Preaching

  • Seeing the Blessing

    “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!” (Luke 1:42 NRSV)   I find it amazing that Elizabeth was able to see that Mary had been blessed. Now, scripture tells us that before she spoke, she was filled with the Holy Spirit, but one has to be open to Spirit.

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  • Why I Can’t Be Silent

    Why I Can’t Be Silent

      As a woman preacher, I am only too aware of what some consider a mandate for all women, for all time, to be silent in the church (1 Cor. 14:33-36). This is sometimes interpreted to deny that woman are called to be preachers, teachers, and leaders of the church. While, I, myself, have learned

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  • I believe that in preaching, as in other vocations, one improves with practice. It takes time to find one’s voice in preaching and become comfortable in preaching in a style that displays our unique personalities. Do we extend grace and time for women to develop as preachers or do we place them in the position

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  • We all have our own personal preferences when it comes to movies and perhaps the thought of sitting through a ‘chick flick’ makes your cringe—the crying, the laughing, and the female bonding just does not appeal to you at all! However, there is much that we could learn from ‘chick flicks’ that would be beneficial

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  • The Pulpit Challenge

    As we enter summer and times of refreshing ourselves at the pool with glasses of lemonade and ice tea, I envision a summer where we experience a time of refreshing in the church. How might we do this? What if we experience a new, fresh voice from the pulpit: a female voice? Those who know

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  • As a preacher, who is a woman, it grieves my heart to see women, called of God, denied the opportunity to preach. My grief is not only for the women who struggle to find a place where they can use their gifts, but I grieve the lost opportunity for the congregation to experience the fullness

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  • What does the egalitarian relationship of the Trinity have to do with being created in the image of God? And what implications does it have in regards to women in the pulpit?   Part 3: Humankind, the Imago Dei   “Then God said, ‘Let us make humankind in our image, according to our likeness; and

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  • Part 1: An Introduction   The issue on the validity of women in the pulpit has long been debated. Those who promote it and those who oppose it both have an arsenal of scriptural references, doctrinal beliefs, allegiance to traditionalism, egalitarian versus patriarchal hermeneutical understandings of male-female relationships, and an array of biblical criticisms to

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  • “Many women were there looking on from a distance, who had followed Jesus from Galilee while ministering to Him. Among them was Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James and Joseph, and the mother of the sons of Zebedee” (Mt. 27:55-56 NASB).   Our words are very important. Therefore, why do we continue to

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  • When will we hear the story of Bathsheba from her own point of view? Scripture, itself, is silent in regards to the thoughts and feelings of this woman. Yet, might there be a valid reason to examine the circumstances that she faced? Can we try to imagine her feelings as she found herself in a

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