Male Headship: Reform of the Protestant Tradition

Abstract

The historical Protestant tradition has interpreted the biblical teachings on male headship in a variety of ways – from stern theories of patriarchy within the church, state, and family to gender-equality in all relationships. This Article uses a nineteenth-century English literary debate between the patriarchal views of James Fitzjames Stephens and the egalitarian views of John Stuart Mill to test the values and limits of each perspective and their respective influence on modern family law. The author has expanded on these themes in his later volume, From Sacrament to Contract: Marriage, Religion, and Law in the Western Tradition (2d ed., Westminster John Knox Press, 2012).

Keywords: Male Headship; Christianity; John Stuart Mill, James Fitzjames Stephens; Patriarchy; Marriage; Family; Parent-Child; Gender; Equality