Why Women Belong in Seminary: Challenging John Piper’s Complementarian Logic - w/ Bonnie Lewis

Episode • Jan 29, 2018 • 57m

In this gripping episode, Mike Erre and Tim Stafford welcome back scholar and teacher Bonnie Lewis to confront John Piper’s recent claims that seminaries should only hire male faculty. This conversation dives deep into entrenched complementarian beliefs and the implications for women in theology, church leadership, and spiritual formation. Drawing on Bonnie’s personal experience in seminary, this episode dismantles the idea that women can't or shouldn't teach men and highlights the need for diverse voices in pastoral training.

Key Takeaways: • Seminary Formation vs. Church Formation – Why the claim that seminary is the primary space for pastoral development misses the critical role of the local church. • Living the Contradiction – Bonnie details the hypocrisy in seminaries that allow women to attend but discourage them from pursuing pastoral education or teaching. • A Clear Biblical Counterexample – Priscilla and Aquila’s mentorship of Apollos in Acts stands in direct contradiction to Piper’s argument that women can’t teach future pastors. • The Emotional Cost of Exclusion – Bonnie shares the toll that institutional resistance and cultural pressure placed on her mental and spiritual health. • Why We All Lose Without Women Leaders – How excluding women from seminary instruction impoverishes the pastoral formation of men and marginalizes the unique ways women experience and communicate God’s work.

Guest Highlights: Bonnie Lewis – Writer, speaker, theologian, and long-time friend of the podcast. Bonnie shares her experience navigating seminaries as a female theologian, the regret of not pursuing a Master of Divinity due to external pressures, and why she now advocates for women to fully pursue and own their call to ministry.

Resources Mentioned: • Acts 18 – The story of Priscilla and Aquila teaching Apollos • Genesis 3 & 1 Timothy 2 – Passages often used in complementarian theology • Fuller Theological Seminary – The institution where Bonnie pursued her M.A. in Theology • John Piper’s Q&A Article – “Should Women Be Seminary Professors?” (DesiringGod.org)

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