Messengers to next week’s Southern Baptist Convention annual meeting who arrive in Orlando by plane will be greeted by a surprising billboard on their drive from the airport to the convention center. Baptist Women in Ministry has purchased space on…
The slippery slope of allowing insults to women
Al Mohler, president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, recently hosted Clint Pressley, president of the Southern Baptist Convention, for an episode of his “In the Library” podcast. Unsurprisingly, the topic turned to female pastors in the SBC. Mohler said the…
BWIM updates models for state collaboration
Six state organizations have merged with Baptist Women in Ministry to become official chapters of the nationwide organization. BWIM Executive Director Meredith Stone announced the change in an email to supporters, saying there are now two ways state groups relate…
Three reasons from this week why BWIM’s work is needed
Evidence from this week provides three reasons why the work of Baptist Women in Ministry is still needed. Reason No. 1: When Christian patriarchal theology is popularized and easily accessible, it is used for harm. Reporting by Daniel Silliman at…
Why an open letter still matters
In April 2023, Baptist Women in Ministry shared an Open Letter to Baptist Women in response to an increase in actions against Baptist women who minister, lead and serve as pastors, specifically within the Southern Baptist Convention. In a recent…
Observations from a clergy sister of a darker hue
It is with gratitude, excitement and concern that I share my observations and response to the Baptist Women in Ministry State of Women in Baptist Life report. I commend Heather Deal and all contributors for the clear, in-depth, insightful and…
Affirmed yet not ordained?
As Meredith Stone of Baptist Women in Ministry announced the results of the State of Women in Ministry 2025 report, she said this: “BWIM has counted 2,856 Baptist women ordained to the gospel ministry.” My immediate reaction was, there has…
With gratitude for the women who lead us
Julie Pennington Russell called me last month. I had just finished a centering prayer group, a practice Pastor Julie helped nurture in me, and I began to weep when I saw her name on my phone. I was so grateful…
Honoring the invisible work of clergywomen in this season
Last Christmas Eve, a new post appeared in one of my clergywomen groups on social media. It began, “How many pastors are sitting at their desks crying this morning? Just me?” Spoiler alert: It wasn’t just her. The replies started…
Committing to a culture that empowers
In Baptist Women in Ministry’s latest “State of Women in Baptist Life” report, Executive Director Meredith Stone wrote, “Many reasons for celebration can be found in this report, as well as painful reminders of the disparity that women in ministry…
Affirming women’s leadership as a pneumatological moment
“When churches do not recognize the leadership gifts of women, the whole body is impoverished.” — Elizabeth Conde-Frazier, A Many Colored Kingdom As a Latina and Baptist ordained minister, reading about the “Six Markers of Congregational Environments which are Empowering…
Women in ministry need each other
I’m sure it’s some Holy Spirit work that the “State of Women in Baptist Life” 2025 report was released in the same month as the film Wicked: For Good. The second half of the saga of two electric women is…