Named and Known: Women's Leadership in Creation Justice

Soon afterward he went on through one town and village after another, proclaiming and bringing the good news of the kingdom of God. The twelve were with him,  as well as some women who had been cured of evil spirits and infirmities: Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out,  and Joanna, the wife of Herod’s steward Chuza, and Susanna, and many others, who ministered to them[a] out of their own resources.
​(Luke 8: 1-3, NRSVUE) ​

The eighth chapter begins with an easily overlooked detail: there were women among Jesus’ disciples. In fact the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible opens the chapter with the heading “Some Women Follow Jesus”. It’s almost a throwaway line, a detail that gives color and context to the larger narrative. It would, in some ways, be typical of the American church to overlook these lines and yet it is important that we not fall into this trap. The women named here are those who have witnessed the ministry of Jesus first hand and even been beneficiaries of His healing and liberation. They range from those of low stature to those who have worked in the homes of the powerful. They’ve heard Jesus, they’ve responded to Jesus, they follow Jesus… and yes, they support Jesus from their own pockets. Three women are named here. They are named because they matter. 
How many others went unnamed? 

Throughout my career, whenever I have been in spaces where the real hard work of seeking justice is happening, women outnumber men. These women, often Black and brown women, are the ones moving the conversations forward with courage and vulnerability. In these spaces I see less of the jockeying for position and fighting for recognition that I often see in men. I see collaboration, courage, and vulnerability. Today, I can’t imagine my work at CJM happening without the faithfulness and energy of the women of our staff, board, and many partners. It is truly a blessing to know and work with them! The scholarship, activism, writing, and preaching of the women I have the privilege of working with is nothing short of heroic. 

It may seem strange as women’s history month begins to have this piece written by a man when I am a part of this rich network of women, and yet I write this with the male audience of CJM in mind. Men, we need to do better! We live in a world that is steeped in patriarchy and misogyny. We live in a time where the contributions of women at the highest levels can be belittled and have that belittling dismissed as “lockerroom talk”. We live in one of the few developed nations that has yet to have had a woman at the highest of offices. I see on social media all the time that my female colleagues in ministry have to fight the narrative that they cannot (or should not ) be pastors. As the husband of a pastor I have watched my wife’s authority be undermined by men who would call themselves “allies”.

I confess my own misogyny and the many ways I have benefitted from patriarchy when there have been women in the room with more talent and integrity than my own. I’ve been the guy who has devalued women and laughed at the joke to fit in. I hate to be a cliche, but I’m a man who has evolved as I raise daughters and particularly as they have reached their teenage years. I don’t want them to ever feel that there are barriers to their accomplishments because of their gender. I know I can’t shield them and sometimes the world they are being raised in scares me. Lord, have mercy! 

We can’t do Creation justice without justice for women.​​

​We can’t do Creation justice without justice for women.​​ And we have to be honest that there are many times when it has been the church’s rhetoric that has stood in the way of progress for women despite the fact that we have a rich history of female pastors, priests, and prophets.

God created us, both male and female, in God’s image and we do harm when we do not recognize the Divine image reflected in our sisters, mothers, daughters, and friends. I’m grateful for the climate science leadership of Dr. Katherine Hayhoe and Dr. Ayana Elizabeth Johnson. I’m grateful for the preaching of Rev. Dr. Leah Schade and Rev. Dr. Jerusha Neal. I’m grateful for the scholarship of Dr. Melanie Harris and Dr. Ellen Davis. I am grateful for the writing of Dr. Debra Rienstra and Dr. Carolyn Finney. I’m grateful for the organizing and advocacy of Sharon Lavigne and Karen Washington. And I’m grateful for the friendship and collegiality of the staff (and former staff) and board of CJM, most of whom are women, who do their work with faithfulness, strength, and love. I could go on and on. It’s important that we name both the past and current contributions of women and we lay the path for the future ones.

​

​Derrick Weston
Director of Theological Education & Formation
Creation Justice Ministries