American Pastor Tell His Congregation: Women Shouldn’t Even Say ‘Amen’ in Church

Pastor Steven Anderson of Faithful Word Baptist Church in Arizona told female churchgoers to keep their mouths shut so that the men could teach them their place according to the Bible.

During his Sunday sermon Not only does he say women should remain silent in church, he adds that they shouldn’t even say “Amen” if they agree with him, .  The Pastor then read two sexist Bible verses to back up his claim 

The first verse, 1 Timothy 2:11, says “Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection. But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence.” The second verse is 1 Corinthians 14 which reads: “Let your women keep silence in the churches, for it is not permitted unto them to speak, as it is commanded to be under obedience as also sayeth the law. And if they will learn anything, let them ask their husbands at home: for it is shameful for women to speak in the church.”

After reading the verses, Anderson flew into a sexist rant that included pounding his fist on the pulpit while forcefully ordering women to keep their mouths shut during “learning time.”

“Now obviously, before the service begins, there’s chatting and talking going on, that’s perfectly legitimate. When we all sing praises to God, of course the ladies should also lift up their voices. But when it’s learning time, it’s silence time. So what it’s saying is that they are to learn in silence… When the learning is going on, they are not permitted to speak. When the preaching of God’s word is taking place — and first of all, it’s not for a woman to be doing the preaching, and second of all, it’s not for women to be speaking.”

In other words, Anderson is saying that women aren’t allowed to speak up as long as the men are talking and trying to make them learn. Women apparently can’t even ask questions until they get home. Anderson even can’t handle women saying ‘amen’ during worship service and doesn’t want any woman to tell him her opinion. Why? Because he’s allegedly a man. And Anderson is the kind of “man” who believes women should be seen and not heard.

“This is why I don’t believe women should say ‘amen’ during the preaching either,” Anderson told his congregation. “Because ‘amen’ means ‘truly’ or ‘verily’ … it basically means ‘that’s true.’ So when I’m preaching and I say something that you agree with and that you believe in, and you say ‘amen,’ you’re saying ‘that’s true.’ So here’s the thing, when I’m preaching, women should not express their opinion, even if it’s a positive opinion, even if she agrees with me.”