The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1894-11-30
WoMAN's PLACE IN THE CHURCH

+
the Jasper News, thinks it shame
| spelt with big capital letters for wo.
men 70 preach" Hesays they must
keep silence in the churches.'' But
the particular woman who called forth
brother CaIdwell's article had been
preaching in court house and not in
church at all, and the Salvation
army women preach in the streets and
lanes, the slums, by-ways and hedges.
Does st. Paul's Inhibition cover
these places?
| But how about the women singing
in the churchesl Are they less Isl
lent singing than ''preaching?n
When the holy ghost shall descend
upon her and fill her heart with the
"all consuming fire. and her tongue
shall be loosencd by the spirit = that
made Pentecost memorable. Is she still
to be g siIent?u
Is a woman never to shout, brother?
- And on my handmaidens. win pour
out in those days Of my spirit-and they shall
prophecy
What does that mean, brother?
Very eminent theologians believe
that this injunction against women
being heard in the church had mere
ly local application and was no more
intended to become general than what
Paul said to the unmarried women and
widows was meant to put an end to
marriage. He told them it would be
better for them if they '.abided as he
did, He was an old bachelor, some
what testy and crusEy we imagine,
and certainly knew nothing of the
hallowed joys of home and marriage.
Now, surely, with the good wife he
has, and his dozen little hopefuls,
brother Caldwell does not believe that
Paul-meant there should be an end to
marriage?
And that this injunction against
women being heard in the churches or
taking part in church work, which
amounts TO the same thing and is the
same thing, was never intended to be-
come general or have anything more
than local application, we find that
women We're made deaconesses in
the early history of the church and
at the first council of the church-the
council of Trent-they were duly rec
ognized as such. That ought to settle
tho t1naffop n oaax,ac r.. ne
The higher compliment that can be
paid to woman is the nearer you place
her on level with man. And why
not, if she exhibits the same or even
more skill, industry and capacity?
The women form about two-thirds
of the membership of the churches
and about nine-tenths of the piety,
and, perhaps, one-ffth of the other
tenth might be put down to her credit
without going very far amiss.
In Temperance, charity aud mis-
sions-in the zeal and enthusiasm she
brings to these works, far excels the
zeal and enthusiasm of the men who
want 10 reap the glory here as in
other things ard have the women do
the work.
Women are eminentlY and essen
TALLY religious. Hers is not cold,
''dumb" religion, either. In their
piety, activity and devotion they put
men to "shame'' in bigger capital
letters than brother Caldwell uses.
If brother Caldwell wants to rob
christianity of its strength and its
glory and its firm supports; if he
wants to see its pillars totter and fall,
let him strike the names of the wo-
men from the roll of the churches.
Say to them that they must be silent
and their names be unheard in the
churches, and in church work, and
that they must learn piety of their
husbands at home and in subsection,
Ichabod will be written on its affairs
and the church will become a totter-
ing wreck
Woman's sweet influence in the
church and for the church has not
been exerted through her 'silence.n
1t has been done by prayer and song
and speech.
Last at the cross and first at the sep
ulchre, woman's place in the church
is next the altar-nearest her Savior.
Rob her not, brother, of the place
she has fairly and Justly and proudly
won by her faith, her zeal, her fidelity
and devotion.
Rather let her sing hosannas to her
Lord in the clearest, sweetest and
loudest anthems.