While I agree that the contrast in the way women were treated in the Christian community in the ancient world was promotional (and good), I think it’s folly to unthinkingly conclude that elevating women now – in all cases – would likewise be positive.

Consider finding a starving dog. If we increase the dog’s food intake, his health will improve. We cannot then conclude that constantly increasing the amount of food we feed the dog will continue to improve the dog’s health. At a certain point, he’ll become unhealthy again; this time because of too much food.

If the broader culture outside of the Church began to worship women, it would be sinful for us to try to one-up them. God’s Word is unchanging, and I caution myself against taking cues from a changing world. I think it’s probably better to extract the _timeless_ lessons that were learned in those early days of the Church. For example, the fact that women had a say in who they marry, and that men couldn’t just discard their wives, became a Christian practice. Today, we can apply the same principle in the midst of a culture that let’s men and women treat marriage casually.