It did not rate a mention in the mainstream press, but last weekend several thousand Australian women flocked to an evangelical Christian conference in Sydney, devoted to what it means to be a godly woman.

And at one point, the topic veered onto hair.

During a talk about the meaning of Bible verses on male headship — where men are leaders in the home and the church — an image of newly-shorn actress Kristen Stewart flashed onto an overhead screen.

Was this platinum blonde buzz cut, asked the speaker, Carmelina Read, appropriate for a woman? Was it feminine and submissive, or instead flagging independence and rebellion?

As reported by Anne Lim in Eternity magazine, Ms Read, the Dean of Women at the Presbyterian Christ College in Sydney, said "it might be more in line with God's good design to have long hair because it was a visible sign of the difference between men and women in which God delighted".

Elements of the crowd became restive at this point, according to the Eternity report, with some leaving before the talk had ended.

But what disturbed some attendees more — roughly 3,000 Anglican, Presbyterian and Baptist women were there, with an estimated 1,600 watching by livestream — was that another thread had emerged at the Sydney Convention Centre: that women should also consider themselves "helpers" of men in the workplace.

While it is generally accepted amongst conservative Christians that "headship" means women should submit to men at home and in the church, extending the idea to the world beyond is considered controversial, a form of mission creep.

And this discussion — of hair length and female behaviour in the secular world — has suddenly exposed a deep rift among Christians in Australia about the role and status of women.

Speaker Carmelina Read reportedly told Equip 2017 attendees that, in her experience, it was not possible to be Christian and a feminist. ( Facebook: Equip Women )

Since Sunday, hundreds have raged, defended and rebutted these ideas online, while others plead for decorum.

Eternity reported that one conference speaker said if a woman became a CEO, "she should perform her role in a way that was helpful to men".

And a video was shown in which a female minister said, "what makes her happy is when she is able to make her male colleagues 'shine'".

What is the doctrine of headship?

The doctrine of headship means, in short, that men are to be the heads of women in the church as well as in marriage. The verses being discussed in 1 Corinthians 11 say:

"... the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man, and the head of Christ is God. Every man who prays or prophesies with his head covered dishonours his head. But every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonours her head — it is the same as having her head shaved. For if a woman does not cover her head, she might as well have her hair cut off; but if it is a disgrace for a woman to have her hair cut off or her head shaved, then she should cover her head."

The idea of headship has long divided Protestants in Australia, with the conservative pockets — where women are not allowed to be priests, such as the Sydney Anglican diocese, and Presbyterian church — adhering to it most vigorously.

Those who argue for male headship are called complementarians; the idea being that women and men are equal before God, but have different and complementary roles to play (as per literal interpretations of verses in Ephesians 5, where wives are told to submit to their husbands as their heads, and 1 Timothy 2, where women are told not to teach or have authority over a man).

Those who believe those verses should be read in their cultural context and were never intended to permanently ouster women from leadership — and that the hallmark of a Christian marriage is mutual submission, not male headship — are called egalitarians.

Can you be a Christian and feminist?

Many complementarians are wary of feminism, and Ms Read reportedly said her experience showed her that it is not possible to be Christian and a feminist.

Feminism would "trick me into thinking that God's design isn't good," she said, leading her to indulge in sinful thinking: "I want headship; I want control."

"More and more the world thinks in a gender-neutral way that we're people and not men and women," she said.

"But God delights in the beauty of our gender.

"We want to live in a way that celebrates that God has made us women. That shows we delight in the way that Jesus delights in submitting to his father.

"No longer a Christian feminist but a Christian woman."

After Ms Read's address, the long simmering feud between the two camps — of egalitarian and complementarian — erupted on social media.

What if you lost your hair to cancer, asked some, as others defended Ms Read, arguing a majority of the audience agreed with her.

Much criticism was directed towards the journalist for writing the article in the first place, with robust disagreement over how to interpret the Bible.

Registered nurse Louisa Macourt, from the Australian Fellowship of Evangelical Students in Sydney, wrote afterwards that Ms Read's remarks were "incredibly heartbreaking".

"Particularly as it makes such broad sweeping statements about what the purpose behind feminism is and, I think, in the subtext, what egalitarianism is — that the sole reason for these beliefs is to make myself powerful, that it's all about me … where can I get all the authority and control."

Ms Macourt had wrestled with the headship verses and how to read them, she said, "But I keep coming back to the same place — that God has gifted both men and women equally and he wants all of us to use our gifts to glorify him and the whole church."

'Can we acknowledge that's not the only reading?'

Psychologist Kylie Maddox Pidgeon, who attended the conference, wrote to Equip pointing out there were alternative biblical perspectives.

"I understand that you've concluded that womanhood is expressed in submission and helping your husband to shine … I heard you when you said that its OK for a female to be a CEO but that she should enact her role in ways that help the men around her," Ms Pidgeon said.

Theologian Margaret Mowczko said customs and laws made hair significant, not Paul. ( Tookapic.com )

"But. Please, can we acknowledge that that's not the only reading? Can we admit that God's Word is pretty clear in some places and pretty obscure in others?

"Can we agree that 1 Corinthians 11 is one of the [most] historically and culturally complex passages that has more than one credible exegetical endpoint?"

She continued: "When you said that nature reveals the reality of headship, whereby 'there's a natural sense that men have short hair and women have long hair' across times and cultures, I saw and heard the audience begin to squirm.

"And, unintentionally I'm sure, but nonetheless, you've cast doubt or guilt over cancer patients, Shave for a Cure champions, the girl with hair so darn frizzy that she has to shave it to get the nits out, women suffering hair loss from pregnancy or illness, not to mention mothers who chop it all off just to make the day manageable. Oh, and half of Africa."

Theologian Margaret Mowczko also wrote a critique of the cultural context in Corinth when Roman women had long hair and were forced to cut it short as a sign of disgrace.

Customs and laws made hair significant, she argued, not Paul.

But one commenter, Jen Wright, said Ms Read's remarks had been taken out of context.

"She did not say that short hair is wrong, but used it as an example of some ways some people choose to feel empowered by feeling more masculine. It is not about an act, but an attitude.

"[Ms Read] was on about celebrating us as women. All the speakers and presenters humbly and thoroughly worked through difficult issues and passages to present the conference on Saturday and I thank God for their preparation, humility and wisdom."

Carmelina Read did not respond to ABC News's request for an interview.

Julia Baird is the host of The Drum on ABC TV. She was involved with the Anglican Movement for the Ordination of Women when she was a university student.