From the elder to the elect lady and her children..
I do not routinely read Scripture with a feminist eye. I wouldn’t even call myself a feminist. And having read through the Holy Book, I am startled at void women play. Of course it’s a sign of the times; women really were not an equal part of society. I write that and realize the absurdity of the statement; it was 1974, in my lifetime, that women were allowed to get credit cards in their own names.
Whether it’s the celebrated Bad Girls of the Bible (a fun book to read), or the very few names highlighted in Matthew’s genealogy, women’s recorded role in the early church was so limited, when it appeared people took note.
To be clear, I don’t believe women’s role in the early church was inconsequential; rather, it was just not recorded – with very few notable exceptions. Anyone who’s been a mother, or had a mother knows the role women play in the family – even a patriarchal family. Women are arguable the glue, and probably have been forever. As the child bearers, women cannot help but have a special relationship with children, and children are the next generation of leaders.
This brief letter, entitled 2 John, was written to a woman, an unnamed woman to be sure, but a woman. She was likely the leader of a small house-church. True to form, we don’t know her name and the letter is known as the second letter of John.
This morning, I’m thinking about the unnamed, and quieted role women must have paid in the stories of Genesis through Revelation. I’m intrigued and curious and might want to learn about this more.
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