Divorced Pastors and Their Eligibility to Preach
Divorced Pastors and Their Eligibility to Preach
The eligibility of divorced pastors to preach is a complex issue that has been debated across various Christian traditions. The biblical basis for understanding divorce and its implications for church leadership is rooted in several passages.
In the Old Testament, Leviticus 21:14 prohibits priests from marrying divorced women, indicating a specific restriction related to the priestly office [1]. The law regulating divorce is found in Deuteronomy 24:1-4, which permits divorce under certain conditions. The grounds for divorce were a matter of debate among Jewish scholars, with the school of Shammai limiting it to moral delinquency, while the school of Hillel allowed for divorce on trifling causes [3].
The New Testament provides further guidance on divorce and its implications for church leaders. In 1 Timothy 3:2, the requirement that a bishop (or elder) be "the husband of one wife" has been interpreted in various ways. John Gill's commentary on this passage suggests that it means the person should not be polygamous or have been divorced and remarried [4].
The Jewish tradition, as reflected in the Babylonian Talmud, provides additional insights into the complexities surrounding divorce and priestly eligibility. For instance, a divorcée is forbidden to marry a priest, whether she was divorced from marriage or betrothal [5]. The Talmud also discusses the implications of a woman being both a widow and a divorcée, and the liability of a High Priest marrying such a woman [6].
The early Christian church's stance on divorce and remarriage is influenced by Jesus' teachings, which limit divorce to cases of adultery (Matthew 19:1-9, Mark 10:2-12, Luke 16:18) [2]. The implications of these teachings for church leaders are not explicitly stated in the New Testament but have been interpreted in various ways by different Christian traditions.
Historically, different Christian denominations have had varying stances on the eligibility of divorced pastors to preach. While some traditions have strict rules against divorced individuals holding church office, others have taken a more nuanced view, considering factors such as the circumstances of the divorce and the individual's subsequent life and ministry.
The Reformed tradition, for example, has historically been cautious about allowing divorced individuals to serve as church leaders. John Calvin's views on divorce and remarriage were shaped by his understanding of biblical teachings and the practices of the early Christian church.
Sources
- Leviticus “But if a priest’s daughter is a widow, or divorced, and has no child, and has returned to her father’s house, as in her youth, she may eat of her father’s bread: but no stranger shall eat any of it. -- Leviticus 22:13”
- Easton's Bible Dictionary “Easton's Bible Dictionary: Divorce — The dissolution of the marriage tie was regulated by the Mosaic law (Deut. 24:1-4). The Jews, after the Captivity, were reguired to dismiss the foreign women they had married contrary to the law (Ezra 10:11-19). Christ limited the permission of divorce to the single case of adultery. It seems that it was not uncommon for the Jews at that time to dissolve the union on very slight pretences (Matt. 5:31, 32; 19:1-9; Mark 10:2-12; Luke 16:18). These precepts given by Christ regulate the law of divorce in the Christian Church.”
- Smith's Bible Dictionary “Smith's Bible Dictionary: Divorce — "a legal dissolution of the marriage relation." The law regulating this subject is found (24:1-4) and the cases in which the right of a husband to divorce his wife was lost are stated ibid ., (22:19,29) The ground of divorce is appoint on which the Jewish doctors of the period of the New Testament differed widely; the school of Shammai seeming to limit it to a moral delinquency in the woman, whilst that the Hillel extended it to trifling causes, e.g., if the wife burnt the food she was cooking for her husband. The Pharisees wished perhaps to embroil our Savi”
- 1 Timothy (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on 1 Timothy 3:2: A bishop then must be blameless,.... Or "an elder", as the Syriac version renders it; not that it can be expected that such an one should be entirely free from sin, or be blameless in the sight of God; but that he should be one, who is so before men, and has not been guilty of any notorious and flagitious crime; and particularly, is not chargeable with the vices hereafter mentioned or hinted at. So the priests under the law were to be without blemish, even in their bodies, Lev 21:17 to which the apostle may here allude. The husband of one wife; which is not to be ”
- Babylonian Talmud (Jewish (Rabbinic)) “Babylonian Talmud, Yevamot 59a.9: The Gemara asks: And say that it is indeed so, that the suggested verbal analogy is correct. The Gemara answers: It is similar to the case of a divorcée: Just as a divorcée is forbidden to a priest whether she was divorced from marriage or from betrothal, so too a widow is forbidden to a High Priest whether she is a widow from marriage or from betrothal.”
- Babylonian Talmud (Jewish (Rabbinic)) “Babylonian Talmud, Makkot 13a.9: The mishna elaborates: If a woman was both a widow and a divorcée, as after she was widowed she remarried and was divorced, a High Priest is liable to receive two sets of lashes for marrying her due to the violation of two different prohibitions, that of his marrying a widow and that of his marrying a divorced woman. If a woman was both a divorcée and a ḥalutza , from two different men, an ordinary priest who marries her is liable to receive only one set of lashes, due to the violation of one prohibition alone.”