Debating Patriarchy: Discursive Disputes over Spousal Authority among Evangelical Family Commentators

Abstract

Theoretical paradigms that have called attention to the contemporary over the family suggest that religious conservatives in general, and evangelical Protestants in particular, are among the most vociferous defenders of a traditional patriarchal family structure. However, a handful of recent inquiries on contemporary evangelical spousal roles has suggested that conservative Protestants are not unanimous in their support for a patriarchal family structure. Drawing on insights from poststructuralist theories of discourse and gender theory, this study augments such investigations by analyzing the rhetoric contained within a large sample of popular evangelical family manuals. I demonstrate that leading conservative Protestants are engaged in a rancorous debate about spousal authority relatione, with evangelical pur­ veyors of patriarchy attracting significant criticism from prominent biblical feminists and a growing coterie of egalitarian evangelical commentators. After delineating the most salient points of this internecine debate, I trace these antagonists' divergent recommendations for the allocation of spousal authority to their distinctive assumptions about (1) the nature of masculinity and femininity, and (2) Bible's instructions for familial decision making. I conclude by specifying several directions for future empirical research, and by explicating this study's challenge to prevailing assumptions concerning the religious contours of the war over the family.