Some Christians think women should be “keepers at home” and stay out of the workforce and away from leadership ministries in the church. Here’s a list of respected Bible women who weren’t “keepers at home.”
I’ve been getting emails lately from young women convinced that men are physically superior to women. The hurt in these emails is profound. Here’s part of an email exchange I had with a woman named Jade.
Paul’s message in Romans 14 has some relevance to the issue of women ministers, an issue that continues to cause division in some sectors of the church.
I was honoured to write a foreword to Graham Hill’s book “Holding Up Half the Sky” where he presents a biblical case for women leading and teaching in the church. The foreword is in this post.
Is meekness a masculine virtue? How do ancient writers use the Greek word praus (“meek”)? What do ancient writers say about meek warhorses?
Atto, bishop of Vercelli in the 900s, saw in church tradition that women had led churches and were presbyters (priests or elders). He did not think this was a bad thing.
Chrysostom (d. 407) praised Priscilla, Phoebe, Euodia, Syntyche, and Junia. He acknowledged that these women were leading ministers in their churches.
Here are six 30-minute videos where Kenneth Bailey discusses the topic of women in the New Testament. Dr Bailey was a scholar of the New Testament in its Middle Eastern context.
Eph. 5:21 is one New Testament verse that encourages mutual submission. 1 Peter 5:5 is another. This post looks at the Greek grammar and vocabulary of 1 Peter 5:5.
Jesus used hyperbole in his Sermon on the Mount, especially in Matt 5:17-48 and perhaps also in the phrase “makes her an adulterer.”
In this article, I explain why “the co-elect” woman in 1 Peter 5:13 (AKA “she who is in Babylon”) may be a woman and not a church.
With the Jews in danger, Queen Esther risks her life and exerts her influence and authority. She cannot be mistaken for a sweet passive young woman.
Young Esther is taken to the harem in the palace and later taken to the king’s bed. What does the Bible reveal about her thoughts and actions?
In this 3-part series, I provide commentary on the book of Esther, focussing on the heroine at the centre. What kind of story is Esther’s story?
When we understand “preaching” words in the way New Testament authors used these words, we see that some New Testament women preached.
Eve’s reason for eating the forbidden fruit was that she was deceived. What was Adam’s excuse? Suzanne McCarthy suggests Adam gives a reason in Genesis 3.
Andrew Bartlett tells us about his 2019 book “Men and Women in Christ.” This is an excellent, thoroughly-researched book that is accessible to novices and useful to scholars.
Were Andronicus and Junia “outstanding/ notable among the apostles” (Rom.16:7 KJV, NIV) or “well known to the apostles” (ESV, NET)?
Here is a list of over a dozen early and medieval scholars who took Junia’s name in Romans 16:7 to be feminine. Junia was a woman and not Junias, a man.
After 10 years of blogging, the most important thing I’ve learned from listening to readers’ questions has little to do with the meaning of 1 Timothy 2:12 or Ephesians 5:22ff.
In this article, I look at 4 passages from the Hebrew Bible (Leviticus 27, Numbers 30, Ecclesiastes 7:28, Isaiah 3:12) which are sometimes used to diminish women.
Here is a short review of Suzanne McCarthy’s book, Valiant or Virtuous?: Gender Bias in Bible Translation. Her book is on a topic close to my heart.
Here are 3 reasons why 1 Timothy 2:12 may be about a particular couple in the Ephesian church and not Paul’s general thoughts on women in ministry.
The word “manhood” occurs twice in the English Standard Version. Does this word convey what Paul wanted to say in Eph. 4:13? In what other ways does the ESV create a masculine bias.
The role of the Holy Spirit as helper (given in John’s Gospel) does not inform our understanding of Eve as helper/ ezer (in Genesis 2), and vice versa. Here’s why.
Olympias renounced her aristocratic lifestyle to serve the church. She was an ordained deaconess and Chrysostom’s dear friend.
Who were the women who served at the entrance of the tent of meeting and what did they do? Did their service involve religious rituals?
Do women need to cover their heads in church meetings? What does Paul say about this in 1 Cor. 11:2–16? What were the customs of head coverings in Corinth?
Tabitha (AKA Dorcas) is identified as a disciple and described as a generous supporter of the poor. What was her association with the widows of Joppa?
Twenty-nine people are mentioned in Romans 16:1-16, including ten women, seven of whom are described in terms of their ministries.
Paul included women as ministry partners and used the same ministry terms for his male and female coworkers. He didn’t restrict the ministry of godly and gifted women.
At a time when women were often regarded as odd and inferior by men and were excluded from many aspects of society, Jesus included women, taught them, and accepted their ministry.
The creation order given in Genesis 2 is often brought up in discussions about ministry and marriage. What significance did Paul place on man being created first?
The household codes in Eph. 5-6 and Col. 3-4 are not about gender but primarily about power and about mitigating abuse that often comes with power.
Numbers 5:11-31 outlines the ordeal of bitter water which was designed to test, or prove, the fidelity of a wife suspected by her jealous husband of being unfaithful.
Here’s some information about Marcella of Rome (325–410), friend of Jerome, who dedicated her considerable talents and resources to serving the church and helping the poor.
Why does Leviticus 12 say a mother is unclean for 7 days after the birth of a son but is unclean for 14 days after the birth of a daughter? Why the difference?
In 1 Cor. 16:16, Paul tells the Corinthians to submit themselves to coworkers and labourers. Paul refers to several women by these ministry terms.
In this post I critique the notes on 1 Timothy 2:12 in the ESV Study Bible. What is the context of this verse? What does it prohibit?
In this post, I look at Nympha, a Christian mentioned in Colossians 4:15. What was her association with Paul? What was her ministry? Where was her house church? Was she really a woman?
Timothy knew Paul’s views on ministry and it’s unlikely he needed to be reminded of them. 1 Tim. 2:11-15 is not Paul’s general teaching on ministry but something else.
Does 1 Corinthians 11:7 express superiority of men over women. Is this what is meant by “man … is the image and glory of God but woman is the glory of man”? Here’s a different interpretation.
Here are interpretations of 1 Corinthians 11:7 (man … is the image and glory of God, but woman is the glory of man) from past & present scholars.
Here’s a look at a common Greek phrase used in Phil. 4:2 concerning Euodia and Syntyche. What did Paul want them to think? Were the women quarrelling?
Does 1 Timothy 3:4a (“managing his own household well”) show that men, and not women, are to rule or manage their households? What was the role of the first church overseers and bishops?
This article looks at Junia, a Christian missionary mentioned in Romans 16:7 who was persecuted for her faith and may have known Jesus personally. Was she also known as Joanna?
A few verses in Paul’s letters are frequently cited by Christians who exclude women from some ministries. Did Paul really restrict women in either ministry or marriage? This is part 3 of a series on gender roles in the Bible.
Does Jesus give instructions about gender roles as complementarians understand them? What does Jesus teach and say to women in the Gospels? This is part 2 in a series of gender roles in the Bible.
Does the Old Testament teach that husbands are to be the leaders of their wives, or that men have authority over women? Are some roles forbidden to women? This is part 1 of a series on gender roles in the Bible.
In this post, I respond to how the authority of police officers, etc, is used as an analogy by some Christians to support male-only authority.
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© 2022 Marg Mowczko