The Ministry of Women in the New Testament

Reclaiming the Biblical Vision for Church Leadership

Lee, Dorothy A.

• Publisher: Baker Academic
• Year: 2021
• ISBN:
  9781493429349
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Biblical Criticism & Interpretation

Respected scholar Dorothy Lee considers evidence from the New Testament and early church to show that women's ministry is confirmed by the biblical witness. Her comprehensive examination explores the roles women played in the Gospels and the Pauline corpus, with a particular focus on passages that have been used in the past to limit women's ministry. She argues that women in the New Testament were not only valued as disciples but also given leadership roles, which has implications for the contemporary church.

Part 1
Women’s Ministry In The New Testament

Chapter One
Gospels of Mark and Matthew

WOMEN’S MINISTRY is a notable feature of Mark and Matthew, and their depictions of women, though not identical, are similar to each other. Women are followers of Jesus and are committed to his message, and their following of Jesus and service to him are exemplary. It is true that they are less prominent in these Gospels than men and that no specific call narratives for women are included. Yet what is remarkable is how, without denigrating or idealizing women, Matthew and Mark emerge from the limitations of their environment to give women’s discipleship and ministry a significant place.1

The two Gospels belong closely together, since Matthew used Mark throughout as a primary source.2 In one sense, both are writing biographies of Jesus, but they are doing so in the ancient rather than the modern sense.3 They are concerned not to paint a neutral picture of Jesus as outsiders but rather to draw out the inner meaning of the events of Jesus’s life and death and to bring others to faith and to deeper faith. Their intent is, in other words, “evangelical” in the strict sense of the word. Mark’s Gospel is explicit about this intention and commences with the words “The beginning of the good news [“gospel,” euangelion] of Jesus Christ,4 Son of God”5 (1:1). In the ancient world the word euangelion was used to denote a military victory, which demonstrated divine favor—including a reward for the bringer of the news—or the emperor’s accession, which brought hope for stability and peace. In the Greek translation of the Old Testament, it refers to God’s reign and restoration of Israel, which is celebrated particularly in Isaiah. Whatever its context, the word euangelion carries with it a sense of joy and gladness, which for Israel is firmly located in God’s sovereign rule.

The structure of the two Gospels is similar, with many of the incidents in Matthew following Mark.6 There are also differences, indicating that Matthew, like Mark, is a skillful narrator and theologian in his own right. Matthew is considerably longer than Mark, and the author has added to Mark’s account the birth narratives (Matt. 1:1–2:23), large blocks of teaching material throughout, and the appearances of the Risen Christ (28:1–20). These give emphasis to the picture of Jesus as teacher and Lord, confirming him, with the miracle stories, as Messiah and Son of God, authentic in word and deed.

Language of Discipleship

Those who gather around Jesus belong in any of three overlapping categories: followers of Jesus (from akolouthein, “to follow”), disciples (mathētai, “learners, students”), and the Twelve (hoi dōdeka). The term “disciples” is not used in Mark till 2:15 (where Jesus eats with tax collectors and sinners) nor in Matthew till 5:1 (at the beginning of the Sermon on the Mount). Before then, the main image is that of “following,” as in the call of the four fishermen who leave everything behind to follow Jesus (Mark 1:16–20 // Matt. 4:18–22).7

In Mark, there remains a wider group of followers throughout that includes other males and also females, such as blind Bartimaeus and the Galilean women (Mark 10:52; 15:40–41).8 Whether they formally belong among “the disciples” is not explicit, though it is sometimes implied. Such disciples/followers make up a committed group of Jesus’s students and traveling companions—in addition to the Twelve—who function as a missional movement, with the Markan Jesus as their teacher and leader.

In Matthew, the phrase “his twelve disciples” can give the impression that disciples and the Twelve are one and the same (Matt. 10:1–2). This group seems to constitute the church, given their eschatological role in “judging the twelve tribes of Israel” (19:28).9 Yet Matthew also indicates a larger grouping, such as those whom Jesus identifies as members of his family (12:49–50; 27:57). Imagery of discipleship is used also of the Galilean women (27:55–56). Thus, while “disciples” often refers to the apostles, others share the same characteristics:10 relationship with Jesus, involvement in his ministry, and commitment to his mission.11

Given the imprecise limits around who belongs, it is easiest to use the term “disciples” in its broadest sense to include not only the Twelve but also the women and other men who follow Jesus. There are no clear lines of demarcation when it comes to those who identify with his ministry. When the Markan disciples try to prevent an exorcist from working in Jesus’s name, Jesus allows the work to continue, since “no one who will perform a mighty deed in my name will be able quickly to defame me” (Mark 9:38–40). In the Gospels we find little clarity about where the boundaries lie, yet we find a clear understanding of what it means to be committed to Jesus.12

Women Disciples in Jesus’s Ministry

The Galilean women who are devoted to Jesus show remarkable faith. The first of these in both Gospels is Peter’s unnamed mother-in-law (Mark 1:29–31 // Matt. 8:14–15), whom Jesus heals of a deadly fever. She is so fully recovered by his healing touch that she at once rises from her bed and begins “to serve” or “minister” (diakonein) “to him” (Mark) / “to them” (Matthew). This might seem a male-oriented narrative: the woman no sooner rises from her sickbed than she is obliged to wait on demanding guests. It is more likely that this detail illustrates the totality of her cure; she does not need time to recuperate but rises from her bed full of energy and purpose. Moreover, the same verb is used for the ministry of the angels to Jesus in the temptation (Mark 1:13 // Matt. 4:11), and Jesus uses it to speak of his own ministry, including his death: “The Son of Man came not to be served/ministered to but to serve/minister” (diakonein, Mark 10:45 // Matt. 20:28).13 The woman’s actions capture the true, self-giving nature of Christian ministry.14

Jesus’s attitude toward women and power challenges the structures of his world, revealing a compassion and authority that are, for Mark, distinctively divine.15 Girls and women find no revulsion from him but encounter his readiness to heal and save. The double narrative of the woman with a hemorrhage and the daughter of Jairus (Mark 5:21–43 // Matt. 9:18–26), where the one story is sandwiched within the other, is perhaps the best example of this openness toward females and their needs. A desperate woman, suffering from a disability that renders her physically weak, intervenes between Jairus’s desperate appeal at his daughter’s illness (Mark) / death (Matthew) and Jesus’s response to it. The woman has an incurable medical condition that renders her ceremonially “unclean” (Lev. 15:25–30).16

The hemorrhaging woman is anxious not to draw attention to herself, yet she shows courage and faith in touching Jesus’s cloak for healing (Mark 5:29). Mark adds a poignant note about how she became poor through costly attempts to find a cure (5:26). In both versions—though Matthew’s is shorter—Jesus draws the woman forth and commends the strength of her faith publicly:17 “Daughter, your faith has saved you; go in peace and be healed of your disease” (Mark 5:34); “Be confident, daughter; your faith has saved you” (...