1 Timothy 3: Who Can Be an Officer? An Exegetical and Historical Study

Seminary S215

Who is able to hold the offices of the church, deacons and elders, within the Seventh-day Adventist Church? The question of gender roles and the church’s understanding of who is sanctioned by the Scriptures to aspire to that office is a revolving matter today. The topic has been around in discussion for about 40 years now without a final answer within the Seventh-day Adventist Church. Therefore, it is the aim of this paper to focus on the consistency of the Seventh-day Adventist Church with its own statements and policies, and the text of 1 Timothy 3. Moreover, it will propose a way forward in the understanding of the text and from the Women’s Ordination conversation. The paper will feature a textual analysis of significant sections from the Epistolary passage with pertinent background information that reveals who can be a leader in the church and why it is that Adventists do not ordain women. Moreover, it includes an analysis of the official statements and actions that the General Conference has taken in regard to the topic. The paper will conclude an answer to the question of why women are not ordained in the church.