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SOME COMPLEMENTARIANS HELP

EVANGELICAL FEMINISTS BY

BEING COWARDLY OR SILENT

Another ally of egalitarianism is a large group of Christian leaders

who believe that the Bible teaches a complementarian position but
who lack courage to teach about it or take a stand in favor of it. They
are silent, “passive complementarians” who, in the face of relentless
egalitarian pressure to change their organizations, simply give in more
and more to appease a viewpoint they privately believe the Bible does
not teach.
This is similar to the situation conservatives in liberal denomina-
tions face regarding homosexuality, where too many people who think
it is wrong will not take a stand. As mentioned above, Robert Benne,
member of the task force on homosexuality in the Evangelical Lutheran
Church in America said, the presence of open homosexuals at every
discussion

makes it difficult for folks who are uncertain or just plain nice to voice

objections or even reservations about the revisionist agenda. Most

church people like to be polite and accepting, so they often accept that

agenda out of the desire to “keep the peace in love.”^1

One of the leaders who helped conservatives retake control of the
Southern Baptist Convention after a struggle of many years told me pri-

(^1) World, August 2, 2003, 21.