Paul is not here prohibiting all kinds of speaking by women in church, since a few chapters earlier he speaks kindly of “any woman who prays or prophesies,” provided only that she dresses modestly (1 Corinthians 11:5). The key phrase that qualifies the kind of women's speaking Paul had in mind is, “but should be subordinate” (v. 34). This phrase suggests that the speech denied to women was speech that was seen as inappropriate to them as women or wives. Such speech may have included speaking up in the church as authoritative teachers of the congregation, or as critics of the prophets, elders, or even their own husbands. It may also have included any form of questioning viewed as challenging church leadership. In other words, it probably included all forms of women's speech that reflected lack of subordination to their husbands and/or to the church leaders.
- Adventist Affirm, Answers to Questions about Women's Ordination - Pauline Passages about the Role of Women |