Quote:
Originally Posted by Ozgeorge
I find the phenomenon of selective reading interesting. Here we have a "definitive" passage of how men and women "should" relate to one another, yet the passage clearly states that women who pray with their heads uncovered are a disgrace and their hair should be shorn. Yet that bit of the passage (which is an unequivocally clear instruction) is permitted to be culturally determined by contemporary "sola scriptura Christians", while the rest of the passage is not.
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Actually, if anybody is really interested, and reads those passages (and others in Paul's epistles) we can begin to see that Paul actually is refuting that women should wear coverings, or woman can't teach. He's not actually in agreement with the men's "laws" on such things.
What Paul actually does is to quote someone else's "rule" and then provides a rebuttal against that rule. 1 Corinthians 11: 15 e.g. "But if a woman has long hair, it is a glory to her; for her hair is given to her for a covering" This verse is something that was written TO paul in a letter by a false teacher - we know this because Paul states in the first chapter that "it has been declared to me concerning you, my brethren, by those of Chloe's household that there are contentions among you."
Then in chapter 7 Paul didn't just hear about those issues with the Corinthian church, they actually wrote to him about them. And he starts off his responses by saying "Now concerning the things of which you wrote to me..." Paul is setting the stage to refute and correct false teaching in the corinthian church
With a view in that way, let's look at Chap 11:15 again. Paul is qouting what one of the false teachers wrote in the letter to him. Next comes his response to that verse: vs 16: BUt if anyone seems to be contentious, we have NO SUCH CUSTOM, NOR DO the Churches of God. Paul is telling them, we don't make woman wear coverings nor do any of the other churches, it's not a requirement.
In any event, read Corinthians carefully and see if you can pick out where Paul is quoting one of the false statements that was written to him, and then watch his rebuttal, it's a very different reading of those passages.
Enjoy..