The views expressed in this article are of the author only and do not necessarily represent those of the Center for Pastor Theologians.
Complimentarity: Dignity, Difference, and Interdependence
Gregg Allison
B&H Academic (2025). 541 pp.
Depending upon the context in which you are serving or the denomination in which you make your ecclesial home, the debates between so-called “complementarians” and “egalitarians” may be white-hot points of contention or a long-decided issue in favor of us over and against a capitulated or apostate them. Gregg Allison’s recent Complementarity helpfully lowers the temperature on these debates and disagreements. This volume seeks to highlight, as the title suggests, the principle of “complementarity,” which he defines as “God’s design for his male and female image bearers to fill our and mutually support one another relationally, familially, vocationally, and ecclesially for their individual and corporate flourishing” (p. 6). Allison distinguishes this proposal from complementarianism and egalitarianism while simultaneously insisting this is not simply a “third way” in the debate. Rather, he is trying to highlight important points of commonality and clarifying where the disagreements really lie.
The first 150 pages consist of introductory material and an historical overview. This survey traces both Christian and non-Christian views of sex and gender from ancient paganism to modern feminism, as well as the origins of contemporary egalitarianism and complementarianism. A strong majority of this early material relies heavily—almost exclusively, in fact—on Prudence Allen’s three-volume The Concept of a Woman. Allison provides a helpful and accessible overview of an impossibly large and complex history. That said, there is no avoiding over-simplifications and oversights. Aristotle, for instance, stands in as something of a father of philosophical misogyny.
The next and largest section of the book discusses “Biblical Considerations.” This includes summary treatments of many of the most contentious passages related to men and women in the New Testament epistles. These seek to mediate disagreements between complementarian and egalitarian interpreters without taking sides, making this a helpful resource for students of the Bible or church teams trying to navigate such passages in an even-handed way. However, I also found this section of the book bloated, even unwieldy. For instance, in the “Old Testament Considerations” chapter, episodes like Joseph’s encounter with Potiphar’s wife are described as “complementarity gone awry” (p. 230). That these and many more obscure passages are intended to teach us something about God’s design for men and women in complementary relationship, I am not so sure. Indeed, Allison aspires to make just about every interaction between men and women in Scripture a lesson about complementarity in some sense. If I am honest, there were many times where I felt that the passages discussed (many of which are treated in just a two or three paragraphs) added little if anything to the discussion.
By contrast, Allison’s final sections on “Theological Considerations” and “Application” are much shorter. The historical and biblical surveys loom large in the book’s 500+ pages, making for a treatment that feels very much like a work of biblical theology as opposed to a deep and critical engagement of 20th and 21st century philosophical and theological gender studies. This will not be a concern for every reader, of course, but this distinction was not obvious from the book’s title or framing.
I appreciated the rehabilitation of the language of “complement” beyond its use as a label for a certain view of gender roles. I do think something like “complementarity” helpfully describes the biblical and theological conviction that maleness and femaleness are interdependent and mutually enriching created goods. To this end, Allison’s book is level-headed and insightful. Beyond this central insight, however, he breaks little new ground. This is hardly to say that it is not a valuable resource. Quite the opposite. Allison’s work brings together various points of discussion from the history of interpretation, to biblical exegesis, to theological considerations in an impressively broad volume. However, those looking for a new and novel treatment of gender, sex, and sexuality from an evangelical perspective may be disappointed. Much of Allison’s work involves describing mediating positions while strategically refusing to “take a side” on controversial points of interpretation. This is both a strength and a drawback of the work.
In my own writing on masculinity, I try to critically engage both sides of the complementarian-egalitarian debate while also transcending it and finding points of commonality. For this reason, I was encouraged and found much to appreciate in Allison’s book. One audience that I think will benefit especially from this volume is churches who are navigating these issues. For instance, the non-denominational church where I attend went through a months-long process a couple years ago of reassessing the community’s positions on gender issues and on women’s leadership. I found myself wishing Complementarity had come out sooner as it would have served as the perfect resource for elders and other leaders in our church leading and discussing these questions with congregants. If you, your staff, or congregants in your church are navigating similar issues, I strongly recommend this wide-ranging book as a reference for your consideration of such questions.
More of a one-stop-shop than a tome or especially novel treatment, Allison’s Complementarity offers an accessible and broad treatment of some of the most divisive questions within evangelicalism.
Zachary Wagner serves as the Editorial Director of the Center for Pastor Theologians. He is a DPhil candidate in New Testament at the University of Oxford and the author of Non-Toxic Masculinity: Recovering Healthy Male Sexuality (IVP, 2023). He is a member of the St. Basil Fellowship of the Center for Pastor Theologians.
