Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood explained

Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood
Abbreviation:CBMW
Formation:1987
Location:United States
Leader Title:President
Leader Name:Denny Burk

The Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood (CBMW) is an evangelical Christian organization promoting a complementarian view of gender issues.[1] [2] [3] According to its website, the "mission of The Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood is to set forth the teachings of the Bible about the complementary differences between men and women, created equally in the image of God, because these teachings are essential for obedience to Scripture and for the health of the family and the church."[4] CBMW's current president is Dr. Denny Burk,[5] a professor of biblical studies at Boyce College and director for The Center for Gospel and Culture at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. Its 2017 "Nashville Statement" was criticized by egalitarian Christians and LGBT campaigners,[6] as well as by several conservative religious figures.

History

The Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood was organized in 1987.[7] [8] At a 1986 meeting of the Evangelical Theological Society (ETS), Wayne Grudem gave a speech on "Manhood and Womanhood in Biblical and Theological Perspectives" in which he invited delegates to join "a new organization dedicated to upholding both equality and differences between men and women in marriage and the church."[9] This was followed by a meeting in Dallas with Grudem, John Piper, Wayne House, and others.[9] A subsequent meeting was held in Danvers, Massachusetts; at this meeting, the Danvers Statement on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood was finalized.[10] A full-page advertisement containing the full Danvers Statement was published in Christianity Today in January 1989.[11]

Founders of the CBMW coined the term "complementarianism" in 1988.[12]

In 1991, Crossway Books published the organization's lengthy book, Recovering Biblical Manhood and Womanhood: A Response to Evangelical Feminism. Edited by Piper and Grudem, this book included contributions by D. A. Carson, John Frame, Vern Poythress, Douglas J. Moo, Paige Patterson, Elisabeth Elliot, and several other writers.[13] Bill Bright of Campus Crusade for Christ also supported the organization.[14]

In the late 1990s, CBMW published articles and papers critical of Gender-Neutral Bible translations. CBMW has drawn Christian media attention by expressing concerns about such translations.[15] [16] The organization's thoughts on Bible translations have had influence upon Southern Baptists.[17] The CBMW opposes same-sex marriage.[18]

The Danvers Statement

See main article: Danvers Statement. The CBMW adopted the Danvers Statement in 1988. It summarizes the CBMW's views on sex and gender roles.

The Danvers Statement[19] has been endorsed or adopted by the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Southwestern Baptist Seminary,[20] Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, Cedarville University, and several independent churches.[21] [22] Randall Balmer says that the Statement was an attempt to "staunch the spread of biblical feminism in evangelical circles."[23] Seth Dowland suggests that the authors of the statement "framed their position as a clear and accessible reading of Scripture.[24] The Danvers Statement is included in readers such as Evangelicalism and Fundamentalism: A Documentary Reader (NYU Press, 2008). The Danvers Statement recognized the "genuine evangelical standing of many who do not agree with all of our convictions."[25]

1994 statement on abuse

In 1994, at the request of Christians for Biblical Equality (a leading Christian egalitarian organization), three leaders of CBMW met with three of the CBE's leaders in Chicago to discuss potential points of agreement. According to Grudem, both sides overcame some misunderstandings about each other. One result of the meeting was an agreement to work on a joint statement on abuse in marriage, which was drafted by the CBMW with feedback from the CBE.[26] However, before it was to be issued, the CBE's board declined to join the statement. The statement was later published in the CBMW's own newsletter (later renamed the Journal for Biblical Manhood and Womanhood). It has subsequently been published on their website and in many of their publications.[27]

James Beck, declining the joint statement on behalf of the CBE Board of Directors, stated: "We do not feel it would be helpful to convene a joint press conference at ETS to issue a joint statement on abuse. CBE’s position on abuse flows directly out of our theological understanding of Scripture and what it teaches about gender and roles. If we attempt to issue a joint statement with an organization that differs fundamentally from us on this issue, we feel both organizations would be giving very mixed signals to their respective constituencies." Wayne Grudem commented: “We regret that CBE declined to join us in this statement. If CBE will not join us in something on which we agree (condemning abuse), then I see little hope that they will be willing to join us in constructive dialogue on issues where we disagree. This is unfortunate for the evangelical world.”[28]

Nashville Statement

See main article: Nashville Statement. On 29 August 2017, CBMW released a manifesto on human sexuality known as the "Nashville Statement".[29] The Statement expresses support for an opposite-sex definition of marriage, for faithfulness within marriage, for chastity outside marriage, and for a link between biological sex and "self-conception as male and female."[29] The Statement sets forth the signatories' opposition to LGBT sexuality, same-sex marriage,[30] polygamy, polyamory, adultery, and fornication.[31] The statement was signed by 150 evangelical leaders, and includes 14 points of belief.[32] The Statement:

Since its release, the Nashville Statement has been endorsed or adopted by the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA), The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, Union University, and Cedarville University.

Due to homophobia, transphobia, and perceived misogyny, the Nashville Statement has attracted controversy.[33]

Journal

Wayne Grudem co-founded a CBMW newsletter, which became the Journal for Biblical Manhood & Womanhood,[42] published biannually.[43] In the Spring of 2019, CBMW renamed its biannual journal Eikon: A Journal for Biblical Anthropology. The journal usually consists of around fifteen articles composed by various evangelical scholars who hold to complementarian views.

Publications

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Rosemary Skinner Keller, Rosemary Radford Ruether, and Marie Cantlon (2006), Encyclopedia of Women and Religion in North America, Indiana University Press, p. 468 .
  2. Pamela Cochran (2005), Evangelical Feminism: a History, NYU Press, p. 160 .
  3. Agnieszka Tennant, "Nuptial Agreements," Christianity Today, March 11, 2002.
  4. CBMW: About accessed 25 February 2018.
  5. CBMW: Denny Burk Named CBMW President accessed 24 September 2016.
  6. Web site: Evangelicals and the Nashville Statement: What is the point?. Christian Today . 2 September 2017 . 31 August 2017.
  7. CBMW web site: about us, accessed 13 September 2011.
  8. [Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability]
  9. Wayne Grudem, "Personal Reflections on the History of CBMW and the State of the Gender Debate," JBMW, Vol. 14 No. 1.
  10. [Roger E. Olson]
  11. Daniel T. Rodgers (2011), Age of Fracture, Harvard University Press, p. 312.
  12. Web site: Griswold . Eliza . 2021-07-25 . The Unmaking of Biblical Womanhood . 2022-03-26 . . en-US. In 1988, at a breakfast meeting at a Hilton Hotel near Wheaton College, in Illinois, the council’s founders coined the term "complementarianism" to describe what they believed to be the Bible’s teachings about masculinity and femininity..
  13. John Piper and Wayne A. Grudem, eds. (1991), Recovering Biblical Manhood and Womanhood: A Response to Evangelical Feminism, Crossway Books, table of contents.
  14. John G. Turner (2008), Bill Bright & Campus Crusade for Christ: The renewal of Evangelicalism in Postwar America, UNC Press, p. 209.
  15. Glen G. Scorgie, Mark L. Strauss, and Steven M. Voth (2009), The Challenge of Bible Translation: Communicating God's Word to the World, Zondervan, Note 55.
  16. Art Toalston, "Bible scholars quickly begin debate of new gender-neutral NIV revision," Baptist Press News, 30 January 2002.
  17. Michael Foust, "Patterson, Mohler endorse resolution critical of NIV '11," Baptist Press News, 29 June 2011.
  18. Web site: Legalized Same-Sex "Marriage" in Iowa: Worse than a 500-year Flood, Part I. 26 August 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140901072117/http://cbmw.org/uncategorized/legalized-same-sex-marriage-in-iowa-worse-than-a-500-year-flood-part-i/. 1 September 2014 . live.
  19. http://www.CBMW.org/Danvers "Core Beliefs: The Danvers Statement on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood."
  20. Web site: Preach the Word. Reach the World . Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary . 10 October 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110927120040/http://www.swbts.edu/index.cfm?pageid=1727 . 27 September 2011 . live.
  21. Web site: What Grace Community Church Believes . 10 October 2011 . Grace community church Nevada . https://web.archive.org/web/20111110142031/http://www.gracenevada.com/What_we_believe.htm . 10 November 2011 . dead.
  22. http://churchofthefirstcentury.org/SOF.aspx Church of the first century
  23. Book: Balmer, Randall. Encyclopedia of evangelicalism. 2004. Baylor University Press . 170. Danvers Statement.
  24. Book: Dowland, Seth. Friend. Craig Thompson . Southern masculinity: perspectives on manhood in the South since Reconstruction. 2009 . University of Georgia Press . 258. A New Kind of Patriarchy: Inerrancy and Masculinity in the Southern Baptist Convention, 1979–2000.
  25. Mary Stewart Van Leeuwen (2010), A Sword Between the Sexes?: C.S. Lewis and the Gender Debates, Brazos Press, p. 76.
  26. "Personal Reflections on the History of CBMW and the State of the Gender Debate," CBMW, 31 May 2009.
  27. "Statement on Abuse," CBMW, November 1994.
  28. CBMW News . 1 . 1 . 3 . August 1995 . CBE Declines Joint Statement . 24 June 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140802180124/http://cbmw.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/1-1.pdf . 2 August 2014 . live.
  29. Web site: Nashville Statement. CBMW. 26 February 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180224120515/https://cbmw.org/nashville-statement/. 24 February 2018 . live.
  30. News: Beaty . Katelyn . Why even conservative evangelicals are unhappy with the anti-LGBT Nashville Statement . 2 September 2017 . The Washington Post . 31 August 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170902225046/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/acts-of-faith/wp/2017/08/31/why-even-conservative-evangelicals-are-unhappy-with-the-anti-lgbt-nashville-statement/ . 2 September 2017 . live.
  31. News: Nashville Statement. CBMW. 19 September 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170921021859/https://cbmw.org/nashville-statement/. 21 September 2017 . live.
  32. Web site: Meyer . Holly . More than 150 evangelical religious leaders sign 'Christian manifesto' on human sexuality . 29 August 2017 . USA Today . 30 August 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170830024517/https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2017/08/29/evangelical-manifesto-human-sexuality/614201001/ . 30 August 2017 . live.
  33. News: Cruz . Eliel . The Nashville Statement Is an Attack on L.G.B.T. Christians . 2 September 2017 . New York Times . 1 September 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170902011742/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/01/opinion/nashville-statement-lgbt-christians.html . 2 September 2017 . live.
  34. Web site: Why I Won't Sign the Nashville Statement - Mere Orthodoxy. 30 August 2017. 26 February 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180214073347/https://mereorthodoxy.com/nashville-statement/. 14 February 2018. live.
  35. Web site: Nashville and Sodom - Aaron Taylor. 26 February 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180214014741/https://www.firstthings.com/web-exclusives/2017/09/nashville-and-sodom. 14 February 2018 . live.
  36. Web site: Toumayan . Michael . Hundreds of Christian Leaders Denounce the Nashville Statement in an Open Letter . The Human Rights Campaign . 2 September 2017 . 31 August 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170901022214/https://www.hrc.org/blog/hundreds-of-christian-leaders-denounce-the-nashville-statement-in-an-open-l . 1 September 2017 . live.
  37. Web site: The Statement . Christians United . 2 September 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170908224626/http://www.christiansunitedstatement.org/ . 8 September 2017 . dead.
  38. Web site: Blumberg . Antonia . Hundreds Of Christian Leaders Denounce Anti-LGBTQ 'Nashville Statement' . Huffington Post . 2 September 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170901085921/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/hundreds-of-christian-leaders-release-lgbtq-affirming-response-to-nashville-statement_us_59a71bcee4b0a8d14572cf35 . 1 September 2017 . live.
  39. News: Schmidt . Samantha . Evangelicals' 'Nashville Statement' denouncing same-sex marriage is rebuked by city's mayor . 2 September 2017 . The Washington Post . 30 August 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170902114257/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2017/08/30/evangelical-leaders-release-nashville-statement-on-sexuality-rejecting-gay-marriage/ . 2 September 2017 . live.
  40. News: Williams . Hattie . Nashville statement on sexuality prompts response from LGBT-supporting Christians . 2 September 2017 . Church Times . 1 September 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170902232306/https://www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2017/8-september/news/world/nashville-statement-on-sexuality-prompts-response-from-lgbt-supporting-christians . 2 September 2017 . live.
  41. News: Martin . James . Seven simple ways to respond to the Nashville Statement on sexuality . 2 September 2017 . The Washington Post . 30 August 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170901053530/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/acts-of-faith/wp/2017/08/30/seven-simple-ways-to-respond-to-the-nashville-statement-on-sexuality/ . 1 September 2017 . live.
  42. [Sarah Sumner]
  43. CBMW: Journal, accessed 13 September 2011.

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