An Actual Slippery Slope

The Connection Between Complementarianism and Apartheid

Abraham Kuyper, with a stern expression, wearing a suit and tie. A speech bubble next to him reads, "Make me sandwich, woman, God deemed it so."

Speaking of doctrines that serve as a catalyst for oppression, complementarianism is another that’s often presented as ancient but is relatively new. What’s more concerning is that complementarianism and Apartheid share a common ancestor - yikes.

If you missed last week’s post, I wrote about inerrancy and how it’s a relatively new doctrine. While harmless in itself, it can be used as a tool for oppression. For instance, it’s employed to oppress queer communities worldwide. But let’s be honest: “I bully you because the Bible says so” doesn’t hold water with me. Another example is the claim that “women can’t be leaders in the church.” When asked why, proponents say, “Because the Bible says so.” I know it’s a frustrating answer, but if you believe in inerrancy, this becomes a logical next step.

I agree that it’s cherry-picking to say women can’t lead while ignoring other biblical instructions, like prohibitions against men touching the same sheet as a woman on her period. This inconsistency is because we don’t have a specific doctrine for menstruation in Christianity, unlike Judaism, which has an entire tractate on the topic in the Talmud called “nidah.” I sense a Judaism-related topic coming up in a later newsletter, but let’s focus on the fact that we have a doctrine for how women should behave.

If we look back in time, it’s easy to understand that even the most staunch patriarchal proponents came to realize at some point that saying “women should serve and men should lead” wasn’t a popular stance. It sounds much better to say that “men and women have different but complementary roles.” But I’m running ahead of myself.

Complementarianism is a religious view that men and women have different but complementary roles and responsibilities in marriage, family life, and religious leadership

Apartheid is a system of racial segregation and discrimination originating in South Africa enforced through legislation by the white minority government from 1948 to 1994

Inerrancy is the belief that the Bible, in its original manuscripts, is without error in all its teachings

A Tractate is a written work dealing formally and systematically with a subject; in Judaism, it refers to one of the treatises of the Talmud

The Talmud is the body of Jewish civil and ceremonial law and legend comprising the Mishnah and the Gemara

The Concept of Sphere Sovereignty

Let’s journey back in time to explore Abraham Kuyper’s concept of “Sphere Sovereignty.” This framework divides society into distinct spheres, each with its own authority and purpose. While not inherently wrong, Kuyper’s later works applied this concept to gender roles in ways that have had far-reaching consequences.

In his treatise “De Eerepositie der Vrouw” (Woman’s Position of Honor), Kuyper wrote:

According to what is revealed to us in Holy Scripture about the position of women as willed by God, the strength, calling, and honor of Woman thus lies on the inside of our human society, and she only moves to the outside, at least partly, when there is a task to be done, the completion of which causes the man to stand behind her.

I’ve bolded “willed by God,” as we need to remember this later. As you can see, Kuyper firmly places women in the domestic sphere, limiting their societal roles. The position of women, which Kuyper calls a position of honor, is characterized as soft, while the position of men is described as aggressive. In practice, this means Kuyper believes that masculine roles involve areas like business and politics, while feminine roles are confined to household tasks and sewing.