Complementarian Creation of Double-minded Apostle

Complementarians have reasoned and twisted the Ephesians 5:21-24 writing of the Apostle Paul until they have made him into the double-minded, unstable apostle. At least, if any woman wrote like they claim Paul did, she'd be called illogical, unstable, emotional & double-minded. They claim that after commanding everyone to submit to one another, when the Apostle Paul then commanded wives to submit to their husbands, he was also commanding husbands to take authority over their wives—the opposite of what he commanded in verse 21 and the opposite of what Jesus taught.

If Apostle Paul is such a double-minded man, we should see similar teaching elsewhere. After he tells the entire church to do one thing, he should tell half of them to do the opposite. I looked for that type of teaching elsewhere and couldn't find any, so I had to redefine Paul's letters, like the complementarians do. These should work wonders at bringing husbands and wives into close fellowship with each other, resulting in stronger marriages and fewer divorces.

Philippians 2:3-4 “Let nothing be through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves. Husbands, sit under the footstool of your wives, that the wives may display their goodly apparel, their fine-broided hair and their costly gold jewelry, bringing glory to themselves and to God.”

Ephesians 5:11-12 “And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them. Wives, bless your idolatrous, adulterous, covetous husbands and give praise unto God.”

Colossians 3:9-10 “Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds and have put on the new man. Husbands, agree with your wives quickly while it is yet day, lest they trample you under their feet and rend you.”

Ridiculous, I know. But more ridiculous than the reasoning complementarians use on Ephesians 5:21-24? Could it be that by commanding husbands to love and sacrifice for their wives in verses 25-31, Apostle Paul is providing a word picture, showing husbands how to submit to their wives? That would make sense and be in agreement with the preceding verses. Could it be that since all his explaining is about love and sacrifice, that those are the actions that are to come forth from the “husband-head?” Notice that no leadership is mentioned, unless it is the leadership of sacrifice and love. No husband-generated goal to aim for, nor making decisions that the wife must follow is mentioned. Could it be that those are NOT the application of “husband-head?”

It is high time complementarians stop making Paul out to be “a double-minded man, who is unstable in all his ways.” James 1:8, and encourage husbands to submit sacrificially and lovingly to their wives and encourage their wives to submit to the love and sacrifice of their husbands, but to “be followers of God” Ephesians 5:1, rather than followers of man.



Waneta Dawn is the author of "Behind the Hedge, A novel" See www.wanetadawn.com A Mennonite woman fights to save her family yet keep her faith.