Women in Jesus' ministry
Sign up for access to the world's latest research
checkGet notified about relevant papers
checkSave papers to use in your research
checkJoin the discussion with peers
checkTrack your impact
Abstract
tracing Jesus' attitude to women
Key takeaways
- More than t hat, each is dependent on the other and both depend on God.
- This seems to be the most nat ural reading of these verses and has been accept ed as such in a large number of evangelical churches.
- Having said t hat, some "west ern manuscripts" place verses 34 -35 after verse 40.
- A second group maintains that women should remain silent in church.
- These verses constitute a warning to all those who are looking for "easy a nswers".
Related papers
Jesus' attitude towards women and their relevance today
This paper contains a brief analysis of the various aspects of the relation Jesus maintained with women within the Bible especially with reference to his ministry and then it is compared to the present ministerial worldview on women and feminist theology
Jesus and the Ministry of Women
Priscilla Papers, 1990
Author: Roberta Hestenes Publisher: CBE International "Then leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, 'Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Christ?' They came out of the town and made their way toward him... Many of the Samaritans from the town believed in him because of the woman's testimony, 'He told me everything I ever did'." (John 4:28-30, 39, NIV) There are many models of ministry. Women are as diverse as men in the patterns of ministry they follow. But let's look at the response of this one woman to Jesus to learn more about the place of women in ministry.
Women in Jesus‘ Ministry and the Place of Women in Contemporary Christian Ministry
The American Journal of Biblical Theology, 2020
Jesus deliberately undermined the traditional patriarchal framework so obviously a part of Old Testament culture and religion. His teachings and way of life were such that, according to the contention of many, only in support of an equalitarian view of male-female. This analysis of Jesus stance on women has become increasingly accepted as the correct interpretation of the relevant material in the four Gospels. This research explores the perspective of Jesus concerning women and how well their relationship was while He was ministering on earth. Considering this, examples of women Jesus came across are discussed. It is probable that Jesus' teachings attracted women in part because of the new roles and equal status they were granted in the Christian community. There were many cults in Greece and Rome that were for men only or, at best, allowed women to participate in very limited ways. Judaism offered women proselytes a special restriction place at best, for they were faced with the rabbinic restrictions that limited their participation in religious functions. While women were able neither to make up the quorum necessary to found a synagogue, nor to receive the Jewish covenant sign, these limitations did not exist in the Christian community. The necessary and sufficient explanation of why Christianity differed from its religious mother, Judaism, in these matters is that Jesus broke with both biblical and rabbinic traditions that restricted women's roles in religious practices, and that He rejected attempts to devalue the worth of a woman, or her word of witness. This was a right that women did not have in contemporary Judaism or in many pagan cults.
The Role of Women in the New Testament and Canonical Gospels.
Women played a vital role in the spread of Christianity in the first and second century CE. This paper will assess their contribution by examining the various functions and responsibilities held by women as described in the New Testament and Canonical Gospels. The assessment will commence with a brief description of the lives of women in the Greco-Roman world. This description of the cultural setting will serve as an introduction to Jesus’ attitude towards and interaction with women, who were among his first followers. Women continued to function in the early church in a variety of roles such as apostles, evangelists, prophets, teachers and house church leaders, using their skills to spread the message and further the impact of the fledgling religion. A close examination of these multifarious roles, drawing on the Canonical Gospels as primary source, will demonstrate the integral part women played in the dissemination of Christianity.
Juana, S.J.: The Past (and Future?) Status of Women in the Society of Jesus
Studies in the Spirituality of Jesuits, 2013
S.J., for his insightful comments on this essay as it was in preparation. Any errors to be found are, of course, entirely my own.
Attitudes to woman in the early church
This essay will look at the place accorded to women in the life and witness of the early church, by comparing the gospel writings as well as archaeological evidence and other noncanonical writings, especially those that show attitudes to women. 1 Although it can be documented that women were active in many roles in the early church, particular reference will be made to the leadership roles of apostle, prophet and bishop, recognising that most of the surviving written history has been done by men, many of whom diminished the "significance of women's leadership roles." 2 Some of the historical evidence I will present, suggests that the liberating effects of Jesus' words, resurrection and Pentecost, and the effects of meeting in private houses, considered the sphere of women, opened the door for gender equality in the life and witness of the early church. 3 However with the change in meeting place from house church to public buildings, a loss of liberty, especially for women, whose proper sphere of activity was often considered to be in the home, can be documented. 4 Some parts of the early church accepted the prevailing cultural, social norms and attitudes and limited or prohibited women's leadership roles and others didn't. 5 The standardisation of worship, canonization of scripture and creeds, anti-feminist rules made in various councils, and control being given to the bishops, meant that the bishop and tradition became the leader in many churches, rather than apostles, prophets, and possibly even the Holy Spirit. 6 The fear of heresy and a fight for 1 The early church "consisted of distinctive, competing groups" and the groups also associated themselves with "different foundational figures and various theologies"(Andern Graham Brock, Mary Magdalene, the First Apostle: The Struggle for Authority, ed. Francis Schussler Fiorenza FranciosBovo, Peter B. Machinist (Cambridge: Harvard Theological Studies, 2003), 15.). When referring to the early church, I will mean the time period from when women like Mary Magdalene became Jesus' disciples until around 500 AD. 2 Women were active in roles other than the three I will cover in this essay. They were especially active in helping the poor, sick and other women, some as "consecrated widows, deaconesses and 'respectable women", but this is beyond the scope of this essay (Philip Francis Esler, ed.
Related papers
What Jesus Thought About Women: His regard for them was unusual for his time—even scandalous
Priscilla Papers, 2002
Author: Douglas Groothuis Publisher: CBE International World religions have been charged with not only permitting, but also with perpetuating ingrained patterns of sexism, patriarchy, and misogyny. These religions, it seems, must either change or be left behind by all who believe that women and men are equal in their rights, abilities, and potential. Some charge that Christianity demeans and marginalizes women, that it is a male religion in which men are given the preponderance of power, prestige, and influence. But what did the founder of Christianity teach about women?
Women and the Aims of Jesus
Priscilla Papers, 2004
Author: John E. Phelan, Jr. Publisher: CBE International By the time Jesus came into Galilee preaching and healing, the Israelites had been in exile over six hundred years. Jeremiah had promised that it would only be seventy years. Seventy years away from the land. Seventy years without the temple. Seventy years to contemplate their sins and bemoan their losses. Seventy years to reconnect with their God. And they had gotten back to the land. They had rebuilt the temple. They made sacrifices. They celebrated holidays once again. But it wasn’t what they expected. The glorious prophecies of Isaiah concerning the return from exile seemed to mock their present reality. It seemed to many people in Israel that the exile had been extended from seventy to nearly seven hundred years. Some Jews had begun to wonder if it would ever end!
THEOLOGICAL-ETHICAL SURVEY OF JESUS' ATTITUDE TOWARDS FEMALES IN THE MATTHEAN GOSPEL
This article studies Jesus' attitude towards females in the Gospel of Matthew. Through a theological-ethical survey, the article identifies a 9-item description of Jesus' encounters and interactions with females (woman/women, wife, mother, mother-in-law, daughter, virgin, widow, Mary, and Martha) in the Matthean Gospel. Comparison between Jesus' attitude towards females and the established attitude towards females in the Oriental culture reveals that Jesus' attitude was more favorable to females. The Matthean Gospel provides numerous scenes of Jesus' attitude of tolerance, affirmation, care, and non-discrimination towards females. For Christ, females were human beings who were equally disposed of knowing God, witnessing about God's presence, and who needed divine provision to resolve life difficulties just as their male counterpart. Thus the article concludes that Jesus' attitude towards females ought to be the norm from which adherents of the religion of Jesus regard females in all spheres of life.
The Discipleship of Women—From Jesus' Birth to the Empty Tomb
Priscilla Papers, 2007
Author: J. Lyle Story Publisher: CBE International In recent years, much discussion has centered upon the role of women disciples as they encounter the person of Jesus. The word “disciple” (mathētēs), related to the verb “learn, study, practice” (manthanō), means “the one who directs his mind to something,” often in the sense of a learner, apprentice, or pupil. In the Greek philosophical world, the term designated a devotee of a philosopher, one who would continue the intellectual link with the teacher (adherent). While many argue for exclusively male disciples due to the fact that Jesus’ twelve disciples were all male, we can respond that all disciples were also Jewish. This, then, leads to the important question of implication: Does this mean that all Gentile disciples through the ages, male and female, are to be excluded from participatory discipleship? Certainly not!
Women and Discipleship in the Gospels
Ghana Journal of Religion and Theology
Some reading the canonical Gospels, namely, the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John are inclined to think that the disciples Jesus called were all men or males because whether it is the names of the apostles or a pronoun used about them, it is either a man’s name or masculine gender. It is a situation that tends to lead some Christian churches to prefer having only male ministers or pastors. The author of this paper argues that the notion or idea is a presentation of the first three Gospels but not the Fourth. The Fourth Gospel presents not only men but also women as disciples of Jesus.
Jesus and the Feminine Genius. The Anthropological Relevance of the Encounters of Jesus with Women in the Fourth Gospel
Polonia Sacra
The two sisters of Bethany (in the chapters 11 and 12) are not called in this way. Let's notice that the only woman to be called by her own name is Mary Magdalene in 20:16.
Jesus Call on Women as Disciples
The Gospel of John stands in dialogical relationship with the Synoptic Gospels, and more pointedly with Mark’s Gospel in confronting growing male dominance over and against the early memory of Jesus’s intent for women. John’s Gospel advocates for equal partnership between women and men, Jew and on-Jew, in every aspect of Jesus’s mission, message, and ministry by depicting twelve calling elements, beginning with the Greek verb zeteō. These calling elements appear in the Johannine calling narrative of five men in the first chapter, and with at least two women in later chapters. John’s inclusion of women’s stories could be incidental but are more likely in response to the relative absence of women disciples and women in apostolic ministry as depicted in Mark’s and Matthew’s Gospels. The high view of Christ and of the scriptures will lead modern Christians to hearken to John’s portrayal of both women and men in Jesus’s apostolic mission, and thereby support Christ’s work in calling both men and women to every level of mission and leadership in the church today.
Loading Preview
Sorry, preview is currently unavailable. You can download the paper by clicking the button above.