“What’s in a name?” the guest preacher asked as the sermon began.
The message was taken from the Lukan account of the Gerasene man suffering from demon possession, the man who was called Legion. The reverend addressed the biblical significance of names and reminded us that of all the names we call ourselves and each other, the most important is “Child of God.” Just the right mix of biblical scholarship and modern illustrations made the sermon both academic and inspirational. Following the service, I heard more than a few people thank our guest for the depth of preparation and quality delivery. \
Pause.
Let me ask you something. What is the mental picture you have of our guest preacher? Was your picture of a specific ethnicity wearing a particular style of clothing? Was the pastor young or … seasoned? Man or woman?
Got the picture in mind? Okay, let me guess. I bet you pictured someone similar to your current, or your favorite, minister —and I bet that person was a Caucasian male. I understand. I had the same pastor for the first 22 years of my life (my dad), and every pastor I’ve had since looked pretty much like him: white men, somewhere between the age of 30 and 70.
In fact, I’ve tried to remember the very first time I heard a Baptist woman preach. Best I can recall, it was 2008; I was a student at Gardner-Webb’s school of divinity and a number of us had attended the New Baptist Covenant meeting in Atlanta. Among the outstanding preachers we heard was Julie Pennington-Russell, then pastor of First Baptist Church of Decatur, Ga. Pennington-Russell delivered a fantastic message, points of which I still remember nearly a decade after the event.
At that time, I would have told you I would never be a preacher. (You know what they say about saying never, though, right?) Currently, I am on staff at First Baptist Church of Weaverville, N.C., where I preach about once a month. I am eternally grateful to have a pastor who backs his spoken support of women in ministry with sacrificial action.
Since hearing Pennington-Russell in Atlanta, I’ve heard other great Baptist women preachers — people like Amy Butler, Susan Sparks and Carol Lynn Brinkley. Indeed, more and more, women are responding to the call of God to proclaim the gospel, not just in their homes and in children’s Sunday school classes, but from the actual pulpit. Yet, for many Baptists, the image of a woman in the pulpit does not come quickly to mind. A woman preacher — a familiar reality in many other protestant denominations — is still mostly an anomaly in the Baptist church (even the ones considered more progressive).
It doesn’t have to be that way though.
One group that has done a lot to increase awareness of this incongruity is Baptist Women in Ministry (BWIM). In addition to other activities and events, this organization encourages churches to celebrate Martha Stearns Marshall Month by having a woman preach during February. Really, it is a small thing; but as a Baptist woman in ministry, I believe it is a start. Most of us just aren’t familiar with a woman in the pulpit. Seeing and hearing women preach helps us learn that it’s not really all that different than hearing a man preach. Really. We all live to see another day (though I did have a fella pass out while I was preaching once but that’s a different story), no worse for the experience, and often considerably better. (Coincidentally, BWIM will hold their annual meeting this Wednesday, June 22, at First Baptist Church of Winston-Salem, N.C.)
So will you do it? Will you invite a woman pastor to preach in your church — in February or any time? It’s something you can do locally to help Baptist women everywhere, because until we as a denomination can imagine a woman in the pulpit, the Baptist women God calls to preach will continue to slam into manmade obstacles.
Oh, by the way, our guest this morning? Amy Joyner Finkleberg. And as we say here in North Carolina, “She sure can preach!”