While the authors of the New Testament epistles are controversial, a more compelling interest in the biblical books is their contrasting vision of women's role in society. Indeed, Paul's completed works still polarize Christian denominations today, due to controversies over the extent of power a woman can hold. In the First Letter to the Corinthians and Timothy, Paul addresses the role of women liberally, but moderates his suggestions to conform to his cultural norms. This contrasts with his blunt and crude messages in Galatians. Paul's letters offer very complex guidelines on gender relations, due to his different approaches in identifying the place of women. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay In Paul's First Letter to the Corinthians, Paul addresses the affairs and concerns of the Church progressively, within certain limits. Paul immediately addresses the church of Corinth as his “brothers and sisters” (1:10), including both sexes in order to unify his message. He continues to do so for the next fifteen chapters, a detail overlooked if not given full attention. However, the significance of Paul's word choice pales in comparison to his actual message. Within the first three chapters, Paul explains to the church that God should be the common denominator between him and his audience, and that the path to spiritual enlightenment is not as important as spirituality itself. Paul says, “I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius, so that no one can say that you were baptized in my name. Indeed, Christ sent me, not to baptize, but to proclaim the gospel, and not with eloquent wisdom, so that the cross of Christ would not be emptied of its strength" (1:15). In this verse, Paul emphasizes that he is not as important as the God he serves, and the wisdom he possesses serves no purpose in his ambitions to spread the gospel. Some of Paul's important messages that exclude gender relations are found in chapters five and six. Paul uses sexual immorality as a shameful sin in chapter 5, saying, “I wrote to you in my letter not to associate with sexually immoral people, not at all meaning with the immoral of this world, or with the greedy and thieves, or with the idolaters, for then I need to go out of the world. But now I write to you not to associate with anyone bearing the name of brother or sister who is sexually immoral, or greedy, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or thief... God will judge those outside. “Put out the wicked from among you” (5.9-11.13). Paul explains that it would be irrational to distance oneself from every sinner in the world, but it is very important to reject a fellow Christian who chooses to live life sinfully. This passage can also be used as a guideline for a Christian's moral code. Paul explains that this moral code is compromised when a Christian takes another person to court. He explains logically that a Christian cannot win a case in chapter 6 when he explains “I say this to your shame. Can it be that there is no one among you wise enough to decide between one believer and another, except a believer who goes to court against a believer and before unbelievers at that? In fact, having lawsuits between you is already a defeat for you. Why not suffer wrong instead? Why not let yourself be defrauded instead?” (6,6-7). Paul's disapproval of using the legal system to resolve disputes stems from modesty and logic; no one is wise enough other than God to resolve a dispute betweenbelievers. Chapter 7 of First Corinthians provides substantial “divinely inspired” information that Christians today call a road map to marriage. This is the first sense of balance and equality we get from Paul's writings, as he says: “For the wife has no authority over her own body, but the husband does; in the same way it is not the husband who has authority over his own body, but the wife" (7,4-5) Paul clarifies that a relationship based on equality between man and wife is not only recommended, but necessary. A significant detail to note is entering your opinion. Paul says: «To the unmarried and the widows I say that it is good for them to remain unmarried like me. But if they do not practice self-control, let them marry” (7:8-9). Paul immediately backtracks from the egalitarian view just given and implies that those who act on their sexual desires should marry because of their lack of self-control. Self-control is a virtue that God holds in high esteem, and for Paul to say that one should marry because one has no self-control is questionable. Another controversial statement Paul makes concerns his valuation of children from an unblessed marriage. Paul states that children born from the union between an unbeliever and a believer are “unclean,” over whom they have no control. Paul makes one final comment regarding relationships in his assessment of virginity. Paul states “it is good for you to remain as you are” (7:26), which implies that Paul is neither exalted nor dissatisfied with the idea of ​​marriage, but sees it only as a product of necessity. Paul does not acknowledge the love of a spouse in this chapter. After talking about the meaning of full devotion to God in chapters 8-10, he continues to make somewhat unreasonable propositions in chapter 11. Paul states that male and female have control over themselves. and each other, but he completely contradicts it at the beginning of this chapter. Paul says: "But I want you to know that Christ is the head of every man, that the husband is the head of the wife, and God is the head of Christ" (11.3). This is likely included to moderate his work, due to the neutral positions Paul took in the chapters mentioned above. While the inclusion of this clearly hierarchical statement is a cornerstone for many Protestant and Catholic churches in this century, it overshadows many egalitarian observations mentioned earlier by Paul. In fact, holding this specific part of Paul's letters in high regard does not make much sense; because immediately after this passage Paul prescribes women to wear the veil or shave their heads. To add insult to injury, Paul states that “For man was not made out of woman, but woman was made out of man. Not even man was created for woman, but woman for man" (11.9). It seems very out of character for Paul to include this almost misogynistic attitude when he clearly had no opinion to offer on other topics. It doesn't make much sense that Paul would have a disinterested attitude toward marriage, but a strong opinion toward a woman shaving her head. This stark contrast in writing offers two hypotheses: Paul was writing to heavily balance his previously noted “progressive” attitude toward marriage, or this was not Paul's writing at all. After writing about the negative aspects of speaking in tongues, Paul strikes a sentimental chord. note that it is also important for Christian doctrine. Paul emphasizes the importance of love, saying, “If I give away all that I have and hand over my body that I may boast, but have not love, I gain nothing. Love is patient, love is benevolent, love is not envious, nor boastful, nor arrogant, nor unkind."(13,3-5). Although Paul has never previously mentioned love except the love of God, he writes thirteen verses about the importance of love in his life. This is not only strangely placed, but also strangely written. Paul mentions the word love less than ten times up to this chapter, but he makes it clear that a Christian cannot function or succeed without love. In this way, Paul makes it clear that the love he holds dear is not between humans or idols, but towards God. After mentioning in depth the meaning of love in the life of a Christian, Paul shifts gears to downplay the practical role of women. in the church. She says: “Women should be silent in churches. Because they are not can speak but must be subordinate, as the law also says. If there is something they want to know, let them ask their husbands at home. Because it is shameful for a woman to speak in church." Now, Paul refers to the law of the land when it is appropriate to make a point. However, he diminished the authority of the law when talking about the court, as well as slavery. It can be assumed that Paul included it in his work to justify the treatment of women at that time and to avoid reforming the role of women in the church. What Paul outlines was not new, nor radical. It was appropriate for a woman to be silent in church at the time, and he saw fit to balance his enlightened ideals with strict (but consistent) practices. Women happen to be the ones who are constrained by Paul's words. Paul's writings in Galatians are a very rigid, selfish, and pompous address to the Galatian Churches. He speaks of those born in Christ as those of the “Free Woman,” referring to Sarah; and those born of the flesh are those of the “slave,” in reference to Hagar. While few gender relationships are addressed in this passage, Paul delves into the definition of freedom in Christ and how it is attainable. This comparison is important to note because Hagar is portrayed as the fearless Jezebel in Genesis, doing everything Sarah commanded her to do. Furthermore, Hagar was called Sarah's servant, not her slave. Paul gave Hagar a negative connotation, calling her a slave and comparing her to the sinful lifestyle that Christians must avoid. He says that “For freedom, Christ has set us free; therefore stand firm and do not submit yourselves again to the yoke of slavery" (5,1). These are strong words for Paul to use, as they carry heavy, negative connotations that were not even associated with the handmaid in the earlier biblical text. Paul's First Letter to Timothy also lacks meaningful instruction on gender in Christian communities, but provides guidelines for the promotion of Christian communities. Paul mentions that “women should dress modestly and decency, in suitable clothing, not with braided hair, nor with gold, pearls, or expensive clothing, but with good works, as becomes women who profess reverence for God” (2 : 9-11). This can be interpreted in two ways. Although Paul was most likely speaking literally, saying that women in that period were not to draw attention to themselves in the church, this has been taken figuratively by many Christian communities. Paul's underlying message is that good deeds in the church should not be done for the purpose of drawing attention to the individual, whether the person is male or female. Paul made a spectacle of women's “gold, pearls [and] expensive pearls” because women were probably more likely to exude elegance. Paul comments further on women in chapter 5, speaking specifically about widows: “Let a widow be included in the list who is not under sixty years of age and has been married only once, she must be well attested for her good.