The Shadow Side of Complementarianism: A Threat to Women's Safety In the Audrey Keown Theatre at Presbyterian Ladies' College in Sydney, a symbolic setting indeed, the Presbyterian Church of NSW and the ACT met to decide the future of women's leadership within their institution.
What transpired there last week was a stark reminder that even in the most revered halls of learning and faith, patriarchal attitudes can persist.
The vote to ban women from holding one of the church's highest local leadership offices – elder – has been defended by some as an expression of complementarianism, a theological framework that posits men and women as equals but assigns distinct roles within the church and family.