This Is Our Story

The story of women's ministry is longer and far more varied than most people imagine. This book tells the story of women's ministry in the Free Churches, and looks at its impact on the ways we worship and live out our Christian lives. Women have ministered in garrets and gutters, at home and on the mission field. Today, women are fully engaged in ministry within our multicultural society, bringing a diversity of voices to match the diversity of the world in which we live. Six well-known contributors who are themselves involved in the story of women's ministry explore issues of leadership and authority, preaching and worship, global perspectives, the relation to feminist theology and the ecumenical setting. Their contributions are complemented by the voice of experience. Women from varied backgrounds tell their own stories of being called to a ministry that sometimes doesn't fit, of wrestling with the traditions that have nurtured their faith and that can put obstacles in their way. Here we see something of the variety and of the rich texture of women's ministries in the contemporary church. Some of the women represented here have found their journey to ministry uncomplicated. Others have traveled long and painful roads, meeting opposition and hostility. Many have moved from trying to be "one of the boys" to the recognition that their gender can have an influence on their ministry. The stories interact with the articles, bringing many lively and dramatic voices to the telling of "our story."