On Friday, May 30, the Associated Press reported that the Vatican, the central governing body of the Catholic Church, issued a warning that women taking part in ordinations would be excommunicated. “The church has always banned the ordination of women by stating that the priesthood is reserved for males. The new decree is explicit in its reference to women,” the report stated. A top Vatican official said, "The church does not feel authorized to change the will of its founder Jesus Christ."
As I read the story, all I could do was shake my head. For me, this matter was a continuation of the age-old debate of whether women should operate in ministry. I am not Catholic and I know very little about Catholicism; however, I know it is the same discussion simply taking place in a different room of the house.
For the past year or so, I have immersed myself in reading about women in the Bible and in contemporary ministry. My dissertation research is a study of the life and work of an Iowa woman who was ordained in 1930. Although she was active within a local Western Iowa church, she “pastored” via the radio for over 55 years. For the past two years, I have read her sermons and through issues of a magazine she published for 46 years. I have also spent hours flipping through her personal scrapbooks and letters, and interviewing her grandchildren and her associates who are still in their right mind. I am still making sense of my project and its contribution to knowledge. Nevertheless, one thing I am sure about is that God has always used women to spread the Gospel and assist with the maintenance of the Church.
Even before I began this research, I saw how God used a group of praying women. In my childhood church, there were always women operating in ministry. Last fall, I was saddened to learn that two of these women, the Rev. Mary Broomfield and Evangelist Mable Maxwell, had gone home to be with the Lord. About two months before her passing, I had called the 91-year-old “Sis. Maxwell.” Her mind was strong, as she provided updates on her grandchildren, the great-grands and other relatives that I could not recall. As our conversation ended, she thanked me for the call and simply said, “You stay on the King’s highway.” That was a word!
Many family members experienced my wrath when I learned that they had not informed me that the Rev. Broomfield passed away. I had not spoken to her in years, but I will never forget how God used her to assist with my healing. As a kid, I suffered from an extreme case of eczema that forced me to miss months of school. Because Mary Ford Elementary had no air conditioning, I did not spend many late spring days in the classroom. At times, a teacher visited my home to drop off assignments and go over new material. That is, when I was not in the hospital. While most kids would simply remember missing recess, I recall Rev. Broomfield and Mrs. Mary Lee Fields, the pastor’s wife, coming over to pray and rub me down with oils and other concoctions they had learned about from friends or people at the health food store. My grandmother, Louise, would be right there with the tag team. They prayed, sang, and greased me down. The whatnots in the living room would shake as the women prayed that God would heal my body. While other kids would have been freaked out, such activities became my “normal.”
As I thought about the story coming out of the Vatican, I remembered these women and thought about others of all faiths, who were feeling God’s tug. Many women have dismissed their calling due to political or societal roadblocks. Reflecting on her entrance into the ministry, my research subject stated: "Had I been a boy instead of a girl I am sure I would have been preaching the gospel long before I did. But having been brought up to think preaching was a man’s job I did not aspire to be a minister of the gospel."
No matter how many decrees are issued, the will of God will be done. Today, I am encouraged by Joel 2:28-29 (KJV): 28And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy…
I am so glad that my research subject, Rev. Broomfield and Evangelist Maxwell took God at His word and fulfilled their assignments!
Copyright © 2008 Arlecia’s Doses of Inspiration by Arlecia D. Simmons
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