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An Open Letter to Complementarians about Head Covering

An Open Letter to Complementarians about Head Covering

I am a complementarian. This means I believe that while men and women are both created in the image of God and are equals in value and worth; they each serve a different function. In the home, the husband has been given the authority (headship) to lead his wife whereas the wife was created to help her husband and follow his leadership (submission). I believe the authority and submission in the home, pictures the relationship between Christ and His church. I also believe this was God’s original design; a pre-fall masterpiece, not a post-fall disaster.

I am encouraged by the large resurgence of complementarians and the numerous biblical scholars who defend this truth. They uphold male authority and female submission in the home and believe the office of elder (pastor) is for men only.

Within complementarianism, I hold to what is now a minority position. I believe that the functional difference between men and women should be symbolized to both men and angels when the church gathers together for worship. Yes, I believe that head covering (as taught in 1 Corinthians 11) is a timeless, transcultural symbol for Christians under the new covenant. Read more

Why Head Coverings? Reason #1: Creation Order

Biblical Case for Head Coverings

“…the thing that is most astonishing here is that he appeals to creation, not to Corinth. If anything transcends local custom it is those things that are rooted and ordered in creation. That’s why I’m very frightened to be loose with this passage.” – R.C. Sproul 1) Quoted from R.C. Sproul’s sermon ‘To Cover or Not To Cover’ available at www.ligonier.org/learn/series/hard_sayings_of_the_apostles/to-cover-or-not-to-cover/


There are four reasons for head coverings that the Apostle Paul gives in 1 Corinthians 11. The very first of these is the foundation; the deeper reality that head coverings point to. When a new believer is baptized they’re symbolizing their death to their old life & new life in Christ (Rom 6:4). When a woman prays with her head covered and a man prays with his head uncovered they too are symbolizing something greater. Let’s take a look at this foundation. Read more

References

1.
 Quoted from R.C. Sproul’s sermon ‘To Cover or Not To Cover’ available at www.ligonier.org/learn/series/hard_sayings_of_the_apostles/to-cover-or-not-to-cover/
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