SPSA Church Giving (opens in a new tab)

Questions & Answers

Women/Women in the Church

Faith Q&A › Metropolitan Youssef › The Church › Women/Women in the Church

The question

I would like to hear your views related to the issue "letting women to share in the readings during Apocalypse night (Revelation)." I have been in different States in US and have seen girls read chapters from the Holy Book of Revelation and sections from prophecies and prayers during that night.

Recently, in our church, some girls asked to share in reading some of the prophecies, etc, and were not allowed. Actually, while one of them was reading, a deacon interrupted her saying this is wrong and not allowed as St. Paul said in his letters. I felt the girl was offended and two of them left the church that night.

If this is a critical issue to some girls (who were born in the States) who think that this is discrimination and may get offended when deacons stop them saying "the voice of women should not...etc. Which is better to let some of them share reading while sitting in their places, or get offended and let them think of the Coptic Church as a church discriminating against women?  Which is better to let some of them share with reading few sections or stop and offend them and even not care if they hate the church and seek other churches with American friends whenever they get the chance to do?

The answer

There are really two issues here:

One is the fact that having women reading in the church is against the teaching of the Holy Bible. "Let your women keep silent in the churches, for they are not permitted to speak; but they are to be submissive, as the law also says" (1 Cor 14:34). The Coptic Church is not discriminating against women. On the contrary it is a biblical church. I want to go a step further and say that not only women should not be allowed reading in the Church but also not any man just because he is a male should be reading during Divine Liturgy. In the orders of deacons there is a special rank for readers in our church called 'Anaghnostis'. Males holding this rank or above are the ones who should be allowed to read with understanding in the church. So if the church in its organization has a special rank for male readers, how can we open it to anyone to stand in the church and read? Let alone women whom the Holy Bible clearly states otherwise? So instead of saying and unfortunately promoting wrongfully that our church is discriminating against women, we need to learn the right teachings of the holy Bible and the church and relay them to those who accuse us.

The other issue is the incident that happened in your church which is really regretful. To remedy a wrong situation with a wrong reaction is not really a solution. You said the girls had asked to share in the readings and were not allowed. I am not clear on how they ended up reading? Did they read on their own without asking permission? The deacon who took on his shoulder to intervene, did he ask the attending priest and got his approval to do so. To embarrass others in the middle of church at the time we are reading the Holy Bible is not gaining anyone but deviates our attention from the Holy Bible at hand and creates tension and bitterness and as I hear the girls left the church offended. This situation could have been handled wisely with a spirit of love and humility instead of deacons assigning themselves enforcers of the 'law'.

Answered by His Eminence Metropolitan Youssef (opens in a new tab)

Related questions

Questions answered by His Eminence Metropolitan Youssef (opens in a new tab) of the Coptic Orthodox Diocese of the Southern United States. Question 991 on the Diocese’s Q&A site. Questions and answers © Coptic Orthodox Diocese of the Southern United States. All rights reserved.