In this week’s reading the author, Karen Jo Torjesen,”When Women Were Priest”, discussed the struggles of women in leadership from several religious backgrounds’. The author demonstrates how women had to fight for their rights to be accepted in a world where they believed that they were called by God to preach, teach and lead other to Christ. Women were not seen as equal to men leaders within the church. Though women have been ordained, their title held little weight or power at all unlike the men leaders of the church.
In chapter one, the author was able to show a correlation between women in leadership in the early church versus the late twenty century. Although women were ordained in the early church, they were limited to the functions they could have. During this time women were not concerned having voices. According to the author, there was a dispute of Jesus allowing women to following him during his movement. (6) According to Paul women were to remain silent. (6)
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When Barbara Harris was ordained as the first female bishop of the Episcopal Church in 1989, time magazine commented on her red nail polish. Red nail polish, of course, has little to do with a woman’s qualifications for the office of bishop, but the reporter was unconsciously stating that the ordination of a woman as bishop brought female sexuality and divinity into uncomfortable proximity,” (3) this statement stuck out to me because even though women in the early church have made exceptional strives in paving the way for women today to
Take part within the churches as pastors, elders, and deacons, it makes me wonder” have women really overcome these issues of being subordinate to men in leadership not only to the church but in other platforms?