is oriented towards “everyone” … perhaps a more literal translation would be, “to every human being”. Not just within the community of faith, but to everyone whom they encounter and engage with, anywhere in society.
The second, even more striking, feature, is Paul’s use of the Greek word epieikes, which the NRSV translates as “gentleness”. This is almost the polar opposite of parrhesia. Instead of boldness, frankness, and the tub-thumping directness of a hard-hitting public argument, Paul encourages gentleness, mildness, a sense of fairness, in the way that believers are to engage with others. To be reasonable. To offer generosity in attending carefully to the other. To offer forbearance and patience.
But there is more. That word epieikes, and related words, are found in various places in Hellenistic literature, in writings which encourage an honest and thoughtful engagement between people. It is used by rhetoricians, philosophers, and historians, to indicate a way of engaging constructively, respectfully, openly, with other people. Indeed, the word has, at its root, the short verb eiko, which means, to yield, to give way to, to surrender.
So, Paul instructs the Philippians, at this point, to engage in respectful conversations with each other, in which one party yields to the other party—one party steps back, steps aside, pulls back from their boldness and frankness, stops and listens, ponders and reflects, allows the other party to express their view and to have it heard and registered.
And the same word pops up in a couple of other places in New Testament letters, where it appears in contrast to “quarrelling” in 1 Tim 3:3 and Titus 3:2, and in connection with being “peaceable” and “open to reason” in James 3:17. So these verses urge those who are fighting within the church to settle their dispute and focus on more important issues in the gospel. To do this would a provide a positive testimony, in a context where disputes about honour and reputation were common and all too unhelpful.
It seems to me that this is surely “a word of the Lord” for our time. For our place. For our current discussion. For our church, rent by divergent and disputing views. For our society, plunged into the morass of fake news and false accusations and incessant tweeting. And for the Uniting Church in Australia, continuing to grapple with its prophetic commitment to diversity, inclusivism, and an affirming welcome to all.
Let’s just demonstrate some epieikes. Let’s yield. Let’s be gentle. Let’s live the Gospel of abundant grace and liberating hope. May it be so.
See also
An Informed Faith 