Citing the Women

In one of the comments in my previous blog entry,
someone mentioned that they did not know
some of the biblical women I mentioned.
So, I promised that person that I would give the references
where these ladies can be found.

I’ve been looking up references
and double checking all of the numbers.
I do believe I have them all in check now.
Sorry it has taken so long
to finally give the biblical references.

But here we go!

Women Omitted from the Lectionary:
Huldah, the Prophetess (2 Kings 22:13-19)
Lois and Eunice (2 Timothy 1:4,5)
Phoebe (Romans 16:1,2)
. . . .as I continued to write this blog entry,
it slowly became clearer why Phoebe was left out of the lectionary. . .

Women in brackets as optional in the Lectionary:
The Prophetess named Ana
(Luke 2:22-40) Lectionay #524
The woman with a hemorrhage
(Mark 5:21-43) Lectionary #99
the woman who anointed Jesus on the head
(Matthew 26:6-13) Lectionary #38

Old Testament Ladies:
Ruth (Ruth has an entire piece of the Old Testament, can be found after Judges and before 1 Samuel)
Miriam (Exodus 15:20,21 - Miriam actually makes several appearances in the Old Testament . . .Numbers 12, Micah 6:4. . but she was forgotten in v. 21 of Psalm 70 as only Moses and Aaron are mentioned there.)
Hanna (1 Samuel 1:1-20)
Rebekah (Genesis 24, Romans 9:10-12)
Hosea’s Wife (Hosea 1:2,3)
Lot’s wife, Gomer (Genesis 19:26, Luke 17:32)
Tamar (Genesis 38)
Judith (Judith can be found in the Old Testament after Tobit and before Esther)

Women with No Name in the New Testament:
The Woman at the Well (John 4:1-42)
The Woman from Cana (Matthew 25:21-28)
The Woman bent over (Luke 13:11-13)
Peter’s Mother-In-Law (Mark 1:30,31)
The Child of Talitha Koum (Mark 5:35-43)
The Woman Caught in Adultery (John 8:1-11)
The Woman Who Anoints Jesus (Luke 7:36-50)
The Daughters of Jerusalem (Luke 23:27-29)
The Women Jesus Appeared to (Luke 24:1-12)

And oh,
I realize that there are a number of women
that I did not mention in my previous blog post.
Rest assured,
that I did not forget them.

Here’s a partial list:
Elizabeth (Luke 1:39-45)
Rahab (Joshua 2:1-21)
Delilah (Judges 16:4-22)
Bilhah and Silpah (Gen.16:4-22)
Euodia and Syntyche (Philippians 4:1-7)
The Queen of Sheba (1 Kings 10:1-13)
Abigail (1 Samuel 25:14-31)
Rachel (Jeremiah 31:15-17)
Mary Magdalen (John 20:1-18)
Damarias (Acts 17:3-34)
Priscilla (Acts 18: 1-3, 18-19, 24-26)
Mary, Junia, Tryphaena and Tryphosa (Romans 16:6-13)
Mary of Bethany (John 12:1-8)
Tabitha (Acts 9:36-43)
Lydia (Acts 16:9-15)

And finally,
as perhaps the hardest for some to swallow,
a few excerpts regarding women deacons.
Now, rest assured,
that I am no advocate,
neither pro nor con,
for women’s ordination.
And while I know that the words "deacon" and "deaconess"
may have a different meaning from the original Greek
and in the context of history,
the fact remains that the word "deaconess" (Diakonos)
is used in the works quoted below.
And so, I simply state
that the following documents exists.

And the first document I quote is the bible
"I commend to you Phoebe our sister, who is also a minister (diakonos) of the church in Cenchrae, that you may receive her in the Lord in a manner worthy of the holy ones, and help her in whatever she may need from you, for she has been a benefactor to many and to me as well." (Romans 16:1,2)


Council of Chalcedon (451 A.D.)
"A Woman shall not receive the laying on of hands as a deaconess under forty years of age, and then only after searching examination. And if, after she has had hands laid on her and has continued for a time to minister, she shall despise the grace of God and give herself in marriage, she shall be anathematized and the man united to her." (Canon 15)

The Council of Trullo (692 A.D.)
(also known as Quinisext Council)
" Let the canon of our holy God-bearing Fathers be confirmed in this particular also; that a presbyter be not ordained before he is thirty years of age, even if he be a very worthy man, but let him be kept back. For our Lord Jesus Christ was baptized and began to teach when he was thirty. In like manner let no deacon be ordained before he is twenty-five, nor a deaconess before she is forty." (Canon 14)

Citing the Women.
It’s been more fun
and thought provoking
than I ever would have realized.