(FaithWire) – Last year, referring to prominent male teachers, Christian author and speaker Beth Moore wrote, “I’ve ridden elevators in hotels packed with fellow leaders who were serving at the same event and not been spoken to and, even more awkwardly, in the same vehicles where I was never acknowledged.” The issue flared up once again over the weekend, when John MacArthur, a pastor and author in his own right, was asked to respond to the name “Beth Moore” by moderator Todd Friel.
The California-based minister obliged, replying with a blunt “Go home,” an answer that engendered a lot of laughs and applause from the men and women gathered at Grace Community Church in Sun Valley for the 50th anniversary of MacArthur’s preaching career. “There’s no case that can be made biblically for a woman preacher,” MacArthur said, after the audience’s laughter and cheers began to fade. Phil Johnson, one of MacArthur’s fellow pastors, added,
“The word that comes to my mind is narcissistic,” referring to Moore. “This is what it looks like to preach yourself rather than Christ.” “Just because you have the skills to sell jewelry on the TV sales channel doesn’t mean you should be preaching,” added Friel, who is also a pastor. “There are people who have certain hocking skills, natural abilities to sell — energy and personality and all that. That doesn’t qualify you to preach.” READ MORE
