Throughout her book, Dr Barr aims to show that complementarianism isn’t the only option for those who believe the Bible is the authoritative Word of God.
Miriam is clearly identified as a prophet and as a leader in the Bible, but some say her ministry was only to women. Was this the case? What does the Bible say?
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.
John Chrysostom (d. 407) praised Priscilla, Phoebe, Euodia, Syntyche, and Junia, and acknowledged that these five women were leading ministers in their churches.
In this article, I explain why “the co-elect” woman in 1 Peter 5:13 (AKA “she who is in Babylon”) is most likely a woman and not a church.
Olympias was a determined woman who 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? (Exodus 38:8; 1 Samuel 2:22) Did their service involve religious rituals?
In Acts 9, Tabitha (AKA Dorcas) is identified as a disciple and described as a generous supporter of the poor. What did her ministries involve? What is her association with the widows of Joppa?
Paul included women as ministry partners and used the same ministry terms for his male and female co-workers. He didn’t restricts the ministry of godly and gifted women.
Marcella of Rome (325–410), friend of Jerome, dedicated herself and her considerable talents and resources to serving the church and helping the poor. Here’s some information about this remarkable woman.
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?
Inspired by a recent reading in Acts, I’ve taken a close look at a common Greek expression that Paul uses when addressing Euodia and Syntyche. What was Paul saying to these women in the Philippian Church?
Lydia of Thyatira (Acts 16:14ff), and women like her, were vital and strategic players at the forefront of the expanding Christian mission.
In this article I look at the text of 2 John, especially at the words the letter writer uses to identify the people he is writing to, including the “chosen lady.”
This is a somewhat technical look at the word presbyteroi (“elders”) in New Testament letters, including the presbyterai (“women elders”) 1 Timothy 5:2.
Priscilla, Phoebe, and Junia were Christian ministers who sometimes travelled. The NT shows that, at the very least, their paths crossed one or twice. Were they friends?
Apphia, a woman, is greeted by Paul in his letter to Philemon. What was her role or position at Colossae? Was she Philemon’s wife or another Phoebe?
Eve, Delilah, Bathsheba, Mary Magdalene, and the Samaritan woman have often been thought of as immoral. What’s with that? This article looks at the Samaritan woman without negative prejudices.
This is the second part of a two-part series which looks at the women in the church at Smyrna in the post-apostolic period. This article focuses on Gavia.
In Christian writings known as the Apostolic Fathers (late 1st and early 2nd centuries) we discover that women were active in ministry in the church at Smyrna. Part 1 looks at Alke (or Alce) of Smyrna.
Selina Hastings, the Countess of Huntingdon, was a tireless leader and an influential benefactor of the Methodist movement in Britain in the 1700s.
Several ancient Christian documents show that women were prominent ministers in the second century church. Two of these documents show that Theonoe and Myrte were prophetesses in the church at Corinth.
What does the ministry of Priscilla and Aquila to Apollos reveal? (Acts 18:18-28). How did others feel about the couple and their ministry? (Romans 16:3-5)
More than a century ago, church historian Adolf Harnack was honest and approving in his appraisal of women ministers who are mentioned in the New Testament.
Chloe is a woman mentioned in 1 Corinthians 1:11? Was she a pagan or a Christian? A concerned house church leader or the quarrelsome leader of a faction?
In Part 6 we look at more evidence that deacons in the apostolic and post-apostolic period were travelling envoys and agents, and that some were teachers.
In Part 5, I look at 1 Timothy 3:8-13, concerning male and female deacons in the Ephesian church, and at Phoebe as a prostatis (patron). I briefly compare her ministry with that of Olympias and also Stephanas (1 Cor. 16:15-18).
In part 4 I look at the deacons in the Philippian church and at the development of church offices in the apostolic and post-apostolic churches.
We have only two lines about Phoebe in the Bible, but Theodoret of Cyrrhus has more information about her. Did Phoebe travel to Spain with Paul? Did she deliver his letter to the Romans?
In Part 2, I look at what Romans 16:1-2 in the ancient Latin texts say about Phoebe. These indicate she was recognised as an official deacon (or deaconess).
Here I look at Paul’s introduction of Phoebe to the church at Rome. I also look at the ministry of certain women in the Gospels, and Tabitha’s ministry in Acts, and compare them with Phoebe’s ministry.
It is helpful to have some insight into the values and customs of the first Christians. In this article I provide a brief overview of church life in the first century and I highlight the ministry contributions of women.
Here is a brief overview of eighteen women mentioned by the apostle Paul in his New Testament letters, as well as Lydia who is mentioned in Acts.
In this article I look at the people who were apostles in the New Testament church, and at their qualifications. I also look at what they did as apostles.
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.
This article looks at Mary Magdalene, and especially at what “Magdalene” might mean. Does it refer to Mary’s home town? Was it her nick-name? Or does it imply that Mary was a prostitute?
Female martyrs in the early church, such as Blandina and Perpetua, “conformed themselves to Christ, even in death.”
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?
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.
Early church writers, such as Eusebius, acknowledged that Philip’s four daughters were respected, famous prophets and they associated them with apostles and bishops.
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.
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.
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.”
“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.
Kathy Keller argues that women are prohibited from just one kind of speaking ministry and from holding one kind of position in the church.
Some complementarians believe women cannot be pastors and Bible teachers, yet they read Bible commentaries and theological books written by women. How does that work?
King Lemuel’s mother is one of two women mentioned in Proverbs 31. These Bible women, and others, serve as inspiration for godly women who teach.
Rahab in the Old Testament, and Lydia in the New, are separated by 1000s of years and 1000s of miles, yet there are intriguing similarities between the two women.
Jezebel of Thyatira is a prophetess and teacher mentioned in Revelation 2:20ff. What does her example brings to discussions about women in ministry?
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© 2021 Marg Mowczko