Biblical Patriarchy and Female Christian Creators

In the past several months there’s been a debate among patriarchal Christians about the roles of women pertaining to Christian media spaces. There are several avenues in which this line of thinking goes. It would denounce women like Allie Stuckey of Blaze Media and Megan Basham of the Daily Wire as disobedient for writing articles and producing podcasts. It could also be extrapolated to denounce any wife with part-time work or work from home.

There are glaring theological issues with the attacks on Megan Basham, Allie Stuckey, and women who do similar ministry work. One is that Proverbs 31 repeatedly commends the wife who does part-time work. Moreover, Titus 2 instructs older women to mentor younger women.

³ Older women likewise are to be reverent in their behavior, not malicious gossips nor enslaved to much wine, teaching what is good, ⁴ so that they may encourage the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, ⁵ to be sensible, pure, workers at home, kind, being subject to their own husbands, so that the word of God will not be dishonored.

Titus 2:3-5 NASB1995

So Allie Stuckey recording a podcast marketed to women could certainly fall into this category. Ironically, Megan Basham is somewhat of a Debra figure for her article on Jennifer Lyell was the impetus for the Conservative Baptist Network barely challenging the premise of her bogus abuse claims. So, shame on the men, in this instance, as Basham was hardly the first since 2019 to point this out.

So what drives this debate? Perhaps there is a rabbit hole being explored in patriarchy that seeks to overcorrect. In fairness, the top women marketed to Evangelicals, such as Beth Moore, Priscilla Shirer, Christine Caine, and even Sadie Robertson Huff are all highly problematic, put mildly.

Dale Partridge and Eric Conn are the two most responsible for this debate which previously hadn’t taken place with Brian Sauve and Joel Webbon strapped to the issue via close association. Dale Partridge has recently been discredited, and most would argue disqualified from ministry after he was found to be lying about his educational credentials while trying to launch a seminary. Additionally it was concerning that he has been marketing himself in the Big Eva circuit for well over a decade despite only coming to faith in 2014 and going into ministry 3 years later.

His statement on repentance has generally been seen as insufficient as he insists on maintaining his ministry, writing, and podcasting outlets despite a history of lying.

During this process of humiliation, I believe that God’s grace and ongoing sanctification have revealed the root issue of my sin. What might not be widely known is that I entered into ministry in 2017, and was born again just a few years before, in the Fall of 2014. Prior to this, I was recognized as an entrepreneur with a substantial presence on social media. My reputation was built on my marketing skills, which I employed to help build organizations with compelling brands and effective advertisements. It was only through a recent heart-to-heart conversation with a trusted friend and pastor, Joel Webbon, that I grasped the core of my issue. The marketer’s greatest temptation often involves exaggeration and embellishment, which are commonly used in the business world but have no place in the realm of ministry. However, when the brand is you, online communication can turn it into a breeding ground of temptation for subtle but sinful exaggerations. And these exaggerations, in biblical terms, are called deception. Regrettably, I have failed here. However, this profound realization has allowed me to finally address the root of this problem head-on.

[Emphasis added]

Dale Partridge is an excellent marketer and one has to wonder whether him going after Allie Stuckey et al is saying women shouldn’t produce Christian podcasts for women is a giant marketing ploy to ingratiate himself with a patriarchal following.

And thus, the movement to tear down women for being in media, without evidence that their outlet is leading to domestic decay, should be viewed with suspicion.