To a
large extent the answer to this question depends on which branch of Christianity one is talking
about, though it is safe to say that women's roles are contested in virtually all of them. Part
of this has to do with the ambiguous nature of women in both the Old and the New Testament, an
ambiguity that has been reflected by a number of later Christian thinkers. In some parts of the
Bible, women are portrayed as subjects rather than actors, and indeed their roles in the Old
Testament in particular are circumscribed. And the role of Eve, created for Adam as his
companion, and as the one who is tempted, is not to be downplayed. On the other hand, there are
a number of strong female characters in the Bible, including Ruth, Esther, and of course
Deborah, who is also a political leader. And it is also the case that Jesus, particularly in the
Book of Luke, converses with and treats women in many ways as equals.
The
pre-Reformation...
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