Complementarianism as Doctrine and Governance: Narratives on Women's Leadership among Second-Generation Asian Americans

Abstract

The role of women in evangelical churches remains contested as different groups attempt to shape the gender subculture. Included is a growing population of second-generation immigrants who have the potential to influence future debates. I explore how 23 second-generation Asian American congregants in a multi-lingual Taiwanese evangelical church that experienced a schism over women in pastoral leadership discuss the complementarian belief as it relates to doctrine and governance. Further, I examine narratives used to describe the schism and find that doctrinal narratives predominated over narratives of inter-generational conflict. Last, I find that the complementarian belief also informed understandings and participation in lay leadership. Findings suggest patterns for how doctrine and governance may interact and have implications for the relationship among ethnicity, gender, and religion. I propose further research interrogating the relationship between doctrine and governance and the way religious, gender, ethnic, and immigrant identities may or may not interact.