Icons of Christ: A Biblical and Systematic Theology for Women’s Ordination

by William G. Witt

The pastoral office is one of the most critical in Christianity. Historically, however, Christians have not been able to agree on the precise nature and limits of that office. A specific area of contention has been the role of women in pastoral leadership. In recent decades, three broad types of arguments have been raised against women’s nontheological (primarily cultural or political), Protestant, and Catholic. Reflecting their divergent understandings of the purpose of ordination, Protestant opponents of women’s ordination tend to focus on issues of pastoral authority, while Catholic opponents highlight sacramental integrity. These positions are new developments and new theological stances, and thus no one in the current discussion can claim to be defending the church’s historic position. Icons of Christ addresses these voices of opposition, making a biblical and theological case for the ordination of women to the ministerial office of Word and Sacrament. William Witt argues that not only those in favor of, but also those opposed to, women’s ordination embrace new theological positions in response to cultural changes of the modern era. Witt mounts a positive ecumenical argument for the ordination of women that touches on issues such as theological hermeneutics, relationships between men and women, Christology and discipleship, and the role of ordained clergy in leading the church in worship, among others. Uniquely, Icons of Christ treats both Protestant and Catholic theological concerns at length, undertaking a robust engagement with biblical exegesis and biblical, historical, systematic, and liturgical theology. The book’s theological approach is critically orthodox, evangelical, and catholic. Witt offers the church an ecumenical vision of ordination to the presbyterate as an office of Word and Sacrament that justifiably is open to both men and women. Most critically Witt reminds us that, as all Christians are baptized into the image of the crucified and risen Christ, and bear witness to Christ through lives of cruciform discipleship, so men and women both are called to serve as icons of Christ in service of the gospel.

Genres: Theology, Biblical Studies, Religion, Nonfiction, Christianity, Gender, Church

447 pages, Hardcover

Published November 1, 2020

About the author

William G. Witt is Associate Professor of Systematic Theology and Ethics at Trinity School for Ministry.

Reviews

[Ryan Chan · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5-5 stars, but leaning towards 5. My rationale:
- more than just the topic at hand, I think this book has been very formative in seeing hermeneutics in action and how changes in hermeneutics can change quite a few things. I find myself thinking about that a lot, so I feel like that impact puts it in the same category as Gavin's theological triage book, for example. (I will need to read more about hermeneutics soon.)
- Good discussion and hearing from others in the context of a book club at church. This was really helpful, and is similar to why I gave Every Good Endeavour 5 stars.

On the topic itself:
- This is probably the first book (and a heftier one at that) that I read about this topic, and I think it does what Witt says is one of the reasons he wrote the book: "a summary resource for those interested in the question of women’s ordination that brought together the scholarship of both Protestant and Catholics." (from his blog).
- I read a few blogs that specifically opposed Witt's book, and I also read 50 Crucial Questions About Manhood and Womanhood by Piper and Grudem to read for myself what some of the opposing views say. I think Witt presents the arguments of the other side that opposes women's ordination pretty fairly, and he does contend with them directly.

I'm still processing a lot of stuff (if there is one takeaway from this review, it would be that I am still processing), but I feel like these questions below kind of go over what I understood in Witt's argumentation, and they need to be addressed sequentially.

1. Are men and women ontologically equal?
2. How do we understand men and women pre-fall and post-fall (Genesis 1-3)?
3. How do we understand Paul's passages where these topics are discussed (e.g. Eph 5, 1 Cor 11, 1 Cor 14, 1 Tim 2)?
4. What did men and women do in the early church?

Like if a Christian does not believe men and women are ontologically equal, then it makes a lot of sense why they would not support women's ordination. (Witt's argument though is premised that at least on paper, almost all Christians seem to agree that men and women are ontologically equal, whether they are "complementarian" or "egalitarian", and so he starts from that shared assumption.) And again, in and around all these questions are hermeneutics!

random asides:
- I quite enjoyed Boersma's "Heavenly Participation" book, and saw some parallels from his chapters about tradition and biblical interpretation in Witt's book. So it was a bit of a surprise to find out in my own googling that Boersma is against women's ordination. I interpreted his arguments in those chapters as actually supporting Witt's position!
- this sentence in the conclusion with many big words, describing the kind of theology for a positive argument: "a theology that is creational, Christocentric (cruciform), and Trinitarian (redemptive-historical and ecclesial)." This statement probably has a lot of hermeneutical opinions, but I must say it sounds nice haha

Overall, a really informative book in various ways. I don't think I have processed enough to have a well-formed opinion yet, but the topic has definitely continued to be on my mind even after our book club ended, so something I will continue to explore.

[Josh · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a substantially researched book that still manages to be very poorly argued. Witt tediously wades into the standard complementarian-egalitarian exegetical debates, siding consistently with the egalitarians but often merely asserting that their side has won the debate. But the larger structure of his book (see ch. 3) is that "the argument 'from tradition' is not the 'traditional argument.'" Catchy, but misleading. Witt states categorically that THE traditional argument against women's ordination has been ontological inferiority of women to men, and uses this to argue that ALL opposition to women's ordination is new, and generally non-theological in nature. (Regarding that non-theological claim, repeated ad nauseam, I think Inigo Montoya's critique applies: "you keep using that word; I do not think it means what you think it means.") Witt is correct that an ontological inferiority of women to man has been present in the church, but far from correct in asserting that this is THE reason to oppose women's ordination. Prudence Allen's three-volume work on the concept of women in philosophy (a work Witt does not cite) significantly clouds the picture Witt attempts to draw.

In short, Witt throws a false mantle of novelty over the entire complementarian-egalitarian debate, then pronounces victory (by fiat?) for the egalitarians. While he concedes that there are some "biological and social" roles that are gender-specific (only men can be brothers, etc.) his jettisoning of the entire heritage of natural theology leaves a very weak gendered anthropology in its wake. While Witt explicitly does not advocate modern sexual identity theories, I fear his attenuated theology of gender will not stand the onslaught of those theories.

[Joel Wentz · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of (if not THE) best single-volume works on the topic of women in church leadership, mostly because Witt brings in a powerful ecumenical and church-history layer that is frequently ignored in the works that populate evangelical bookshelves on the topic (which tend to be focused on grammar/exegesis of a handful of scriptures like 1 Corinthians 11, 14 or 1 Timothy 2, etc.). Witt does engage with those arguments and texts, and does so quite rigorously and thoughtfully, doing serious homework on the language, textual criticism, and even histories of interpretation.

Where Witt's work is so helpful is (as mentioned) the ecumenical engagement. As a Protestant, I actually found his chapters on the "Catholic" arguments very enlightening, as he explores some of the 'symbolic' arguments that are used to support specific understandings of gender in the biblical narrative, and especially the role of the ordained priest. His nuanced discussion of the idea of church 'offices' in the New Testament was also particularly helpful for me.

I was already in support of women's ordination before reading this, but I still learned a lot from Witt's thoughtful and extremely well-researched perspective. At points, I wish he would have used more voices than Grudem's as a counter-point (he does engage with a few others, like Moo, but Grudem is far and away the "foil" for his argument) but he doesn't engage in simplistic polemics or take-downs. It's always thoughtful and careful. Somehow, I still don't see this shifting the mindset of the hard-core convinced "complementarians" but it's a powerful, systematized argument that takes the biblical text and the history of the church extremely seriously. It is ignored at our peril. Highly, highly recommended.

[Sophie · Rating 4 out of 5]

The best quote of this book (I think):

"...the full implications of what really is a new understanding of the ontological
equality of men and women needs to be taken seriously. Given what really is
a new doctrinal development and a rejection by all parties of the historic reason
for opposition to women’s ordination, minor adjustments are not adequate. The
churches need to address the issue of whether they really do consider women to
be of equal spiritual worth with men."

This last sentence is the exact question that many of my female friends and relatives (and myself!) have been asking in the evangelical church. I still don't know all the answers (esp. as they relate to questions as big as ordination), but I am certain of one thing at least: evangelical churches are failing to offer a theology that truly tells women they are of equal spiritual worth with men. (And I think you probably could do that without ordaining female pastors! Again - still very tbd on that.)

I've read a fair amount so far of Protestant discussions about the ordination of women, so I particularly appreciated that Witt discussed Roman Catholic (and touched on Orthodox) discussions. It's fascinating to me that the Catholic and Orthodox churches have entirely different reasons for not ordaining women and reject Protestant complementarian theology (esp. as it relates to the church).

[Becker · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book and learned a lot from it, especially chapters 1-9. I hope that many people in church leadership and theological education give this book a read and that it fuels further thought, imagination, and discussion on the important topic of women in ministry. Sadly, I doubt many will take the time to read it, much less give the contents an honest hearing.
The final chapters on “Women’s Ministry in the New Testament” were a little underwhelming to me and I would recommend Nijay Gupta’s “Tell Her Story” as a supplement to that material.

[Carter Tate · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am a new member of an Anglican Church in the ACNA within the C4SO diocese that, in fact, has a female lead pastor. I come from a fundamentalist evangelical background, so I found this book especially poignant as a thorough work building the structure for a comprehensive and biblical theology of women’s ordination. I’ll admit my bias is one oriented toward freedom and love, so I went into reading this book with few serious qualms with women’s ordination and now leave with a much more robust understanding of the movement’s rootedness not in liberal feminism but in biblical theology, which I found to be an extremely appealing and grounding middle way.

I will not try to recreate Witt’s arguments but will instead make note of a few highlights.

Witt is remarkably even-handed throughout the book. It would be very tempting to cast opponents of women’s ordination as sexist or bigoted, but he paints them as deeply committed christians albeit with flawed hermeneutics/exegesis/bias, as he takes great care to address.

Witt throughout appeals to arguments and serious scholars who are rooted not in extra-biblical arguments but instead allow themselves to be confined and committed to the biblical narrative. Their arguments radiate the radical, cultural subversiveness ushered into the world by Jesus and his followers. Familiar faces like Baukham and NT Wright make guest appearances along with countless other lifelong students of the Word, lovingly arguing for not for women’s rights, as classically understood, per se, but for their opportunity to serve the church.

Lastly, I personally found the appeals to Catholic opposition to be particularly impactful not just as they pertain to women administering the sacraments but also for their unfurling of incredible trinitarian and liturgical theology. I found these chapters to be wellsprings of wisdom and beauty like water in a desert to this sacrament-thirsty, recovering legalist. The discussion of the parallels between the perichoresis of the trinity to the nature of what it means to be human was particularly compelling both as it pertains to women’s ordination as well a striking illustration of how to participate in the divine life through our relating with each other and particularly as genders created together as humanity in the image of God.

Witt’s work is an exhaustive masterwork of research and logic that I hope will become an invaluable resource for those looking to understand a thoroughly biblical basis for women’s ordination.

[Travis Cory · Rating 5 out of 5]

A phenomenal and well written book. Some who argue against women's ordination may believe supporters of women's ordination lack theological grounding and sound hermeneutics. Witt proves that supporting women's ordination does not mean having a low view of scripture.

I'd recommend this to anyone looking for a good argument for women's ordination.

[Melody Schwarting · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lot of the debates surrounding women's ordination center on a few hard-to-interpret passages of Scripture, and everyone at all points on the spectrum has different interpretations. Witt approaches these arguments, but also others about ontology, priests acting in persona Christi, ritual purity laws, and more. I appreciate how he expanded the discussion ecumenically (looking closely at Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox traditions) and biblically (considering less-contested passages).

In some places, he should have relied more heavily on contemporary female scholars, who in some cases made arguments similar to his, but better. The final chapter, in which Witt relies heavily on Dorothy Sayers's marvelous Are Women Human? essays, was an off note for me, because Sayers didn't necessarily support women's ordination. Witt would have been better off looking at ordained women in church history rather than citing a woman who wasn't even in the ministry and didn't argue for women's ordination. Instead, those essays were confronting the erroneous theological anthropology of midcentury believers. Yet, the Are Women Human? essays support Witt's thesis that arguments concerning women's ordination have completely changed over time. Sayers was writing against the tail end of thought that positioned women as lesser creatures, more prone to sin, "daughters of Eve" in the worst sense. We rarely see such obviously wrong and misogynistic arguments today, as Witt saliently explores in Icons of Christ. His section on ritual purity laws, and how Jesus confronts them in the New Testament, answered a long-burning question for me.

All in all, a necessary text for the topic, one that has been too long in coming. I find myself hungering for a purely constructive work of this scale on women's ordination. As much as I enjoy reading systematic takedowns of arguments from Grudem and Piper Grudem and I have so many methodological differences; in Piper's opinion, the Holy Spirit could never have given me the gifts I have and I think I'll stick with the Holy Spirit on the subject, I'm a bit tired of it, and I wish we could move past addressing detractors and focus on building up the church by exploring the extent of the Holy Spirit's gifts to and of women. Might add this to my own library someday.

[Aaron Carlberg · Rating 4 out of 5]

No matter where you land on the issue of women's ordination, Witt does a very good job of looking at all the sides. There are a few times I thought he took the easy route rather than actually dealing with an issue (hence the 4 stars), but it was still good. It is a book that will make you determine your position on the issue of women's ordination by actually thinking through most of the older and current arguments for and against it.

It is not a short book, the writing is small, and it if you want to absorb it I would recommend taking your time; walking away after sections of chapters and walking through what has been presented. As Christians we need to be reasoned in how we speak about issues (especially those in our world that are emotional). As I said, no matter where you fall in this issue, this book will make you answer hard questions on both sides.

[Paul D. Adams · Rating 5 out of 5]

A compelling and capable defense of women sharing the full sweep of responsibilities for leadership in the Church. Despite the contention this topic breeds and the heat it generates, each chapter fairly and charitably rehearses arguments for and against women serving in church leadership. Author William G. Witt rigorously engages all the relevant biblical texts, along with traditional and contemporary testimony from Catholic and Protestant opposing voices. With philosophical and theological acumen, Witt applies careful historical, theological, literary, and exegetical analyses throughout, while keeping a practical focus on the Church.

[Derek Kreider · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is by far the best and most comprehensive book on gender roles in the church from an egalitarian perspective. Witt is morally conservative, which throws off many complementarians who have issues with his line of thinking as leading to a "slippery slope." I think Witt's work is phenomenal and I can't recommend this book enough.

This pairs well with Barr's book, as Witt doesn't get too much into actual women who held roles or were esteemed in church history. His work focuses mostly on theology and philosophy. Barr has one of the few books which gets into actual practice throughout the ages.

[Vittoria A. · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a Methodist, I understood John Wesley authorized women to preach, and Methodists have ordained women for a long time. So I was looking for solid biblical perspectives on this and I came across this book. It’s just excellent. If you are part of a denomination that ordains women and have concerns and questions, I think this book is perfect for you because it helped me a lot. If you are part of one that doesn’t, you might be interested to read a book from a pro women’s ordination perspective.

[James · Rating 5 out of 5]

I imagine this will be my go-to resource on this topic for years to come. Many of the arguments in support of the ordination of women and egalitarianism can be found scattered in different books and articles, but Witt has brought them all together in this excellent volume. May “Icons of Christ” help us move forward in recognizing the importance and necessity of women in ministry.

[Jane Burkett · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very thorough, thoughtful, rigorous look at women's ordination. I particularly appreciated his biblical exegesis and his examination of the connections between eucharistic theology and the role of the priest.

[Mindy · Rating 4 out of 5]

While none of the arguments for women’s ordination that Witt put forth were new to me, and I am convinced of the value of women’s ordination, I also was left feeling that, at times, he was declaring a victory where he hadn’t proved it. There were a few places I wanted more depth and information.

[Tynan Brooks]

Leaves some worthwhile arguments on the floor due to the non-affirming perspective, but of those he takes up, he does an excellent job. Could use more historical argumentation, but he debunks every major anti-WO claim and position.

[Zachary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Definitely the book to read on the topic. Addresses Protestant and Catholic debates and key passages very well. Any leader not in favor should really have to wrestle with this book.

[Andy Fuqua · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well-written and thought-provoking. He spends most of his time criticizing traditional arguments. I wish he would’ve given more space to building a positive case for women’s ordination.

[Alex Strohschein · Rating 5 out of 5]

You can see my review here on Reading Religion.