Fifteen years ago, even the feminist pastors on the Ad Interim Study Committee on Women in the Military of the PCA's General Assembly were opposed to women being drafted. They were in favor of women serving as combatants and they ridiculed committee members who were opposed, saying our view of women was to keep them "barefoot and pregnant." Still, none of them wanted their daughters drafted.
These male church officers were pleased with the feminism they had already made their peace with because it put money in their pockets. (Note that pastors who are hard or soft feminists all have wives who work full time and earn good money.) These pastors and elders also didn't ever want to have to say "no" to anything their daughters wanted to be or do—doctor, special ops, lawyer, president, whatever.
But their daughters drafted? No. Absolutely not.
Try as we might, it was impossible to shake these men loose from their firm belief that ideas have no consequences and one thing never follows another.
These are the men who have been preaching to Republican politicians the past fifteen years...
They've limited their preaching on sex to saying men should not lie with men or marry one another. (They never mention lesbians.) They've also said it should be men who serve as the church's preaching pastors and elders.
But going along with their distaste for saying anything about sex outside the privacy of Christian homes and churches, as well as their distaste for addressing the civil magistrate on any moral or spiritual matter, they never mentioned the wickedness of our nation drafting women to fight in defense of their sons, husbands, and fathers.
So surprise, surprise! When the Republican presidential candidates responded to questions concerning our Armed Forces declaration last week that women should be drafted, it was immediately obvious the candidates had been sitting under the preaching of R2K, complementarian, and PCA pastors. USA Today reported the candidates' responses:
10:12 p.m.: Marco Rubio says women should be required to register for selective service, just as they are allowed in combat — and then adds his standing protest about the downsizing of the military.
Jeb Bush also backs selective service registration for women, and says the military should be politicized (sic). "The draft is not going to be re-instituted," he adds.
Christie, noting he has two daughters, says women should be allowed to register for selective service. Otherwise, it's discrimination.
Tim serves Clearnote Church, Bloomington, Indiana. He and Mary Lee have five children and big lots of grandchildren.
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