Top Ten Reasons Why Men Should Not Be Ordained
     * 10) Their physical build indicates that men are more suited to
       tasks such as picking turnips or "de-horning" cattle. It would
       indeed be "unnatural" for them to do other forms of work. How can
       we argue with the intended order that is instituted and enforced
       by nature?
     * 9) For men who have children, their duities as ministers might
       detract from their reponsibilities as parents. Instead of teaching
       their children important life skills like how to make a
       wiener-roasting stick, they would be off at some committee meeting
       or preparing a sermon. Thus these unfortunate children of ordained
       men would almost certainly receive less attention from their male
       parent. Some couplesmight even go so far as to put their children
       into secular daycare centres to permit the man to fullfill his
       duties as a minister.
     * 8) According to the Genesis account, men were created before
       women, presumably as a prototype. It is thus obvious that men
       represent an experiment, rather than the crowning achievement of
       creation.
     * 7) Men are overly prone to violence. They are responsible for the
       vast majority of crime in our country, especially VIOLENT crime.
       Thus they would be poor role models, as well as being dangerously
       unstable in positions of leadership.
     * 6) In the New Testament account, the person who betrayed Jesus was
       a man. Thus his lack of faith and ensuing punishment stands as a
       symbol for the subordinate position that all men should take. The
       story also illustrates the natural tendency of all men to be
       unwilling and/or unable to take a stand. From the Garden of
       Gethsemane to football locker rooms, men stilll have this habit of
       buckling under the weight of the "lowest-common-denominator". It
       is expected that even ordained men would still embarrass
       themselves with their natural tendency towards a "pack" mentality.
     * 5) Jesus didn't ordain men. He didn't ordain any women either, but
       "two 'wrongs'do not make a 'right'."
     * 4) If men got ordained, then they wouldn't be stisfied with that;
       they'd want more and more power, and thn where would we be? No.
       the line must be drawn clearly before it's too late.
     * 3) Many (if not most) men who seek to be ordained have been
       influenced by the radical "men's movement" (or "MASCULIST
       movement") How can they be good leaders if their loyalties are
       divided between leading a church and championing the masculist
       drive for men's rights? The tract writers haven't pronounced on it
       yet, but hte "masculist movement" is probably profoundly
       un-Christian.
     * 2) To be an ordained psastor is to nurture and strengthen a whole
       congregation. But these are not traditional male roles. Rather,
       throughout the history of Chrisitanity, women have been considered
       to be not only more SKILLED than men at nurturing, but also more
       ferverntly ATTRACTED to it. Women, as the myth goes, are fulfilled
       and completed only by their service to others. This makes them the
       obvious choice for ordination. But if men try to fit into this
       nurturing role, our young people might grow up with
       "Role-Confusion" Syndrom, which could lead to such terrible
       traumas as the "Questioning-Tradition" Syndrome.
     * 1) Men can still be involved in church activities without having
       to be ordained. They can still take up the offering, shovel the
       sidewalk, and maybe even lead the singing on Father's Day. In
       other words, by confining themselves to such traditional male
       roles, they can still be vitally important in the life of the
       Church. Why should they feel left out?
       
   Reprinted from Connections, the Canadian Catholic Student Association
   newsletter, who reprinted from "Fly on the newsprint" by Ivan Emke
   (Mennonite Reporter), inspired by Rosemary Radford Ruether.