Should women remain silent in church? an exegetical study of 1 Corinthians 14:34-35

Abstract

A reexamination of Greco-Roman culture highlights that it was the accepted social code of honor and shame that determines the injunction to women in 1 Corinthians 14:34-35. The injunction was culture specific and the “speech” branded “shameful” by Paul in 1 Corinthians 14 was not sacred speech at all; Paul had allowed the exercise of sacred speech all through the contexts of the passage. It was the ordinary speech carried on by women in public gathering that was branded “shameful” because of the sexual implication of women’s public display. Women’s leadership is not the issue; rather, Paul’s motive was that “orderly management of the existing social codes ensures an orderly society.” Today that same cultural social code does not apply, as women freely have public roles in one capacity or the other.