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Not In My Neighborhood

How did we fall so far? Mention women in leadership in the Church of God, or more pointedly, women in senior leadership and you will hear the same response from pastors and congregants, “Nothing wrong with women in leadership. Nothing wrong with women as lead pastors. But that won’t work here.” 

Since the beginning of our movement, women were affirmed in their leadership gifts. For generations in the Church of God, the church affirmed and called women as senior pastors, evangelists, missionaries, and national leaders. Since the early days of the movement, women in key leadership positions have blessed the church with their gifts. I grew up in a Church of God that had Slovak roots in Johnstown, PA. 

In the early days of the church, women sat on one side and men on the other. Because of its eastern European heritage, men were the unquestioned authority in the home. You would think that because of the influence of eastern European culture, the church would be very resistant to women in leadership but the opposite was true. Through the years, the church invited numerous female evangelists to hold revivals. As a child, I remember a female African-American chalk artist who did an incredible week-long revival at our church. Amazingly it wasn’t even on their radar to resist female leadership in the church. At our Slovak camp meeting in Hubbard, Ohio, Sister Lillie McCutcheon was a rock star. She was the featured evangelist at Hubbard many times. What could it have been that caused people steeped in the patriarchal eastern European culture to open their arms to female leadership? I will try to answer that question through the lens of my grandfather, Karl Matas, who was a pastor and leader in the Slovak Church of God. The question of female leadership in the church was never an issue for my grandfather for two reasons. 

First, my grandfather LOVED the Church of God. It was the church that reached out to him as a young immigrant coming to America alone after World War I. He was saved through the efforts of the Church of God. He believed in the Church of God. He owed his salvation to Jesus and to the gospel preached by the Church of God. So if the doctrine of the Church of God affirmed women in leadership, that was good enough for him. Secondly and more poignantly—for Karl Matas—the Church of God welcomed him when others did not. My grandfather faced his share of prejudice when he came to America to work in the steel mills of Johnstown. He was derided, called names and made fun of, but he knew he mattered to the Church of God. The Church of God was the group that cared enough to plant Slovak-speaking churches to reach him and others like him. Years later, the Church of God affirmed his calling to ministry. The Church of God didn’t marginalize him because he was different, they welcomed him. So maybe that’s the more telling reason he so easily dismissed any temptation to resist female leadership because the church that welcomed him with the message “you can be anything that God called you to be” also gave that same gift to women. 

For Karl Matas, the Church of God broke down barriers; it welcomed and affirmed everyone that was washed in the blood. Because of that, his cultural heritage was never an issue when it came to women in ministry. Before he came to America, he never met a black person. Yet one of his favorite places to worship was with his brothers and sisters at the National Association camp meeting at West Middlesex, PA. For my grandfather, the Church of God was a movement that broke down walls, removed barriers and welcomed everyone. It was a place where a person—regardless of ethnicity, race or gender—could become what God called them to be.

But something happened in my lifetime. For the last 30 to 45 years, the doors that once welcomed women into leadership roles in the church have been closing. Women increasingly are relegated to traditional roles in children’s ministry and administration. The word “traditional” is ironic because we have moved far away from our tradition of affirming women in leadership. 

“Not in my neighborhood” is a subtle but powerful phrase that is often used to effect bigotry and prejudice. “There might not be anything wrong with [fill in the blank], I just don’t want them in my neighborhood.” It is our way to feel good. We don’t have to acknowledge our prejudice, having those people in our neighborhood won’t work here. When it comes to women in ministry, far too many churches in our movement have a “not in my neighborhood” mentality. That way, we don’t have to deny or contradict an essential doctrine of our movement; we take a false utilitarian stance and state “nothing wrong with women in ministry or women as lead pastors, but it won’t work in this church.” Sadly, when it comes to women in leadership—especially in a lead pastor role—a vast majority of our churches take a “not in my neighborhood” stance.

I can only imagine the emotional trauma this causes gifted women in our movement. If the movement affirms women in leadership, yet no church will even talk to them about open leadership positions, they are tempted to think “something must be wrong with me.”

How did we get here and what do we do about it?

Reformed theology is pervasive in popular Christian blogs and with young well-known celebrity pastors. Many of the Christian bloggers that I follow are reformed and they make it a point to drive home their complementarian beliefs. They address the role of men and women on a regular consistent basis. Yet there is relative silence among pastors and leaders who hold a different view—that God doesn’t give spiritual gifts based on gender. Our doctrine comes right out of Scripture, yet we are silent. We need to speak up. We need to preach and teach that God doesn’t limit the gift of leadership only to those who have an XY chromosome. It has been said that the church will never rise higher than the pulpit. The reason why so many in our congregations hold a negative view of women in leadership is because the only voices they hear are from those in the reformed tradition. It is imperative that we speak loudly, firmly and clearly. We as pastors and leaders need to teach our people because if we don’t someone else will.

Karl Matas fell in love with the Church of God because it welcomed him, it affirmed him as a leader. He gave his life to a movement that broke down manmade barriers and divisive walls. In our increasingly polarized nation, may we once again be the people who welcome, who affirm, who break down manmade walls of prejudice and discrimination. The world desperately needs what we once had to offer. May we find the strength and courage to offer it again.

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We Are NOT Progressives, We ARE Biblical

Joshua Brandt was primarily raised by his mother and grandma. He and his wife, Laura, are raising three girls and a sheltie named Charlea (who is also a girl). When he steps into the offices of The Gathering he is surrounded by women leaders who are advancing the the Kingdom. His church is full of sons and daughters of God who are working together to impact Muncie and the surrounding area. He is a better leader, a better person, because of all the women leaders in his life.

We are not progressives.

A while back I received an email from one of my friends. She was concerned about a church she was checking out online. This church made it very clear that they did not support women in leadership, especially as pastors. She could not believe it. She asked, “Don’t they know it is 2016?”

A four-year-old from our church was recently told by a preschool classmate that she could never be a pastor because she is a girl. We can almost hear someone ask, “Isn’t it 2016?”

A few weeks ago my social media feeds were full of the joy-filled faces of recent Anderson University School of Theology graduates. Many of the women who have proudly completed their degree know that the real work is just beginning. I hear myself asking, “I thought this was 2016?”

The question is understandable. We look around at all of the issues facing the church. We see all of the consistent change happening in our culture. We fall on our knees wondering how God will use this season in our country. We know that the world is different. It seems to some that women in leadership is just one more rallying cry for change.

It is not. 

I have been called many things over the years- a maverick (Thank you Doug Talley… I think?!?), “cutting-edge,” and an outsider. I take joy in my ability to see trends and respond to them. I desire to be a person who is open to bringing about transformation in the lives of people and the church. However, I want you to know that being a supporter of women in leadership is one of my most conservative values. 

When it comes to women in leadership, we are not progressives. We are taking a radically conservative stand.

The cry being heard from an increasing number of men and women in our tribe, in our movement, is not a demand for change. It is a call to remember. Yes, it is a call to remember who we are. To remember that our tribe has been calling women into leadership over and over again for over thirteen decades. It is perhaps too easy to say this discussion is closed. The experiential evidence abounds.

I think that argument can be too modern, too contemporary. Instead our radical commitment to women in leadership is directly tied to our commitment to the truth Scripture. I understand that there is, and perhaps always will be, discussion over “problem passages” in the New Testament regarding women in leadership. We must ask ourselves what advantage is there in advocating for a view of those passages which would limit women in leadership or remove them all together? I see no advantage for women.

I am committed to women and men leading the church because I believe it is the holistic witness of Scripture. Not because it is progressive. I take this stand because it is Biblical.

Perhaps it is time to take this discussion more personally. To sit in coffee shops and tell our stories to each other. To search Scripture together. It is worth the effort to hear and value one another. Why? Our ability to powerfully spread the Gospel is at stake.

I would love to sit and talk this through with you. Perhaps you have felt alone in your conviction about women in ministry. Give me a call. Let’s talk it through. Maybe you have been “supportive” but have not yet taken action. I would love to hear from you. And you might just be convinced that I am wrong. I look forward to hearing from you. Maybe we can help each other be better.

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Women in Partnership in Ministry

This is part 3 in a series of articles on leadership (specifically women in leadership) written by Joshua Brandt, Lead Pastor of The Gathering in Muncie, IN, and Stephanie Collins, Next Generation Pastor of The Gathering. As they share their ministry stories, you can’t help but notice the contrast. I so appreciate Stephanie’s willingness to be open, transparent, and vulnerable about her journey. And I am so thankful that she is at one of our Indiana congregations because she brings an incredible heart for ministry, sound training, and empowered gifts. Stephanie’s story reminds us that we still have work to do in our tribe in order to fully embrace God’s leadership gifts. Thank you, Stephanie.

Women in Partnership in Ministry

by Joshua Brandt

As a matter of fact, the prevalence of women preachers is a fair measure of the spirituality of a church, country, or age. As the church grows more apostolic and more deeply spiritual, women preachers and workers abound in the church…” C.E. Brown

It is interesting how perspectives can be so different. Our journey molds who we are and how we see the world. When we choose to see things through the eyes of another, we can begin to broaden our horizons. In this article, Joshua Brandt and Stephanie Collins share their own experiences and journeys with the issue of women in ministry.

Joshua
I was called into ministry when I was in 9th grade. In the calm of an open field during a time of prayer at a youth camp, God clearly called me to ministry. I have wrestled with that call over the last 25 years and it has matured along the way. As I told people at my church, and my family, I was encouraged, prayed for, and celebrated.

Stephanie
I accepted a call to ministry in 2008, at an International Youth Convention in San Antonio. I too was affirmed by my family, however I remember the shock and disbelief I felt at nineteen years old when my father, who is a Church of God pastor, said to me, “Ministry won’t be easy for you, Stephanie. The road isn’t easy for a woman in ministry.” As most nineteen year olds do, I kind of scoffed on the inside and thought that I knew better than my dad. I reasoned, “But this is the Church of God! We affirm women in ministry! Women have a place here!” Little did I know that my father was preparing me for the hard journey I would walk through for the next seven years.

Joshua
I became a youth pastor while I was still in college. At 19 years old, I was responsible for the discipleship and safety of a group of youth in a small church. I made so many mistakes in those years- trying to rent vans when I wasn’t old enough, thinking flashlight tag could be played every week, ordering enough pizzas for 150 kids when only 40 showed up. In each and every circumstance I was shown grace and encouraged to be better.

Stephanie
After receiving so much encouragement for ministry in the first few years of my calling, to my surprise, when I graduated with my bachelor’s degree, I could not find a church to serve. I sent

out resume after resume, looking for someone to take me in, give me a chance, and nurture me for the work of the Kingdom. I found no one. For the first time in my young life, the future began looking bleak for me. I was applying to the same churches that my male classmates were and they were getting hired, while I couldn’t even get an interview. My father’s words began ringing in my head… “Ministry won’t be easy for you, Stephanie. The road isn’t easy for a woman in ministry.” Would this be my life? Would this be how my story would read? I couldn’t help but feel defeated and uncertain of what the future would hold.

Joshua
I entered Anderson University School of Theology for the first time in the fall of 1999. I have gone off and on over the years (I have just one more class to go!). The joke is if you have been to SOT in the last 15 years we probably had class together. One of my first classmates is now even a professor! SOT was a great way for me to be discipled and to find respite. As the churches I served changed, SOT allowed me the space to dream and think differently.

Stephanie
After being unable to find a position at a church, I decided to enroll in seminary. At Anderson University School of Theology, I again felt affirmed and supported by all of my professors. They gave me the confidence I needed to again step out into the church world and pray that a position would open for me. Upon graduating I did just that. I stepped out in faith, seeking a church to take me in and give me a chance. Once again I found no one. One day, when the weight of another church rejection was upon me, this time solely because of my gender, I wrote these words in my prayer journal, “God, I don’t understand. Did I hear from you wrong? Am I not really called to do this? Haven’t I been faithful to you? Haven’t I studied and worked and walked through every opportunity you’ve given me? Why am I not good enough? Why am I unworthy? I’m so tired. I’m so weary. I want to give up.”

Joshua
Last year The Gathering was looking for our NextGen Pastor. New families were coming and we knew we needed to take our children & youth ministries to the next level. I had many conversations with potential candidates and read through countless resumes. Something was missing. We needed someone who could grow into our ethos. Someone who was clearly called to church leadership. Someone who could be a vital part of our team. I was getting frustrated that we couldn’t find who we were looking for.

Stephanie
Nine months after graduating seminary, I heard back from a church I had expressed interest in. They wanted to meet me for an interview. As I walked in the little diner where I was meeting the Pastor, Joshua Brandt, and Worship Pastor, Leo Flores, I was so tired and weary and truthfully didn’t expect anything good to come of this meeting. Rejection had become part of my identity. Inwardly, I had picked up this sense of rejection and shame and made it part of who I was, just as much as I had brown hair and blue eyes. Within an hour of meeting with Joshua, I sensed something different. I could tell he believed in women in ministry and leadership, possibly even more than I did!

Joshua
It is funny how conversations turn. When Leo and I met Stephanie that first time, it was clear that weariness was taking over. I wish I could tell you that The Gathering and I hired Stephanie because we are champions of women in ministry. I want you to know that we asked the best person we could find to join our team. Isn’t that the goal? We are all about accomplishing our mission and with Stephanie on our team we are so much better prepared to do that. My prayer is that in the Church of God, leaders, elders, and churches would fully embrace what Scripture tells us about leadership.

Stephanie
I’ve been at The Gathering for exactly a year now. It has been one of the greatest years of my life. I am finally getting to do what I was called all those years ago to do, what I have been equipped to do, and what I am gifted to do. Without a church like The Gathering and without a pastor like Joshua, I can’t help but think I would still be floundering somewhere in feelings of discouragement, worthlessness, and depression. Those are the feelings I was facing on a daily basis as I was stuck in a place of not being able to do what I believed God had created me to do.

What would happen if every church in Indiana decided to live out Paul’s words in Galatians
3?: There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. Our Boards would be stronger as a mix of perspectives guided the conversations. Our teaching teams, paid and volunteer, would bring deeper wisdom in Scripture to light. Our children would have the advantage of seeing a counter-cultural church where women and men lead in their calling and gifting. The Church of God has always been counter-cultural and challenged the status quo. It is our prayer that we would begin doing this again with women in ministry.

Published: March 24, 2016

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