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Issue 17 : Women in the Early Church

Originally published in 1988

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Table of Contents

Women in the Early Church: From the Publisher
The Problem with Special Women's Issues

Patricia Gundry
Quick Quotes on Women in the Early Church
The Neglected History of Women in the Early Church

A number of prominent leaders, scholars, and benefactors of the early church were women and—despite neglect by many modern historians—the diligent researcher can still uncover a rich history.

Catherine Kroeger
Early Church Women and Heresy

Of course not only women were attracted to the heretical sects that diverged from early church orthodoxy, but women were prominent in their leadership and teachings. Why might this have been?

Ruth A. Tucker and Walter Liefeld
Women of the Early Church: A Gallery

A few of the many

Mary L. Hammack
Paula: A Portrait of 4th Century Piety

This close friend of the scholar Jerome, known for her scholarship and her extreme piety and generosity, was one of the most noteworthy people—women or men—in all the 4th-century church.

Nancy A. Hardesty
The Early Controversies Over Female Leadership

Karen Torjesen
Women and the Church Orders: Christian History Timeline
The Chaining of the Church

What happened to the church between the vibrantly pluralistic 1st century and the legalistic, male-dominated 3rd century?

William David Spencer
What About Paul?

The Apostle's writings are foundational to the standard interpretation of what women's role in the church should be. But examined carefully, his points about women raise several puzzling questions

Randy Petersen
Jesus and Women

In His treatment of women, as in many other areas, Jesus of Nazareth was a radical contrast to the standards of His times

Evelyn and Frank Stagg
From the Archives: The Martyrdom of Perpetua

About 200 A.D., under the reign of Roman emperor Septimius Severus, persecution broke out against the Christians. It was particularly severe in North Africa. In Carthage, a Christian woman of noble birth, Perpetua, was arrested. She was about 22 years old and was nursing an infant son. In what may be the earliest extant Christian document from a woman's pen, she wrote her own story. The account of her death was, of course, added later.
From the Archives: Monica, Faithful Mother

Augustine considered his mother, Monica, a driving force in his own salvation. In his Confessions, he documents her relentless prayers and persuasions. In Book IX, he speaks of her married life with Patricius in Thagaste, a small town in North Africa, thanking God for her powerful Christian witness. Patricius was a pagan throughout his life, but converted to Christianity shortly before his death.
From the Archives: The Wife's Domain
From the Archives: The Acts of Thecla
From the Archives: Egeria at Thecla's Shrine

Constantine's mother, Helena, traveled to Palestine, touring biblical sites and, with her imperial wealth, establishing churches and shrines. Thereafter, it was quite fashionable for Christians to visit the Holy Land. Late in the 4th century, a nun named Egeria made the trek from western Europe and kept a diary of her travels. Not far from Tarsus, she visited the shrine of Thecla, then considered a historical figure.
From the Archives: The Value of Virginity
From the Archives: Agnes: the Virgin Martyr

From the bitter persecution of Diocletian (303–305), a heroine emerged. Agnes embodied the two ultimate devotions of Christianity: virginity and martyrdom. Since church fathers often spoke in glowing, almost worshipful, terms of both virgins and martyrs, it was natural that they would hail this young girl, martyred in about 304 A.D. The early-5th-century poet Prudentius takes up the story:
Women and the Early Church: Recommended Resources - Historical Writings and Pespectives, Scripture Studies, Bibliographies

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June 3, 1098: After a seven-month siege, the armies of the First Crusade recapture Antioch (now in Turkey) (see issue 40: The Crusades).

June 3, 1162: Thomas a Becket is consecrated Archbishop of Canterbury. Nominated by his friend, King Henry II (Becket had previously served as his chancellor), Becket underwent a radical change as archbishop. He became pious and devoted to the church, which Henry found annoying. When knights heard the king grumbling, they killed Becket as he prayed.

June 3, 1647: ...

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Issue 17 : Women in the Early Church

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