Unresolved Gender Disparity Affecting Lady Pastors in AIC Church, Kenya

Abstract

This study was informed by a critical examination of the Constitution of the African Inland Church in Kenya (AIC-K Constitution, 2008), which reveals provisions that may contribute to gender inequality between men and women in church leadership. The African Inland Church has a substantial membership in Kenya, with more than four million people reportedly worshipping in AIC churches (Mulwa, 2013). The issue of gender disparity within the church can be understood partly in relation to historical theological perspectives on women's roles in Christian leadership. Douglas (1995) notes that Reverend Scott was a Calvinist, while Calvinist theology historically maintained that women were subject to men and should remain within the prescribed limits and conditions associated with their sex. John Calvin (1509–1564) referred to Galatians 3:28 on several occasions, emphasising the unity of believers in Christ, while simultaneously maintaining that Christian freedom operated within particular limits and restrictions. The AIC-K traces its roots to the Africa Inland Mission (AIM), which was influenced by Calvinist and historical fundamentalist traditions that generally restricted women's leadership in the church on the basis of gender. The paper therefore argues that gender inequality in church leadership is not solely a theological issue but is also shaped by cultural practices and historical institutional traditions. It concludes that Christianity can be understood as having a supracultural orientation that supports the recognition of women's God-given leadership abilities and, consequently, challenges practices that prevent women from exercising leadership within the Church.