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Early Christianity's Dignifying Effect
- The Bible and early church elevated dignity for women, children, and slaves compared with ancient norms, often making Christianity attractive to marginalized people.
- Historical records show early Christians opposed prostitution within marriage and offered leadership roles to women.
Submission As Attentiveness To Christ
- The core ethic of Ephesians 5–6 is mutual submission rooted in attentiveness to Christ rather than a one-sided command for women or children.
- Paul frames household rules as applications of Jesus' upside-down definition of greatness, repeated as "as to Christ" across relationships.
Paul's Subversive Ordering Of Household Instructions
- Paul subverts cultural norms by addressing the subordinate parties first and calling superiors to submit as well.
- In Greco-Roman literature women, children, and slaves were often ignored; Paul dignifies them and confronts those at the top.