Although sexism is rampant in churches today, sexism is not a part of the Bible. The Bible is not a sexist document. What we have here is controlling and abusive male church leaders twisting scripture to fulfill their lust for power.

First of all, God created men and women in his own image. (See Genesis 1:27). That would imply equality. And, yes, while Eve was created as a helper for Adam, nowhere does scripture indicate that this is a subservient role. (Genesis Chapter 2). Some think that the word “helper” is a sexist term; however, if you look at the original Hebrew, you’ll find that this particular word has also been used to describe God himself! A sexist, inferior, or derogatory term would never be used to describe the Lord Almighty. So we can conclude that helper is not a sexist term nor does it imply any type of inferiority.

Another popular argument is that Eve sinned first. (Genesis Chapter 3). What difference does that make? Adam and Eve both sinned. And remember how Adam blamed the woman when God confronted him, saying, “She gave me the fruit”? God didn’t fall for it then, and He’s not falling for it now. And that’s exactly what men are doing when they use the fall to “prove” that women are somehow deficit - they are blaming women exactly as Adam blamed Eve back then.

One passage that seems blatantly sexist is Ephesians 5:22, which calls women to submit to their husbands. Biblically speaking, there are other types of figures we should submit to as well, such as God and authorities on earth. (See Hebrews 12:9, James 4:7, Romans 13:1, Romans 13:5, 1 Peter 2:13, 1 Peter 2:18, and Hebrews 13:17). We are also called to submit to one another (Ephesians 5:21), regardless of gender. That would mean that men are to submit to women as well as women submitting to men. In a healthy and biblically correct marriage, the husband and wife would submit to each other. Finally, husbands are called to love their wives as Christ loves the church (Ephesians 5:25).

Nowhere in the Bible does it say that women are inferior to men, that they must “obey” their husbands (mutual submission is different), and that their husbands can punish them. Yet so many men claim it is their God-given right to abuse their wives. Women are told by church leaders to submit to their husbands, in other words, take the abuse. Women are chastised by their churches when they speak about what is happening to them. They are ostracized by church members if they leave their husbands. They are told that leaving their husbands is wrong, and that they will face eternal damnation if they do not repent and return to their husbands. There are no scriptures to support these ridiculous ideas. While it is true that God hates divorce, He does allow it in some situations. For more on that topic, read my post The Bible and Divorce.

Not all churches are guilty of perpetuating abuse. One church that takes a stand against abuse is the Seventh-Day Adventist church. This church has actually made fighting abuse one of the top goals of its women’s ministry. Read an interview with the leader of the women’s ministry on the topic of abuse.

I believe that if people would truly seek the Lord when they read the Bible instead of focusing on their own agenda, they would see that God loves all people equally and never wants us to hurt one another.