Are Women Allowed to Be Deaconesses, Ushers or Bishops in the Church?
1) Direct answer
No. Women are not to serve as bishops or deacons, and “deaconess” as an office over the church is not Scriptural. Ushers are not a Bible office, but the work of keeping order and directing the assembly belongs under the deacons’ oversight and should be handled by qualified men. Sisters may serve in helps that do not place them in authority over men.
2) Scriptural explanation
- The Bible says, “I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man; but to be in silence” (1 Timothy 2:11–12). Church offices carry authority over men; therefore they are not given to women.
- For a bishop/elder: “A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife… one that ruleth well his own house, having his children in subjection” (1 Timothy 3:1–5; Titus 1:5–9). That language fixes the office to a man.
- For deacons: “Let the deacons be the husbands of one wife, ruling their children and their own houses well” (1 Timothy 3:8–13). Again, male headship is required.
- The church chose “seven men of honest report” to serve the tables and keep the order of the work (Acts 6:3). That’s the pattern for deacon-type service.
- In the assembly, “Let your women keep silence in the churches” (1 Corinthians 14:34–35). That forbids public authoritative leadership over men in worship.
3) Simple clarifying logic
- Now notice: a bishop must be the husband of one wife and must rule his house. How could that be a woman? It cannot.
- A deacon must rule his house and be a husband of one wife. That sets the office to a man.
- Ushers function under the deacons to keep order and direct the congregation. Since Scripture assigns that kind of oversight to men, ushering in the sanctuary ought to be carried by men as part of that deacon-led service.
- This does not make women secondary in value, but it keeps God’s order. Sisters are called to powerful ministry in their God-given sphere: prayer, testimony, music, hospitality, visiting the sick, helping the needy, teaching children, and older women teaching younger women (Titus 2:3–5)—all without exercising authority over men.
4) Reinforcing statement
It’s not culture; it’s Bible order. One God set one pattern: male headship in church offices, with women richly active in every good work that does not place them over men.
Ask a Follow-up Question
What did the Laodicean Church Age (our age) Angel (- messenger) Say about this?
Ranked passages from the local William Branham sermon and Church Age Book database. Relevance is relative, not a statement of doctrinal certainty.
Church Ages, part 5: The Pergamean Church Age
60-1207 §73
Now I want you to try to listen as close as you can. Now He said here, in the Bible here, "Hold fast my faith." Now: ...have a few things against thee, because thou hast ... because thou hast there them ... [not these here, but there they have them ... "you have them in the Pergamos church," see] holding the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balak to cast a stumblingblock before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed unto idols, and to commit fornication. Now, Constantine used the same strategy that Balaam d...
The Baptism of the Holy Spirit
58-0928M §108
And this church is sovereign. There ain't no board of trustees or deacons going to tell you what to do. This church in a whole vote tells you what to do. That's exactly right. If there's a decision... If you don't like your pastor, and there's two or three people gets something against the pastor, they can't raise up. If they're deacons, trustees, they just---or what officer they are here---they just got one vote, that's all. If he's assistant pastor, he's just got one vote. He's just like the lay member that sits...
Church Ages, part 3: The Ephesian Church Age
60-1205 §75
Now what... Let's break that word down, find out what we got before we go any farther. The word "Nicolaitane" is kind of a foreign thing to me. I got every Greek lexicon that I could find. Nicolaitane come from the word of "Nico," N-i-c-k-o. Wait, I believe I wrote it down here. N-i-c-k-o, "Nico," which means "to conquer, or to overthrow." Nicolaitanes, overthrow, or conquer, the laity. What they were trying to do here was trying to take the church where God had pastors, and the Spirit of God moving by gifts in the...
Just one more time, Lord
63-0120E §42
You cannot join the church. You can join a lodge, but you can't join a church. You are born into it. And when you are born into that church, there's not a hypocrite in it. Everything in there is saintly and holy, for you are dead, and your life is hid in God through Christ, is sealed by the Holy Ghost. The devil couldn't get you if he had to. He has to come the same route you did, and then he'd be your brother. See? So you can't do it. But you can join the church with anything, just to get members, decisions. As I...
Church Ages, part 5: The Pergamean Church Age
60-1207 §107
Now, Moab represented the Nicolaitanes. (Now, you see just in a minute.) Israel represented the true church. And Balaam was one of the bishops, popes. Watch and see, now. Carnal Christianity. Now we'll notice that he was gifted. There's no doubt about it. Many of them are fine speakers, doctors of philosophy, and great men. You can't deny that; but having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof. Go back to that original Pentecost! Don't get away from there. When you do, you're lost. Stay with that blessi...