Bishops and Fathers

Anticipating the James K response!

Will be something like his last

Meh. The obvious poisoning the well and other conversational terrorism tactics were used. I expected as much. This whole series has simply repeated the same assumptions. Apparently Kevin thinks that if you say it enough times it is true. Surely a research effort should reflect better, um, research.

We’ve got your number James: No answers! No interaction with the article! No explanation of your own position (despite repeated requests!)

I’ve appreciated the series and do hold to a mostly congregationalist view of polity. But this installment has me thinking hold on a second!

Though I do believe in congregational participation in decisions and pastoral accountability to congregations, it doesn’t follow that the bishop has no decision making authority. Did I misread Bauder on that point?

(And his handling of oikodespotes… Whether the oikodespotes’ authority is “delegated” or not is a bit beside the point. Nor does it follow that if the term sometimes refers to top-level authority, this is necessarily the meaning of the term in 1 Tim. Rather, the NT is clear that authority and responsibility in the home are hierarchical. Though the husband ought to refrain from micromanaging—just because it’s usually stupid to do that—the husband is her head and she does not have authority to give him orders about anything. 1 Cor. 11:3. This is not reading modern suburban values into Scripture… though I’ll plead guilty to being a bit medieval on the subject.)

Views expressed are always my own and not my employer's, my church's, my family's, my neighbors', or my pets'. The house plants have authorized me to speak for them, however, and they always agree with me.