Within the framework of the “Church and Law” interview series, Iravaban.net spoke with Father Tigran Badiryan, responsible for the ecclesiastical-social office of the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin’s chancellery, on the topic “Woman in the Bible and the Armenian Apostolic Church.”
According to the clergyman, the characteristic traits of women and men are specifically designed so that they can best fulfill their functions.
“In the Old Testament, we see the pre-Christian perception of women, which was able to persist until the first century. For example, the Apostle Paul’s idea that woman and man are equal was directly unacceptable to contemporary Jewish communities. Among the Jews there was a prayer they said every morning: ‘Lord, thank you that I am human, thank you that I am Jewish, and thank you that I am male.’ Woman was considered a kind of ‘inferior creation.’ However, these perceptions were social in nature, since when the supremacy of mind was not yet established, man’s most important function was considered to be his physical abilities. But woman and man are equal,” he noted.
Speaking about feminism, he emphasized that no other religion considers woman equal to man; only Christianity sees gender equality from legal and theological perspectives.
“This struggle stems precisely from Christian worldview and thinking. But, as often happens, like many ideas, feminism also transformed into ultra-feminism; that is, the demand for equality grew into a demand for supremacy, and the idea lost its objectivity. Regarding the prohibition or rule of ascending to the altar, our church, besides canonical order, is also guided by tradition. Initially, in both Jewish and Christian priesthood, women have never been in the priesthood. Why? Because priestly service is incompatible with maternal care,” said Father Tigran.
The priest also noted that the most important women in the Bible are Eve and Mary the Mother of God, adding that Eve did not want to choose the path of salvation that God had prepared for her in advance.
“And there is no guarantee that if Eve had not been disobedient, her life would have been happy and carefree. And Mary the Mother of God’s obedience to God’s will also did not guarantee her a happy life, since she ultimately witnessed her child’s death. The betrothal of Joseph and Mary the Mother of God was simply the observance of Jewish law. Joseph was significantly older, and Mary the Mother of God’s parents had died. According to Jewish perceptions, a woman without a husband was considered unprotected. For this very reason, the union of Joseph and Mary the Mother of God had only a protective nature,” he concluded.
Details in the video.
