The Junia Project

Advocating for Women's Equality in the Church and Home

About Megan Pritchett

is a daughter, friend, and culture lover who spends her days as a research analyst for Barna Group in Ventura, CA. When she isn’t daydreaming about graduate programs around the world she wants to apply for, you can find her discussing practical theology with close friends, haunting the local antique store, or nurturing her two stubborn jade plants. A recent graduate of Scripps College, she wrote her senior thesis about how Christian women think about gender and faith (http://scholarship.claremont.edu/scripps_theses/459/).

Feminist Friday: Reflections on Faith, Feminism, & Identity

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Just over a year ago, I interviewed thirteen Christian women about their understandings of faith, gender, and feminism for my senior thesis sociology research.

Although the research was a requirement for my undergraduate degree, it was a perfect opportunity for me to explore my own tensions surrounding faith, gender identity, and social norms through the experiences of others.

To be completely honest, I began this research wanting to further reaffirm my own beliefs about women’s full inclusion in church life and leadership. My formative years at Scripps College had forged a strong feminist identity in me, and my coursework in sociology gave me a foundational knowledge of gender construction and practice.

Although I was (and continue to be) committed to conducting my interviews in ways that limit the influence of my personal bias as much as possible, I was afraid to possibly hear women agree with traditional narratives about gender and women’s roles. What would I do if they voluntarily embraced a worldview I thought was limited and damaging? How would I interpret their stories?

How to Walk Through a Door When a Woman Holds It Open

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We don’t know how to walk through a door when a woman holds it open.

We’re so conditioned to receive teaching and leadership from men in official church positions that it feels awkward when the message comes through a different medium. I can count on one hand the number of female pastors I’ve heard preach, and I spent most of their sermon time focused on how they got to the pulpit instead of what they say from it.

So just as we learn how to behave as “ladies” and “gentlemen” when we are out in public spaces, we must learn how to follow women leaders. Here are some ideas for how we can change church culture:

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