As I was making a list of Bible women who ministered to men, I saw something I had not noticed before. Almost all of these women had a prophetic gift.
Here are some tips on how to maintain good relationships with Christian family and friends who hold different views on “gender roles”.
Here’s a fun fact: “Calvinism” and “chauvinism” share the same etymology. Both words are derived from a Latin word that means “bald.”
This article looks at Mary Magdalene, and especially at what “Magdalene” might mean. Does it refer to Mary’s home town? Was it her nickname? Does it imply she was a prostitute?
Female martyrs in the early church, such as Blandina and Perpetua, “conformed themselves to Christ, even in death.”
The author of Luke’s Gospel often presents material using male-female pairs to highlight the full and equal inclusion of women and men in God’s new covenant and community.
Instructions for wifely submission and holy kisses are given in the NT, but one concept is often highlighted while the other is usually ignored.
I had imagined that only a few women accompanied Jesus during his ministry and only a few witnessed his crucifixion and resurrection, but the Gospels state there were many women with Jesus – many!
Kristen Rosser has written an excellent article on the so-called “feminization” of the church, and how we can address this issue. With her permission, I have posted it here.
Jesus’ teaching on leadership and community in Matthew’s gospel shows that Jesus promoted the social values of humility and equality. In Jesus’ kingdom, the humble are exalted, the lowly are the greatest, and the last are first.
In Matthew 20:1-16 Jesus tells the parable of the vineyard workers and points out that there is equality in his kingdom. To those who have so far been sidelined, Jesus says “Go work in my vineyard.”
Does Paul refer to wives of apostles or female coworkers of apostles in 1 Corinthians 9:5? Was their role companionship or teaching Christian doctrine?
Was Eve alone when the snake spoke to her? Here is a summary of Julie Parker’s essay, “Blaming Eve Alone: Translation, Omission, and Implications of עמה in Genesis 3:6b.”
John the Evangelist chose his words carefully when describing the ministry of certain apostolic women in his Gospel, women such as Mary Magdalene. [500 words]
Matt Chandler states unequivocally, “I teach to men . . . I go after the men.” Matt focuses his ministry on men because, he says, this is how he understands the scriptures. So what happens to the lost sheep who are female? And how does Matt’s focus affect the thousands of women in his flock?
Is Galatians 3:28 only referring to our identity and status before God? Or is it also about our identity and status in the Christian community (i.e. the church)?
Most modern translations of the New Testament rely on the Nestle-Aland Greek New Testament. One of the editors of recent editions of this Greek New Testament is scholar Barbara Aland. This article provides a brief history of the Nestle-Aland text and a brief biography of Barbara Aland.
In this post, I’ve highlighted the words for human, man, and woman in the Hebrew text of Genesis 2 to help non-Hebrew readers see that the first human was not necessarily male.
In Second Clement (written around 150 AD) the author indicates that authenticity, transparency, and gender equality in the church are necessary for God’s kingdom to come. What do you make of it?
Early church writers, such as Eusebius, acknowledged that Philip’s four daughters were respected, famous prophets and they associated them with apostles and bishops.
Ignoring or highlighting the word “likewise” makes a big difference in how we understand certain New Testament passages that affect women.
The (late) esteemed New Testament scholar Leon Morris cautions us to not make hasty assumptions about the metaphorical meaning of “head” (kephalē) in the New Testament.
Dear Dr Grudem, mutual submission is not a myth.
Submission is not always, or necessarily, to a person in authority (cf Ephesians 5:21-22).
In this post, I show how the word kephalē (head) is used in 1 Clement, in the context of mutual submission, and I show how the authors regarded women.
Why did the Old Testament authors, in particular, leave out the names of some Bible women? Weren’t these women important enough to be identified? Or are they, in fact, identified?
Here is a list of 25+ biblical roles of Bible women. These roles and activities were approved by God and helped God’s people in some way.
Genesis 1 tells us about God’s creation of humanity and the equal status and authority of men and women. This message of equality is lost in some interpretations tainted by influences from the ancient Greeks.
Wifely submission is never mentioned in the Old Testament or in the Gospels. It is mentioned, however, in a few of the later New Testament letters. Why is that?
This short article looks at how the Greek word kyria (“lady”) is used in a few ancient letters and texts, and how this usage helps us to understand who the “chosen lady” is in John’s second letter.
Apartheid, slavery, and patriarchy are three social systems where one group of people is more powerful than the other group. Does God want these systems operating in the community of his people?
Some girls want to fly paper airplanes, and some girls are very brave, but a 2011 study put out by Desiring God suggests these roles are for boys.
Bible women were involved in the life of their community, some as wailing women and celebrants. What was the purpose of these public roles?
There are many Bible verses that show women teaching and leading. Here are 15 of them, 15 reasons why I support women in church leadership.
In this post I link to a video where Wade Burleson explains that there is no Greek word for “over” in the verses about church leaders in Hebrews chapter 13.
Carolyn Custis James writes that it’s important for women to be included as equals in ministry: “The high price of the missing female perspective is incalculable.”
What does “she will be saved through childbearing” in 1 Timothy 2:15 mean? Is being a faithful follower of Jesus not enough? What does Jesus say about this?
Ever heard of Sera, Aksah or Sheerah? Here’s a little something about these three influential Bible women.
I read this candid comment today from Samira, a single Christian woman, and I want to share it. She says a lot here, in very few words, about some of her struggles and hopes.
What are the timeless principles in Paul’s instruction in Titus 2:4-5 about the young wives at Crete? Why did he want them to be workers (or keepers) at home?
Mary and Martha of Bethany are well-known Bible figures whose characters are often polarized in the retelling of their story. What is the background of these women, their age, marital status, level of wealth?
“The scriptures … offer an impressive number of examples of women exercising social or political authority without raising any questions as to the propriety of that authority.” ~ Gordon Hugenberger. Here are over 40 such women.
This 5-part series takes a close look at 1 Timothy 2:12, at what it does and doesn’t say, as well as providing some cultural context. Part 1 looks at the pitfalls of using 1 Timothy 2:12 as a proof text.
This article looks at the goddess Artemis and her magnificent temple in ancient Ephesus. Artemis had a huge influence on the Ephesians!
Paul’s main purpose for writing First Timothy was to address the heresy in the Ephesian Church, possibly a precursor to Gnosticism.
In Part 4 we begin looking at 1 Timothy 2:11-15, verse by verse, phrase by phrase.
Why are Adam and Eve mentioned immediately after Paul’s prohibition in 1 Timothy 2:12? What does Paul mean by salvation and childbirth in 1 Timothy 2:15?
Some Christians seem determined to emphasise and polarise gender differences. Adam, however, marvelled at the similarities between man and woman.
Mary Magdalene and some other women knew a large stone had been rolled in front of the entrance to the tomb where Jesus’ body had been laid. They went to the tomb anyway. [300 words]
In this article, I look at Paul’s statements of equality and unity in ministry from 1 Corinthians chapter 12, including his instruction to give more honour to those lacking it.
Here are links to several articles that look at arguments related to the idea of a male-only priesthood, arguments that keep women out of church leadership.
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© 2021 Marg Mowczko