The Question Everyone Is Asking — And the Answer
Can Women Be Deaconesses in the Presbyterian Church in America?
No.
Thank you for coming to my keynote speech.
On one hand, the conversation really is that simple. In addition to that, almost everyone says they agree and that they aren’t ordaining women as deacons.
So X can just calm down, right? (If only).
If the above is true in the PCA, then why the recent controversy?
It’s because, while technically it’s true that no one has ordained female deacons. Functionally, however, it very much seems like there are churches with women deacons (and some even with positions like “shepherdesses” and, though I will not specifically be addressing that, the principles about to be discussed will apply to those situations as well).
Necessary Clarifications and Scope
Let me start by making some prefatory notes:
I am not going to be calling out particular pastors or churches. I will be leaving things in the realm of generalities, but they are generalities that have grounding in real circumstances.
This topic has come up because of a very small minority of churches in the PCA, contra your X feed that may lead you to believe that its half of the PCA, are pushing the boundaries on this topic. That perception, however, is remarkably far from the truth. But, it is probably true that this is enough of an issue that we may need to discuss it at the denominational level.
I would be considered very “conservative” within the PCA (at least, normally). However, my opinions are my own, and you could find a variety of PCA Teaching Elders and Ruling Elders that would disagree with how these things should be handled.
With that being said, I love the PCA. I am not going to be leaving the PCA, and I have been very encouraged by the movements (though not perfect) of the PCA over the past 10 years.
So, with all that behind us, I hope you like the topic of church government because, as the Joker said: Here. We. Go.
What the Book of Church Order Actually Says
The Book of Church Order—a constitutionally binding document (except for most of the directory of worship…that’s a topic for another time)—explicitly says:
The ordinary and perpetual classes of office in the Church are elders and deacons. Within the class of elders are the two orders of teaching elders and ruling elders. The elders jointly have the government and spiritual oversight of the Church, including teaching. Only those elders who are specially gifted, called, and trained by God to preach may serve as teaching elders. The office of deacon is not one of rule, but rather of service both to the physical and spiritual needs of the people. In accord with Scripture, these offices are open to men only (emphasis mine). (7-2)
And:
To the office of deacon, which is spiritual in nature, shall be chosen men (emphasis mine) of spiritual character, honest repute, exemplary lives, brotherly spirit, warm sympathies, and sound judgment, conforming to the biblical requirement of chastity and sexual purity in their descriptions of themselves and in their convictions, character, and conduct. (9-3)
Cut and dry.
The Often-Appealed Exception: BCO 9-7
However, one of the justifications that has been used for circumstances that are causing tension comes from 9-7:
It is often expedient that the Session of a church should select and appoint godly men and women of the congregation to assist the deacons in caring for the sick, the widows, the orphans, the prisoners, and others who may be in any distress or need. These assistants to the deacons are not officers of the church (BCO 7-2) and, as such, are not subjects for ordination.
So what seems to be happening in some churches is these appointments are being made, or people are being nominated and voted on in such a way as to mimic and model ordination.
There have reportedly been trainings for women that are the same as what the deacons go through, and there have reportedly been public commissioning ceremonies that, for all intents and purposes, look very similar to ordination and installation ceremonies. There have also been various titles given to these individuals, such as “deaconess”.
Titles, Study Committees, and Constitutional Authority
And a justification for using these types of titles comes by way of appealing to a study committee report that the PCA did on the role of women in the church. This committee report words things in such a way as to potentially leave the door open to the use of such titles.
HOWEVER…a study committee report, though helpful for the church, still has no constitutional authority of the churches, even once adopted, and cannot contradict the Scriptures or the BCO.
It is yet to be seen in the PCA whether a church can successfully be brought up on charges for having women “deaconesses” since the use of the term as pertaining to a deacon assistant (per BCO 9-7) is not explicitly prohibited.
In fact, the BCO does not give any official title to those who would be appointed by the session to assist the diaconate.
Why Titles Matter: Confusion in the Flock
But a core question that is being asked by those who oppose the use of titles like deaconess is…why? Why use the title? Does this not cause confusion amongst the flock?
If someone is visiting a church website and sees women listed alongside the ordained deacons with the title of deaconess (something I can personally attest to seeing), it is reasonable to assume that what has been communicated is that you ordain women to the officer role.
The question also is being asked: If you are going to use the title of deaconess for the women that are appointed to aid the deacons—what do you then call the men?
Earlier in America, we used to gender a lot of our terms: steward/stewardess, waiter/waitress, etc. Now it’s “flight attendant” and “server” as we’ve moved toward wanting not to distinguish gender in our society.
Even still, the gendered terms represented the same position. The obvious gendered term for a female deacon, in English, is deaconess. And it seems almost indisputable that if you were to tell someone you were a deaconess, they would assume a female ordained officer.
So at the very least, the term causes confusion, even if the women in those roles really are only serving as deacon assistants.
And what causes further confusion is if the women sit in on deacon meetings regularly and are part of the decision making body. In fact, it’s not actually confusing at that point—you have women officers.
Honoring Both the Letter and the Spirit of Our Standards
I am unwilling to charge specific pastors with malicious intentions because there are processes for that, and a church cannot survive if she is constantly looking at her fellow officers with suspicion and accusation.
However, it is very difficult not to see much of this as a way to exploit a loophole in the BCO so that certain theologies, ideas, and agendas can be pushed that are known to be explicitly against our current standards.
I think we would do well to look not just at the letter of the law but attempt to honor the spirit of the law as well.
Using terms that could confuse someone as to whether we ordain women to officer positions in the PCA is, at best, unhelpful, at worst, intentionally an attempt at undermining our current standards.
A Brief Historical Reminder
As a side note: This isn’t the first time the PCA has thrown this rodeo. There is a well known discussion between Tim Keller and Ligon Duncan that shows there have been varying thoughts as to how the PCA should consider women ministry roles.
But I want to emphasize from an earlier paragraph the phrase “our current standards”.
If Convictions Change, There Is a Lawful Path
As with all healthy institutions, the PCA has a means by which if someone disagrees biblically and theologically with our current standards, they can challenge them through overtures and debate.
If someone truly does think that women should be allowed to be ordained to the office of deacon, they can write an overture in an attempt to amend our BCO and let the process of debate and voting play out.
And, if it fails, and someone still maintains their conviction, for the sake of their conscience and the peace of the church, they should withdraw themselves from the PCA and join themselves to another denomination that honors such convictions.
What should not be done is exploiting loopholes while publicly affirming standards one is functionally undermining.
Summary and Conclusions
There is much more that could be said on this topic. And a lot has already been said.
To summarize:
Can women be ordained as deacons in the PCA? No.
Are there churches within the PCA that are (seemingly) pushing these boundaries? Yes.
The PCA has said it believes the Scriptures teach only men should be ordained to church offices.
Anyone who disagrees must make those convictions clear before taking vows. If views change afterward, integrity requires disclosure and proper process.
What we must not do is keep the letter of the law while violating its spirit.
This article also does not address the belief that women cannot be honored unless they hold officer-like titles. That belief should be rejected outright.
Seeking Peace, Unity, and Faithfulness
There is a fine balancing act between acting in good faith and calling a spade a spade.
I do believe that for the PCA to resolve doctrinal issues correctly, we must submit to Scripture, honor our vows, and submit to the decisions of our brothers (BCO 24-6).
We are not enemies. We are brothers. And almost all of us want the same thing: the gospel to go forward and the church to care for the people of God.
Paul speaks often of peace and unity in the church. That unity is impossible without doctrinal fidelity.
Our language, accusations, and practices must reflect the vows we took and the love we owe one another.
