Patriarchy and the subjugation of women have become part and parcel of evangelical Christianity in America. Beth Allison Barr analyzes this close relationship through an historical and theological context and reveals that, rather than uphold a centuries-old tradition of womanhood, strict gender roles and complementarianism are actually the result of specific cultural and economic moments in history.

Not only through questioning the translation and interpretation of specific biblical passages, but also through analyzing the writings and lives of specific women throughout church history, Barr illustrates the rich inheritance and influence women have in Christianity. I learned a lot about medieval women and was both fascinated and not surprised by the negative impact the Reformation and Enlightenment had on women (while simultaneously elevating men). In her words, we have a great cloud of female witnesses throughout the history of Christianity, and we would do well to remember these women. (Also I would love an anthology of some of the greatest women preachers, teachers, and writers of various denominations. Perhaps an idea for another book?)

I blew through this book in less than 24 hours because I could not put it down. It was everything I needed to read in this moment, and I will certainly be buying a physical copy and will forever reference it.

Thank you to Netgalley, the author, and Brazos Press for the eARC in exchange for my review.

This book is about 150 years overdue. It is well-researched and beautifully written. I expect, despite being very fair in its criticisms, this book will strike a nerve, much like Kristin Kobes Du Mez' JESUS AND JOHN WAYNE. I hope readers will open their hearts to its truths. There is too much at stake not to.

Beth Allison Barr’s “The Making of Biblical Womanhood” is an eye-opening piece of literature that reveals the origin of the concept of womanhood. It was not thrust down from the heavenly archives as some might believe. To be exposed to the incredible construction of the concept (very human indeed) is convicting as it is revealing. And, all of the church will be healthier for understanding Beth’s academically-rich and personally revealed claims.

"Biblical Womanhood" is not, in fact, biblical.

This is the key message that flows throughout Baylor University historian Beth Allison Barr's informative and engaging "The Making of Biblical Womanhood: How the Subjugation of Women Became Gospel Truth," due to be released by Baker Academic & Brazos Press in April 2021.

If you know me, you won't be surprised that I embrace this key message.

It's a key message that acknowledges historical truths, truths of which Barr is well aware, and yet it's also a key message that faces passionate rejection to this day by many within conservative evangelical circles.

The simple truth is that "Biblical Womanhood," or the belief that God designed women to be submissive wives, virtuous mothers, and joyful homemakers, is less about biblical adherence and far more about the ways that human civilization creeps its way into church teachings and church polity and church practice.

To read "The Making of Biblical Womanhood" is to take a journey through not only biblical history, but also Beth Allison Barr's own journey. She weaves together beautifully historical truths and personal testimony, taking us through precise historical moments that perpetuated the continuation of biblical womanhood while also giving us glimpses, at times quite painful ones, of her own journey within evangelical complementarianism and the moments that finally made it all fall apart for her.

I certainly do not understand what it feels like to be a woman in ministry. However, as a person with a disability who has served in ministry I do have some understanding of the societal blinders that cause the gifts of many to be rejected or minimized. Because of a body that seldom acts like I wish it would act, I have a very clear understanding of what it feels like to have my ability questioned.

Over and over and over again.

I suppose I'm glad that, somehow, I grew up differently. It's weird, really. I grew up a Jehovah's Witness, a denomination that certainly did not embrace women in leadership roles. Yet, I also grew up with spina bifida, a disability that caused me to have well over 50 surgeries before I was 18-years-old and to be told repeatedly that I could never survive and never thrive. Quite honestly, I survived because of the skill and the strength and the passion and the tenderness of women. While I certainly had males who treated me, much of my childhood was spent around female nurses and aides who believed in me when no one else did.

I thrived because they refused to allow me not to thrive.

Once I was away from the Jehovah's Witnesses, though I should say kicked out for the first of what would be two experiences with churches telling me to leave, I began to realize there was a different kind of God I'd never experienced. By my early 20's, I joined a small interfaith church led by a former nun who would mentor me and whose church would eventually ordain me.

It was the first of several experiences of women in ministry that made me study and learn and seek to understand. Just this past year, as I entered a hospital for what would be my third amputation, I recall the steady presence of Rev. Anastassia, an incredible minister whose presence stays with me even as she has departed for a pastoral position on the East Coast.

"The Making of Biblical Womanhood" made me shout. It made me ache. Like Barr, I understand what it's like to stay someplace because it's familiar and safe and family and the alternative is scary.

I also understand what it's like to kick myself for doing so.

"The Making of Biblical Womanhood" is extraordinarily researched, yet it's equally as remarkable in its transparency and vulnerability and absolute presence. Barr refuses to hide behind her choices, acknowledging all those little difficult places in her journey that helped her finally reach this point of say "No more."

She shares the journey of her life, her college days and her marital journey including a journey with her husband that is best experienced through her own words but is quite revealing and memorable.

There are very few writers, Kate Bowler perhaps being one of the best, who can so expertly weave together such precise and comprehensive research along with rich, emotionally resonant personal testimony. The beauty and the power of "The Making of Biblical Womanhood" is that it does both in abundance.

"The Making of Biblical Womanhood" goes beyond the exploration of Greek grammar into the realms of ancient, medieval, and modern history to explore the cultural influences that created and continue to foster biblical womanhood. She weaves in stories from her own experiences as a Baptist pastor's wife and, appropriately so, explores the #ChurchToo movement and the abuse controversies that have plagued Southern Baptist circles and the broader evangelical movement.

Beth Allison Barr theologically smashes the patriarchy, yet she does so in a way that is far from malicious and, in fact, is quite loving. She's simultaneously someone you'd love to sit down to have coffee with, yet you're acutely aware she's so intelligent that you'd probably not understand a good majority of what she's saying.

Until it clicks. And it will. It will because even in her writing she works to make things accessible and understandable. You can feel it in her teaching, as well. She knows what she knows, but she truly wants you to understand it. It's really quite extraordinary.

In all likelihood, "The Making of Biblical Womanhood" is my final book in what has been an active year of reading. It is a book I was excited to read and it's a book that not only lived up to my expectations but surpassed them. From beginning to end, I found myself engaged and informed, emotionally involved and even a little entertained. At times, I set the book aside so I could chew on her words for a bit. Likewise, at times I set the book aside so I could look things up and understand even more.

I already embraced women in ministry and leadership prior to reading "The Making of Biblical Womanhood," but Barr helped me develop a stronger academic and theological argument to support my beliefs and to inform others. She also challenged me to become an even better and more outspoken Christian, a Christian who not only believes in ministry and leadership for women and others but someone who actively engages and empowers those with gifts who are often left on the sideline by the Church.

There's so much that I loved about "The Making of Biblical Womanhood" and I look forward to sharing it with my circle and following Barr's teachings and writings for years to come.

“Evidence shows me how Christian patriarchy was built, stone by stone, throughout the centuries. Evidence shows me how, century after century, arguments for women’s subordination reflect historical circumstances more then the face of God. Evidence shows me that just because complementarianism uses biblical texts doesn’t mean it reflects biblical truth. Evidence shows me the trail of sin and destruction left in the wake of teachings that place women under the power of men. Evidence shows me, throughout history, the women who have always known the truth about patriarchy and who have always believed that Jesus sets women free...isn’t it time for all of us to be free?”

Wow wow wow. I blew through this book in less than 24 hours because I could not stand to put it down. Barr has traced the history of Christianity and made a compelling argument that “biblical womanhood” has little to do with what the Bible says and much to do with what culture says. I had the privilege of reading an advanced, digital copy of this book but I look forward to purchasing a physical copy upon its release.

A must-read for anyone curious about the role of women - and how it has devolved over time- in Christianity.

I love this feminist take on women’s place in the Bible. As a proud Christian, women are at the forefront in my church and community.
It’s interesting to read a book discussing why and what role women play in Christianity. I highly recommend.